SALTILLO

city, capital of Coahuila estado (state), northeastern Mexico. Lying at the northern edge of the great central plateau at an elevation of 5,246 feet (1,599 m), it has a cool, dry, healthful climate that has made it a summer resort. Although it was the first Spanish settlement (1575) in the region, which was then part of the province of Nueva Viscaya, Saltillo has few colonial buildings. Its 18th-century cathedral, however, is the best example of its type in northern Mexico. From 1824 to 1836 Saltillo was the capital of a vast province that included what is now Texas and other areas of the American Southwest. The Battle of Buena Vista (1847) in the Mexican War took place just south of Saltillo. The city is now a commercial, communications, and manufacturing centre, producing woolen fabrics, knitted goods, and flour. It has long been famous for its fine woolen serapes. Gold, silver, lead, zinc, copper, iron, and coal are mined in the mountains nearby. The Autonomous University of Coahuila was established in Saltillo in 1957. The major railroad and highway leading from Piedras Negras to Mexico City via Monterrey pass through Saltillo. Pop. (1980) 284,937.