Hidalgo
[key], state, 8,058 sq mi (20,870 sq km), central Mexico. Pachuca de Soto is the capital. Crossed
by the Sierra Madre Oriental, the state is extremely mountainous; in the
southern and western areas, however, are plains and fertile valleys lying
within Mexico's central plateau. The climate is warm in the lower valleys,
temperate on the plateau, and cold in the mountains. One of Hidalgo's chief
crops is maguey (see amaryllis), grown
on the central plateau. Alfalfa, corn, sugarcane, and coffee are also
cultivated. The state's main industry is mining (particularly around
Pachuca), and Hidalgo is a leading national producer of silver, gold,
copper, lead, iron, and sulfur. Cement, textile, automobile manufacturing
and especially oil refining are other major industries. The territory was
occupied successively by the Toltec (whose capital was
Tollán—now Tula), the Chichimecs, and the Aztecs.
Conquered by the Spanish in 1530, it was part of the province and state of
Mexico until it became the separate state of Hidalgo in 1869. There are
several hot springs in Hidalgo.
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