The Development of Pacific Coast Ports During the Spanish Colonial Period in Mexico

This paper is an attempt to present an introductory statement concerning the location and function of the ports on the Pacific coast of Mexico during the Spanish colonial period, and to point out some of the leading problems and most promising avenues for research in Pacific Coast historical geography. For convenience in treatment we have considered only the coast of the mainland from the Colorado River to the Isthmus of Tehuantepec-effectively excluding the Californias and Chiapas-Soconusco. The time span involved is three centuries, approximately from 1520 to 1820.