The history of San Juancito is inextricably linked to the mineral wealth of the mountains in which it stands.
Before the arrival of the Spaniards, the descendants of the Tolupan / Jicaque people today exploited, on a small scale, the minerals of the region. In the 16th century, the Spaniards made a short-lived attempt to extract ore from the mountains in the area. Using the indigenous population as labour, they proceeded to extract gold and silver from the mountainside; However, after a few years, the indigenous population was so devastated by abysmal diseases and working conditions that the Spaniards, without a reliable source of labour, packed and moved to other seemingly more viable sites in Honduras.