Acámbaro
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Acámbaro is a city in Guanajuato, Mexico.
[edit] History
The first inhabitants of this area belonged to the Chupícuaro culture, one of the oldest in Mesoamerica. Their origin is estimated to be from 1200 B.C. In this region there have been valuable archaeological finds of ceramic of incredible beauty that are now exhibited at the local museum.
The city was founded on September 19, 1526 by the cacique Don Nicolás de San Luis Montañés, with the name San Francisco de Acámbaro. It was the first Spanish town in what is now the state of Guanajuato. The evangelization process was undertaken by Franciscan friars, who also made splendid constructions.
The 18th century brought prosperity to Acámbaro. In that time important religious and public buildings were constructed. Beautiful temples, bridges, and particular houses were left as remnants of the city’s colonial architecture. http://www.interamericaninstitute.org/Acambaro_General_View.JPG An important event in the history of Mexican independence took place in Acámbaro. Don Miguel Hidalgo stayed there on October 22, 1810 and brought a ceremony that declared Acámbaro military quarters for the Ejército Grande de América (Grand Army of America). Hidalgo was given the title of Generalísimo de las Américas (Grand General of the Americas). That same day, a parade of eighty thousand insurgents took place, that demonstrated the speed of growth of the movement: one month prior on September 16 just 800 men raised arms against the Spanish in Dolores.
Because of its strategic location, Acámbaro was the key to the development of the railway in Mexico. During 1944 Acámbaro's mechanical workshop built La Fidelita 296, a steam engine that is a symbol of a time in history of the Acambarense society.[1]
