History of San Juan de la Vaquería
The origins of San Juan de la Vaquería date back a few years before the founding of Saltillo, as it was located on the route of the conquistadors who discovered southeastern Coahuila. If so, San Juan de la Vaquería would be the oldest site or outpost in our territory.
This is evidenced by the discovery in 1568 of the Los Muchachos valley by Captain Francisco Cano, lieutenant mayor of the Real de Minas de Mazapil. The following year, Martín López de Ibarra, lieutenant governor of Nueva Vizcaya, explored and distributed land in this valley. He established his headquarters and camped his troops in the Buena Esperanza valley, "on the part of the road of the kingdoms of Mazapil," which corresponds to the section of the old Camino Real that went from Zacatecas to Saltillo, passing by the El Capulín pond, south of San Juan de la Vaquería.*5
Alberto del Canto, founder of Saltillo, obtained a land grant, shortly before 1583, for a cattle ranch site, equivalent to a square of 5,000 varas (4,200 meters) per side, which corresponds to a little over 1,755 hectares next to the swamp called San Juan, a ranch that would eventually become San Juan de la Vaquería. *6
In 1590, Alberto del Canto sold his lands to General Francisco de Urdiñola, who took several years to take possession of the mentioned site. In the act of possession, dated 1607, it is mentioned that it is "going from the house of the said San Juan ranch to that of Los Patos." The aforementioned house could correspond to the hacienda's main house, around which the current town of La Vaquería developed. From this data, we deduce that some of the walls of the main house date from shortly before 1607 and could correspond to some of the oldest walls we know in the state of Coahuila. *7
It is important to note that in that year, 1629, San Juan de la Vaquería is mentioned for the first time with residents and as a hacienda, whereas in 1607, only the main house of the cattle ranch was mentioned. This leads us to believe that San Juan de la Vaquería, as a town, had its origins in the late 16th or very early 17th century.
*5 Powell, 1988: 146; Original titles of the Aguayo Marquisate estate: 54.
*6 Alessio, 1978: 142; Durón y Narro, 1995: 213; Testimony of the discovery and possession…
*7 Original titles of the Aguayo Marquisate estate: 55.
Our Vineyard
In 1629 there was mention of "La Vaquería San Juan," which over the centuries became a Hacienda.
Fun Fact: Photo of the Lobo family outside one of the hacienda's rooms. Today you can visit it; the door and floor remain exactly the same.
Treasuries
Today, the old haciendas continue to be surrounded by an aura of myth, mystery, and prestige; their traces and history still endure, through the towns and villages that emerged from their main houses or through the architecture that distinguishes them, as well as through that intangible heritage of customs and beliefs that indelibly marked the concept of Mexican identity.
Curious Fact: An old image of the hacienda's facade, from which architect Marco Gomez Saucedo created the sketch used on the red wine label.
