Los Pinos

Los Pinos is the official residence and office of the President of Mexico. Located in the Bosque de Chapultepec (Chapultepec Forest) in central Mexico City, it became the presidential seat in 1934, when Gen. Lázaro Cárdenas became the first president to live here.

After the Spanish Conquest, a trapiche (mill) was built in Chapultepec, where wheat and maize were processed into flour. This mill became so important that it was later called el Molino del Rey ("the King's Mill"). In 1853, the Molino del Rey was sold to Dr. José Pablo Martinez del Rio, who built the Casa Grande ("Big House") that would later become known as Rancho La Hormiga. In 1865 the whole property was sold to Emperor Maximilian for a total of 25,000 Mexican pesos.