It is best known as the home of a small image of the Virgin Mary called Our Lady of San Juan de los Lagos (Nahuatl: Cihuapilli, lit.

Miracles have been ascribed to her since 1632 and have made the Basilica of San Juan de los Lagos a major tourist attraction.

For much of the pre-Hispanic period, the Altos area was inhabited by groups of Tecuexes and Nahuas who formed small independent states in the 12th century.

Subsequently, the Mixtón Rebellion in the nearby Guadalajara area prompted measures to populate and fortify the Altos region under the supervision of the Franciscans.

This structure was the first home of a very small image of the Virgin Mary, believed to have been brought to the area from Michoacán either by Bolonia or by Friar Antonio de Segovia.

Later, colonial authorities decided to “hispanicize” the Altos region, bringing in a large number of Spaniards and mestizos from neighboring parts, mostly through land grants.

[5] During the colonial era, the San Juan's importance grew as a pilgrimage center because of the miracles ascribed to the local image of the Virgin Mary.

This influx of pilgrims provided a stream of potential customers, spurring the city's development as a regional economic center.

[3] This made the town relatively easy to access and prompted authorities to build and maintain roads and bridges in the area, including a main highway connecting it to Guadalajara in 1717.

The annual fair eventually drew merchants from many localities across central Mexico, including Querétaro, San Luis Potosí, San Juan del Río, Valle de Santiago, Celaya, Guadalajara, Valladolid, Aguascalientes and Zacatecas, many selling merchandise imported to New Spain from abroad through the ports of Veracruz or Acapulco.

The main rivers through the municipality are San Juan (Lagos) and El Agostadero, with three dams Peña de León, Los Laureles and Alcalá.

Predominant wildlife includes: coyotes, pumas, wildcats, wolves, deer (only in areas with abundant vegetation), rabbits, squirrels, opossums, armadillos and moles.

However, since the vast majority of the municipality's population lives in the city of San Juan de los Lagos proper, which has a low level of marginalization, the ameliorates the situation.

Principal crops are corn, beans and sorghum, with livestock consisting of meat and dairy cattle, oxen, pigs, sheep, goats and domestic fowl.

[12] Just under fifty percent of the working population is dedicated to commerce and services, with most of this related to tourism to the city of San Juan de los Lagos, followed by businesses catering to local, mostly primary, needs.

Many of the buildings in the center of the city are made of pink sandstone dating as far back as the 17th century, with the streets fanning out from the main square.

[3] The Cathedral/Basilica of the Virgin of San Juan de los Lagos faces the main square of the city, and dates to 1732.

The walls and ceiling of the nave are richly decorated with gold leaf and cypress woodwork, especially in the capitols, pilasters and other niches.

During the War of Independence, it temporarily housed viceroy Felix Maria Calleja while he and his troops were pursuing Miguel Hidalgo.

The interior is a single nave with a main altar in Baroque style in white sandstone, with Solomonic columns that support a semicircular pediment.

The Capilla del Pocito is where, according to legend, a small girl brought forth a fresh water spring in 1663 by striking the area with a stone.

[3] The Fiestas de la Primavera (Spring Festivals) are held for five days at the end of May with bullfights, live music, dances and cockfights.

[3] In 2010, the Secretary of Tourism for the state began a Festival of Mariachi, Charrería and Tequila in the city to coincide with the Independence Day holiday in San Juan.

[3] Another traditional confection is a large disk of a coconut confection called “alfajor.”[12] The pilgrims come to the city to pay homage to a small image of the Virgin Mary called Our Lady of San Juan de los Lagos, but sometimes referred to by her Nahuatl name of Cihuapilli, which means "Great Lady.

"[9] This image is very small, about 38 cm tall, made of sugar cane paste and believed to have been brought to the area from Michoacán in the early 1500s.

This war reduced the flow of pilgrims and gifts but both returned after and have kept the city and image a major religious attraction for the country.

[15] During peak periods, demand for hotel space far exceeds supply and the municipally opens shelters with basic services.

[9] Most pilgrims come to “repay” the image for a miracle received, an obligation called a “manda.” According to popular belief, those who fail to fulfill a “manda” to the Virgin risk being turned into stone.

[12] For Candlemas, the most important day associated with this image, the morning begins with the singing of Las Mañanitas, traditional dancers and the sharing of tamales and atole.

[3] This image is located in a small church constructed for it in the community of Mezquitic de la Magdalena, four km outside the city of San Juan.