The foundation of the town is awarded to the Purépechas (Tarascans) who repeatedly ventured through these valleys after the Saltpeter War (1480-1510) (Guerra del Salitre).

In 1823 Cuquío was appointed a party with city hall; and in the decree of March 27, 1824, it was constituted as a Department in the then-newly created State of Jalisco, and had the status of a village (villa).

On 2 March 2021, Analuci Martínez Saldívar, a former PAN councilwoman from Cuquío, was shot to death in the Prados Tepeyac neighborhood of the Zapopan municipality.

[3][4][5] The municipality consists of land belonging to the Tertiary and Quaternary periods, composed of sedimentary rocks, alluvial, residual and lacustrine soils.

This region belongs to the Lerma-Chapala-Santiago hydrological basin, Juchipila-Bolaños sub-basin, Río Verde and Grande Belén.

In the fauna, species such as deer, fox, squirrel, coyote, tigrillo and various birds such as quails, owls and mourning doves stand out, among others.

Agriculture is an economic activity that is exercised in the municipality, the crops include corn, sorghum, oats, peel tomatoes, and beans.

Pine and oak are exploited, those woods are partly transported to Guadalajara, the state capital, and the rest is destined to primary uses in the municipality.

The municipality also practices fishing due to its hydrographic situation, whose main waters are the Lerma-Chapala-Santiago hydrological basin, Juchipila-Bolaños sub-basin, Río Verde and Grande Belén.

Tourism offers inhabitants and tourists its archeological zone, as well as the colonial monuments that exist in the municipality, religious, historical buildings, and haciendas.

In trade, activities predominate in the sale of essential products and mixed stores that sell small-scale items.

[citation needed] Among the architectural monuments of the municipality is the Parish Church of San Felipe dating from the 17th century.

There are archaeological remains in an area called La Cofradía that, due to lack of conservation, tend to disappear.

Every first Sunday of July, the Christ is taken to the temple of San Felipe Apóstol as a tradition of the people by a well-known legend there.

In Cuquío there is also the Cuauhquioc Folkloric Group, a ballet directed by Fernando Ramos Barajas, which currently has 24 members, youth and adults; it is the result of the effort and work of nine generations, who have given life to traditions for thirty years, dances of the peoples of the country.

In its thirty years of life, the Cuauhquioc Folkloric Ballet has alternated with folk groups from Ecuador and Colombia, as well as with important artists of popular culture such as Paloma del Río, Valente Pastor, Hilda Aguirre and Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán, among others.

Wooden objects such as chairs, tables and doors are made; paper flowers, embroidery, two-needle and crochet fabrics; clothing, pottery, glazing, wool blankets, baskets of reeds and wood.

You can admire many colonial monuments such as the parish church of San Felipe; the temple of the Sacred Heart and the Convent of Dolores, the house where Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla spent the night.

In order to get to this municipality leaving from Guadalajara, it is recommended to reach Avenida Alcalde, exit towards Zacatecas, after passing toward the North the Anillo Periférico, the above-mentioned avenue takes the name Carretera a Saltillo, id est, Federal Free Highway 54; follow the same direction to Ixtlahuacán del Río, and, before reaching the seat of this municipality you will find a junction with the Jalisco State Highway 201 Cuquío; please turn right to take this one.