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Taxco de Alarcon, Mexico's silver capital, is a charming colonial town nestled in the mountains of Guerrero state between Mexico City and Acapulco. The town's winding cobblestone streets and whitewashed houses with red tile roofs, and its impressive Santa Prisca cathedral all combine to make Taxco a lovely and picturesque town.
In 1522, the Spanish conquistadors learned that the inhabitants of the area around Taxco paid tribute to the Aztecs in silver, and they set about conquering the region, and setting up mines. In the 1700s, Don Jose de la Borda, a Frenchman of Spanish descent, arrived in the area and became very wealthy from silver mining. He commissioned the baroque Santa Prisca Church that is the centerpiece of Taxco's zócalo.The town's silver industry later experienced a lull until the arrival of Willam Spratling in 1929, who opened a silver workshop. His designs, based on pre-Hispanic art, became very popular. He trained other artisans and is thought to be responsible for Taxco's reputation as the silver capital of Mexico.

http://gomexico.about.com/od/colonialcities/p/taxco.htm