Guerrero Negro's unusual name, “Black Warrior” in English, comes from the Black Warrior, a US whaling ship hailing from Duxbury, Massachussets, which was wrecked in what was then called Frenchman's Lagoon on 1858.

This lagoon is an important breeding ground for a large number of mollusks and fish. A port was located here, and navigation channel was dredged and it was also by the whales to enter to the lagoon. However, when the port was transferred to Isla Cedros, dredging of the channel was stopped and the mouth of the lagoon was blocked, so the whales no longer enter but you can see dolphins, sea lions and hundreds of birds.

In the old port there are oyster and lion clam aquaculture concessions.