UPDATED Quick History: Bayambang Through the Years

 

 

Quick History: Bayambang Through the Years

It has been 411 years since the founding of Bayambang in 1614. Known then as Malunguey and part of Binalatongan town (now San Carlos City), the town started as a flourishing settlement of native inhabitants. Largely an agricultural town to this day, it is a survivor of the ravages of time: from economic woes and the impact of colonization and war to natural calamities and man-made destruction. From being a typical sleepy provincial town, Bayambang of today dares to dream big and soar high against all odds.

 

TIMELINE

Pre-colonial times

According to the records obtained from the awarans of our old folks, such as Bernardo Gutierrez and Honorato Carungay, and also from the testimonies of some of their contemporaries, Bayambang was founded in the early sixteenth century by an Aeta known as Agalet.

In the early days, the Aeta founder led in forming the town by organizing his own tribe. He formed barangays composed of small villages. The town was first located in what is now barrio Inirangan and Hermosa (or Hermoza) and later on moved to the barrio of Telbang and part of southern Poblacion just at the old Spanish Catholic Cemetery which is better known as the old Bayambang. The old Municipal building was found near the public market until finally moved to its present location.

1614

Bayambang, known then as Malunguey or Balonguey, became a visita (a settlement of families under the jurisdiction of the motherhouse regularly visited by a religious functionary for its religious needs) of the Vicar of Binalatongan (now City of San Carlos). 

1619

Malunguey was accepted as one of the vicariates of the Dominican Order at the Provincial Chapter of 1619 under the patronage of Saint Vincent Ferrer. It became independent from its matrix Binalatongan.

1660

In October, an uprising in Malunguey broke out, though this was immediately quelled by Spanish forces. When the Malong revolt broke out two months later, the people of Malunguey joined Andres Malong in their disgust over the excesses of the Spanish authorities. Malunguey, along with Binalatongan, were the two remaining rebel towns at the end of the revolt.

Telbang, a native settlement, was placed under the jurisdiction of Malunguey.

1741

The original church and convent of Malunguey was transferred from its original location to a more elevated place called Bayambang, the present town, after the recurrence of destructive flooding. 

The name of the town, Bayambang, is thought to be have come from the colibangbang tree (with culibangbang and kulibangbang as variants), Bauhinia or Piliostigma acuminata or malabarica, which used to thrive in the area. However, this is contested since "colibangbang" is an Ilocano word for "butterfly," and there exists another plant that is, in fact, called “bayambang” in Tagalog, the Amaranthus spinosus (Linn.) or uray or kulitis, and then another, Celosia or Deeringia polysperma, an ornamental amaranth species. Then again, "balangabang" or “balangbang" is also another local word for "colibangbang." Incidentally, "bayangbang" is also a Tagalog term for the sword fern or Nephrolepis hirsutula. To complicate matters, in Pangasinan, the word "bayambang" is a native term that refers to a place that is "madanom" (Pangasinan for "matubig" or "waterlogged"), which exactly describes some flood-prone barangays of the town today lying along Agno River. Furthermore, "balangbang" is the term for hip in the Pangasinan language. What further complicates the origin story further is another theory that Bayambang might have come from "bayang-bayang," an old native term for “scarecrow,” which has indeed historically abounded in this rice-growing town.

1763

On March 1, rebels under the command of Juan Dela Cruz Palaris, the leader of the Palaris revolt which started on 1762, mounted captured cannons in a bridge in Bayambang towards the direction of the Spaniards. In the said battle, the Spanish forces were able to capture the staff of the rebels. However, they didn’t pursue the rebels but instead returned to their home base on Bacolor, Pampanga.

1792

Under the Spanish regime, the first chief executive of the town was Vicente Cayabyab who held office as gobernadorcillo. This office was held from 1792 to 1891, with Julio Gloria as the last gobernadorcillo.

1813

The construction of the church and the convent, made of bricks and stone, started this year.

1834

The Alcalde Mayor of Pangasinan submitted a petition to acquire two big boats for use in the transport of mails between Bayambang and Paniqui in Tarlac, and for use during floods.

1838

Camiling became independent of Bayambang.

1855

Domingo Junio dela Cruz, then the town’s gobernadorcillo or mayor, submitted a petition to construct a new town hall to the office of the Alcalde Mayor of Pangasinan. He was supported by the town’s parish priest, Fr. Raymundo Barcelo.

1865

The first Pangasinan-Spanish dictionary produced by Father Lorenzo Fernandez Cosgaya was compiled in Bayambang.

