At the beginning of the Conquest, most natives here fled the Spaniards, but were later enticed to return by the Spanish to continue their former trades. One of the incentives that Vasco de Quiroga gave the natives of the Santa Clara area was the exclusive right to produce “cazos” a cross between a large caldron and a very large wok. These are still used today in Mexico, often to render fat or to fry pig skin into chicharrones. He also introduced new methods of smelting and working copper. Evangelization of the area was led by Friar Francisco Villafuerte, and the town was founded as Santa Clara de Acuero by Friar Martín de Jesús in 1521.
