Across Independencia Street is the Museum of the Sierra Gorda. The building was originally known as the Jalpan Fort, constructed in the 16th century by Juan Ramos de Lora and is one of the oldest in Jalpan. The site served as a military fort for centuries and then as a regional jail for about fifty years. In 1991, it became the museum. It contains seven halls that relate the evolution of the Sierra Gorda region from the pre historic period to the early 20th century. The collection includes old maps of the area, pre Hispanic artifacts, fossils, displays about the Spanish conquest and evangelization, with emphasis on the five Franciscan missions and Junípero Serra, artifacts from the Mexican Revolution and a room dedicated to the indigenous peoples of the Sierra Gorda.