Azcapotzalco
[key], city, S Mexico, in the Federal District. An important rail center, with railroad
yards, it is the terminus of mail and cargo traffic. Azcapotzalco's cattle industry supplies
the bulk of Mexico City's dairy products. Other industries include auto assembling, oil
refining, and the manufacture of textiles, paper, and records. The city was a leading cultural
center in the pre-Columbian period. During Mexico's War of Independence, it was the site
(1821) of a major battle in which loyalist troops were forced to retreat by the revolutionary
soldiers. Azcapotzalco is noted for its baroque colonial architecture and its 18th-century
churches.
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