DURANGO, a State of northern Mexico, bounded north by Chihuahua, east and south-east by Coahuila, south by Zacatecas and the state of Nayarit, and west by Sinaloa. Pop. Area 42,272 sq. miles. Durango is a continuation southward of the high, semi-arid plateau of Chi huahua, with the Sierra Madre extending along its western side. The rainfall is very light in the eastern part of the State, a succession of years sometimes passing without any precipitation whatever, but in the west it is sufficient to produce good pasturage and considerable areas of forest. There are no rivers of any magnitude in the State. The largest are the Rio Nazas, and the Mezquital. The climate is generally dry and healthy. Cotton is produced to a limited extent, especially where irrigation is employed, and wheat, Indian corn, tobacco, sugar-cane and grapes are also grown. In the elevated valleys of the sierras stock-raising is successful. The principal industry of Durango, however, is mining, and some of the richest and best known mines of Mexico are found in the State. Besides silver, which has been extensively mined since the first arrival of the Spanish under Francisco de Ibarra (1554-62), gold, copper, iron, cinnabar, tin, coal and rubies are found. The famous Cerro del Mercado, 2m. from the city of Durango, is a hill composed in great part of remarkably pure iron ore, and is estimated to contain 300,000,00o tons of that metal. Near it are iron and steel works. In the district of San Dimas is the celebrated Candelaria mine, where the ores (largely argentite) assay between $70 and $140 a ton, the aggregate out put being estimated as over $100,000,000 before the close of the 19th century. With the exception of silver, the mineral resources of the State have been but slightly developed because of difficult and expensive transportation. The Mexican Central railway crosses the eastern side of the State, and the Mexican Interna tional crosses north-east to south-west through the State capital on its way to the port of Mazatlan. The history of Durango is similar to that of Chihuahua, the State originally forming part of the province of Nueva Viscaya. The capital is Durango, and among the principal towns are Guanacevi (pop. [ 1900] 5,675), El Oro (12,015 in 1930), Nombre de Dios (the first Spanish settlement in the State), San Juan de Guadalupe, San Dimas and Villa Lerdo. These are comparatively small min ing towns. Mapimi lies 130m. N.N.E. of Durango and gives its name to the great arid depression situated still farther north.