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Juan José Ríos (Juan José Ríos)

Juan José Ríos is an agricultural city located in Northern Sinaloa, Mexico. It is divided in two municipalities, where its major part is located in Guasave Municipality, and the rest is in Ahome Municipality. It had a population of 27,938 inhabitants (including city's both parts in Guasave and Ahome Municipalities), according to the 2010 census.

Ejido Las Vacas (formerly named Juan José Ríos), was founded on 21 September 1938 by presidential decision, by the then President Lázaro Cárdenas del Río. It had an area of 16,420 ha and 179 inhabitants; of which 64 were ejidatarios.

Between the years of 1946 and 1951 several peasants from Los Mochis, 18 de Marzo and San Miguel Zapotitlán towns, Ahome Municipality; and La Louisiana town, El Fuerte Municipality, requested to the Agricultural Department that they be granted with plots to sow in Ejido Las Vacas. And between the years of 1953 and 1954, Agricultural Department granted all of the 672 people who had requested plots.

Several towns in El Fuerte and Choix Municipalities were affected when Miguel Hidalgo Dam construction started. Its construction was divided in two phases: the first one was in the years of 1952 to 1956, and the second one in the years of 1956 to 1964.

The affected towns by dam construction in El Fuerte Municipality were: El Mahome, San Felipe, Gipago y Peñasco, Rincón de Sinaloita and Los Mezcales. The affected towns in Choix Municipality were: El Pajarito, Baca, Caballihuasa, Toro, Picachos and El Sauz. The towns which were affected, their inhabitants were located in different ejidos, as it was in Ejido Las Vacas and its nearby ejidos.

On 21 February 1955, by presidential decision, it was approved an urban area construction in Ejido Las Vacas, for all the affected people by the dam construction. On 28 February 1955, the 637 peasants who were evacuated from the 11 ejidos, which would be flooded by Fort River when the grout curtain of Miguel Hidalgo dam was closed. Affected people were given a 10 ha plot to sow and another plot for living in Ejido Las Vacas. Also, in Ejido Las Vacas were living the original 64 ejidatarios, they lived in Old Las Vacas, as they named the oldest part of Ejido Las Vacas. However, locating the 1375 ejidatarios with their families, it needed another presidential decision to locate in 500 ha each ejidatario giving them a 1,600 m2 (40 m x 40 m) plot for living, including as well as streets, schools and other public services, becoming an urban area, which one were named Juan José Ríos, and it became in a sindicatura. It was the Mexico's biggest ejido, it had an area of more than 16,400 ha.

Juan José Ríos is named after General Juan José Ríos, Mexican politician and soldier, during the Mexican Revolution. Engineers who planned the urban area construction selected this name. Also this General was the last owner of this land.

On 13 July 1989, the then Governor of Sinaloa Francisco Labastida Ochoa, made public Sinaloa State Congress approved Juan José Ríos as a city.