In 1828, the main district (known as the Municipality) of San José divided the Murciélago neighborhood into several groups of houses. This gave cause for registering, under the name of San José del Murciélago, what today is known as the , which became a village and eventually on August 6, 1891, according to Law No. 56 during José Joaquín Rodríguez Zeledón's administration, this village was granted township status to head the canton as its main district. Entry for San José del Murciélago was recorded in the Neighborhoods and Quarters Boundary Register at the Department of San José a full 63 years before Guadalupe reached municipality status for the Canton of Goicoechea.