The first populations settled in communities now known as Tapaxco, Endotejiare, Tultenango and Santiago Oxtempan, all of which are in the current municipality of El Oro.

Initially, the Mazahuas were hunter-gatherers but dedicated themselves to agriculture and fishing as well as hunting, as the Mazahua-populated region became dominated the Toltecs, the Chichimecas and then the Aztecs.

[1] Up until the Spanish Conquest of Mexico, there was no settlement in what is now the town of El Oro, nor was its gold deposit discovered.

One version states that it was founded by the Mondragón family, guided by a child who showed them where he grazed his flock.

El Oro initially belonged to the territory of Ixtlahuaca, but upon discovery of gold, the land became Crown property.

[1] Twenty two years after the discovery of gold here, the Count of Revillagigedo hired engineer Manuel Agustín Mascaró to plan out the community, which was centered just northeast of where the downtown is now.

The town had become an important source of gold and silver in late colonial times, but there were problems with supplying food and other needs due to the rocky terrain.

El Oro's first chapel was built in 1791, but the seat of ecclesiastical power in the area as established in Tapaxco, four years earlier.

After independence, engineer Vicente Rivafola and Lucas Alamán worked to create mining companies here with investment funds from British sources.

This would eventually lead to the building of the municipal palace and the Juárez Theater with Neoclassic and Art Nouveau designs.

These were introduced primarily in the town of El Oro, which began to establish it as the primary center over Tapaxco.

[3] Soon the only operating mine was one called Dos Estrellas, located between El Oro and Tlalpujahua, which subsequently closed in 1958.

During the height of the town's mining, this theater attracted top-level talent of the early 20th century such as Ángela Peralta, Enrico Caruso, María Conesa and others.

[4] Running from here to Tultenango and Villa Victoria, rail line leading here was created for the mines, but the trains carried both cargo and passengers.

To the side of the station is an antique rail car which contains a restaurant, which contains a collection of photographs from the town's mining heyday.

[4] Typical dishes of this area include red or green mole with turkey or chicken, barbacoa, and carnitas.

A local sweet is called "cola de macho," which is made from dried fruit and piloncillo sugar.

[4] As municipal seat, the town of El Oro de Hidalgo is the governing authority for the following communities: Adolfo López Mateos, Ejido San Nicolás el Oro (Agua Escondida), Bassoco de Hidalgo, Buenavista (Buenavista Tapaxco), Citeje, Concepción Primera, La Concepción (La Concepción Segunda), Colonia Cuauhtémoc, Endotejiare, La Jordana, La Magdalena Morelos, La Mesa, La Nopalera, La Palma, Presa Brockman, Pueblo Nuevo de los Ángeles, San Nicolás Tultenango, Santa Rosa de Lima, Ejido Santiago Oxtempan, Santiago Oxtempan, Tapaxco, Santa Cruz el Tejocote (El Tejocote), Estación Tultenango (Tultenango), Venta del Aire, Yomeje, Cerro Llorón, Barrio del Gigante, El Mogote, San Isidro Ejido de Tapaxco, El Libramiento (Cerro de Estrellita), Barrio de las Peñitas, San Nicolás el Oro (San Nicolás), Santa Rosa de Guadalupe, Ex-hacienda de Santo Domingo Tultenango, La Soledad, Jales Tiro México, El Carmen, Laguna Seca, Loma del Capulín, Lázaro Cárdenas, Llanito Cuatro, Colonia Monte Alto and La Loma de la Cima.

More recently, a tourism trade is being developed to take advantage of the natural surroundings of the area as well as the interesting architectural features that can be found in the towns of the municipality.

The Sanctuary has rustic lodgings as well as restaurants, horse rentals, trained guides and handcraft vendors.

[4] The Brockman Dam is located about 4 km south of the town of El Oro on the road to Villa Victoria.

[4] It was built by Guillermo Brockman to act as a reservoir for water for the mines and homes of El Oro and Tlalpujahua.