Before the arrival of the Spanish in Mexico, the indigenous community known as �Taxco� was not located where the modern city is now. The name referred to a village about ten kilometers to the south, which is now referred to as Taxco El Viejo (Old Taxco). In pre-Hispanic times, this village was the most important in the area as it was the seat of the Aztec governor who presided over tribute collection in the surrounding seven districts. The modern Spanish town of Taxco was founded by Hern�n Cort�s in an area previously known as Tetelcingo, because of the abundance of silver here.
Mining here began in the pre-Hispanic period with natives extracting a number of stones for decorative and ritual purposes. Mining operations in the area during the early colonial period was carried out mostly by mining haciendas such as the Hacienda El Chorillo and the Hacienda San Juan Bautista, established by Cort�s or soldiers of Cort�s. In the mid 18th century, Jos� de la Borda arrived to Taxco and started more modern operations in mines called Pedregal, El Coyote, San Ignacio and Cerro Perdido.
For most of the colonial period, the area was sparsely populated, including the town of Taxco itself. For this reason, it was governed as a dependency of Mexico City. When the modern state of Guerrero was created in 1850, Taxco was chosen to be the seat of the municipality of the same name. Since it was the only town of any size in the area, the town was taken a number of times during a number of different conflicts. During the Mexican War of Independence, it was taken by Hermene gildo Galeana in 1815. During the Reform Wars, it was taken by Porfirio Diaz in 1865. During the Mexican Revolution, it was taken by Jesus Moran and Margarito Giles in 1911, and occupied by Carranza�s forces in 1916
