[5] Hernan Cortés sent Gonzalo de Sandoval to Huaxtepec (Oaxtepec), also taking Totolapan in 1519, at the beginning of the Spanish Conquest.

[2][5] After the conquest, the lands of encomienda were granted to Diego Olguín in 1536, but when the Marquisate of the Valley of Oaxaca was created, they were annexed to it.

[2] The native population was evangelized by the Augustinians and the Monastery of San Guillermo Abad was built in 1545 under the leadership of Fray Jorge de Ávila.

In 1742 Totolapan and surrounding communities were integrated into Chalco, and on January 1, 1813, these became parts of Cuernavaca and Cuautla.

[5] A comet seen in the area of Popocateptl volcano in 1910 was seen as an omen that convinced many inhabitants to join the forces of Emiliano Zapata in the Mexican Revolution.

[5] Servio Omar Livera Chavarria of Panal (New Alliance) was elected Presidente Municipal (mayor) on July 1, 2018.

[6] One of his priorities is to reestablish law enforcement, as several communities have established self-defense leagues, and he wants to prevent lynchings, like the recent one in Tetela del Volcan.

[9] On July 2, Totalapán reported 50 infections and four deaths from the virus; the reopening of the state was pushed back until at least June 13.

In addition to the main town, there are other localities within the municipality: Ahuatlan (altitude 1,960 meters, population 510),[14] Ampliacion San Sebastián, El Fuerte, San Sebastian (La Cañada), Nepopualco (altitude 2,040 meters population 1,957),[15] Villa Nicolás Zapata, and Santa Bárbara.

Corn, beans, and oats are the primary crops, along with peaches, pears, apples, tejocote (a yellow fruit), and capulín (a type of cherry).

It has a barrel vault, its facade is formed by a molded semicircular arch limited by two circular pilasters.

It is at an altitude of 1,897 meters (6,224 feet) above sea level in the area known as Los Altos de Morelos.

The foothills of the Sierra Chichinautzin and the Ajusco are semi-plains, whereas the center and south of the municipality have valleys and plains.

In the south there are varieties belonging to the low deciduous forest: casahuate, tepehuaje, guaje, palo dulce, amate blanco, and copal.

Fauna includes white-tailed deer, raccoon, skunks, squirrels, the mouse of the volcanoes, puma or mountain lion, Moctezuma quail, mountain hen, Bellaterra pigeon, blue magpie, goldfinch, Florida mulatto, red spring, rattlesnake, viper rat, frogs, and lizards.