|
Your
guide to quality accommodation throughout Mexico - Coahuila
|
Coahuila Information (view
map)
Coahuila, state (1990 pop.
1,972,340), 58,067 sq mi (150,394 sq km), N Mexico, on the northward bulge
of the Rio Grande, S of Texas. Saltillo is the capital. In the eastern
part of the state, where peaks of the Sierra Madre Oriental rise, are quantities
of silver, copper, lead, iron, and zinc. Coahuila is an important coal-producing
state and a leading national producer of iron and steel. Lumbering is important,
and northeast of the mountains, in the drainage area of the Rio Grande,
there is considerable cattle raising.
Across W Coahuila and E Chihuahua
lie vast and arid plains (some of them recently irrigated), which are broken
by barren mountains; most notable of these plains is the Bolsón
de Mapimí, extending into Chihuahua. South of the Bolsón
is a fertile lake region, center of a vast inland basin, which absorbs
rivers with no outlet to the sea. A considerable portion of the Laguna
District lies in this area. Torreón is the chief metropolis.
Coahuila produces cotton,
corn, and grapes; the state is noted for its wines. Exploration of the
territory began in the 16th cent. but was hampered by Native American hostility.
After playing some part in the war against Spain, Coahuila was combined
(1830) with Texas, a proceeding that caused dissatisfaction among the U.S.
minority and contributed to the Texas Revolution (1835–36). During the
Mexican War, Saltillo was of strategic importance, and the battle of Buena
Vista was fought nearby. Joined with Nuevo León by the constitution
of 1857, Coahuila regained its separate status in 1868. The revolutionary
leaders Francisco I. Madero and Venustiano Carranza were born in the state.
Coahuila
Map
Top
|
