Francisco de Ibarra

He went to Mexico as a young man, and upon the recommendation and financing of his uncle, conquistador and wealthy mine owner Diego de Ibarra, Francisco was placed at the head of an expedition to explore northwest from Zacatecas in 1554.

Ibarra was appointed governor of the newly formed province of Nueva Vizcaya (New Biscay) in 1562, and the following year he founded the city of Durango to be its capital.

[2]: 29, 53–4 In 1564, Ibarra, following rumors of rich mineral deposits, crossed the Sierra Madre Occidental to conquer what is now southern Sinaloa.

Prospectors discovered silver veins in the new territory, and in 1565, de Ibarra founded the towns of Copala and es:Pánuco (Sinaloa).

Francisco de Ibarra died on 3 June 1575 in Pánuco, Sinaloa, one of the silver-mining cities that he founded.