During the Spanish colonization at the beginning of the 16th century, European colonizers settled in the area. A coffin found underground the basilica was tested in laboratories and was dated prior to 1600. Historians also mention the Horomico river as one of the main sources of gold during the rush of the era. In 1692, the settlement that would become the town of Hormigueros was first established as a village of San Germán. It was founded by Giraldo González de la Renta sometimes spelled Geraldo).