Francisco Cano

Lieutenant Major Francisco Cano
Born	Unknown Spain
Died	1500s New Spain
Allegiance	Spanish Empire
Service/branch	Spanish Army
Years of service	1568
Rank	Lieutenant Major
Commands held	Mines of Mazapil
Battles/wars	Aftermath of the Conquest of the Aztec Empire
Spouse(s)	Isabel de Monteuccoma
Other work	Explorer and landowner

Francisco Cano (c. 1568) was a Spanish conquistador and explorer who travelled the north of Mexico to find gold and other precious metals in the 16th century. He served as Lieutenant Major of the Mazapil mines in the 1560s and discovered a lake in Mexico which led to further colonization of the area. He is considered important to the colonization of what is today New Mexico because of his opening up of supply lines in Zacatecas. His work in the mines was a major asset in the expanding metal trade that played a large role in the expansion of the Spanish economy throughout the world.

Cano most grew up in Spain, where men of all ages were being recruited to go on voyages to the New World to explore and conquer more territory for the Empire. He was of common descent and not from an important familial line but still had opportunities open up due to the need for manpower in the new Spanish colonies in the Americas.

He became a Lieutenant Major in the Spanish Army in New Spain, and presided over the golds mines in Mazapil. One of his main objectives was to find precious metal deposits in the northern areas of New Spain.

By the 1560s, the Spanish had conquered the Aztec Empire and were pushing into what is today northern Mexico. On November 6, 1568, Cano reported discovering a new lake which he christened the "Lago de Nuevo Mexico". He had been serving as lieutenant major of the mines of Mazapil at the time.

In late 1568 Cano and the 16 soldiers under his command came upon a large lake while looking for gold and silver mines in the area. There were a large number of small Indian villages which the Spanish referred to as rancherías, as well as many Chichimeca Indians, mostly fishermen. He called his discovery the Lake of New Mexico, with the approval of the 16 soldiers under his command. The lake that he had discovered was not actually in what would today be considered the state of New Mexico in the United States. Instead, it most likely was in what is today Zacatecas in Mexico proper. The area was in the somewhat mythical (at the time) land of Aztlan where the Aztec Empire had expanded from. The exploration of the area was the final conquest of the Aztec legacy and led to a strong Spanish footprint in the area.

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Wikipedia