1875

On May 25, Catalina de Seña led a petition where the people of Barrio Hermoza requests to separate from Bayambang due to its immense distance to the town center. The petition forwarded to the Alcalde Mayor of Pangasinan.

A petition from the people of Dangla, a barrio of Bayambang, to become a separate town was granted with 11 cabecerias or barrios composing the new town which was later named Alcala.

1880

On March 6, the Alcalde Mayor of Pangasinan elevated to the office of the Governor General the request of Doña Modesta Leonarda Mendoza to operate public school for girls.

One of the first three rice mills in Pangasinan was installed and operated in Bayambang by British firm Smith, Bell and Company.

1892

The title of local chief executive was changed to Capitan Municipal, with Mauricio de Guzman as the first capitan. His successors were Honorato Carungay, Lorenzo Rodriguez, a Spaniard, and Julian Mananzan, who was the last of the capitanes.

At the time of Capitan Municipal Mauricio de Guzman, the Juez de Paz was Ramon de Castro, the Cura Parroco was Padre Feliciano Fernandez Martin, and public education (instruccion publica) was handled by Profesor Juan Sison and Profesora Francisca Navarrete, there were rice milling machines, warehouses, and traders, and there were groceries and shops. The one in charge of the rice mills (maquinas para mondar arroz) was Mr. Bray of Smith Bell & Co. which was a British investor in rice buying and exportation, and the grocery (comestibles) proprietor was Manuel Espinosa.

 

1896

On April 6, Fr. Feliciano Martin started the construction of the first stone-fenced cemetery, which was completed under the leadership of secular priest Fr. Frangno Fernandez. (Today, only its entrance arch remains, with Heritage Rd., Brgy. Cadre Site as its address.)

On June 1, in the midst of the ongoing revolution against Spain, an inventory of church properties was conducted with the intent that whatever result the uncertain times might bring, the properties were properly accounted for.

1897

"The Katipunan contingent attempted to raid the town's Spanish detachment, to engage in an agaw-armas activity, and the Spaniard's reaction may have affected the Katipunan's activities in the province.”

"In retaliation, General Ricardo Monet, the Spanish commander of the Bayambang detachment, put the town of Bayambang under the juez de cuchillo (literally judge of the knife, meaning justice of the sword). The Spanish army rounded up the suspected Katipuneros of Bayambang and massacred them. Then they burned the poblacion of Bayambang. Finally, General Monet issued a warning that he would place any town [in Pangasinan] under the juez de cuchillo if the rebels attacked any Spanish guardia civil. This must have tied the hands of the Pangasinan Katipuneros."

“Bayambang thus became the first town in Pangasinan to go through juez de cuchillo, with many of the prominent men of the town executed and almost all their houses razed to the ground. The rich and poor alike had to flee for their lives because of the cruelty of the Spaniards. It was only through the intervention of a Spanish-Filipino general that the juez de cuchillo ended.”

 

1898

Bayambang was a pueblo with 8,505 inhabitants, according to the "Anuario del Comercio de la Industria de la Magistratura y de la Administracion" (1898). Local farmers produced rice, corn, sweet potato, banana, sugar, tobacco, coffee, cocoa, coconut oil, indigo dye, and mung beans.

During the Revolutionary period, Saturnino Junio was appointed the Presidente (chief executive) of the town.

Julian Mananzan was Vice-Presidente, Mateo Mananzan and Felix Tamondong were Komandante, and Juan Fajardo was Juez Ynstructor.

1899

In June, General Antonio Luna had his brief encampment in Bayambang to prepare the defense of General Emilio Aguinaldo. Here, he received a telegram from General Aguinaldo ordering him to report to Cabanatuan, Nueva Ecija to see the General.

Gen. Gregorio del Pilar -- fondly referred to as 'Goyo' -- purposely went to Bayambang to fulfill a mission: to find Gen. Antonio Luna and his men.  This is the reason why the Malolos-based Salinlahi heritage tour group makes a stop in Bayambang every December as part of retracing the path that Goyo took leading to his martyrdom at Tirad Pass in Concepcion (renamed Gregorio del Pilar), Ilocos Sur.

Jose Palma, a staff member of the Revolutionary Government’s newspaper “La Independencia,” wrote a Spanish poem, “Filipinas,” that became the lyrics of “Marcha Nacional Filipina,” now the Philippine National Anthem. He penned the poem in Bautista, then a sitio of Bayambang.

On November 12, Bayambang became the 5th capital of the short-lived Philippine Republic when General Emilio Aguinaldo, the first president of the Philippine Republic, transferred the seat of government here. At the same time, the regular army was disbanded and the revolutionaries resorted to guerrilla warfare in dealing with the Krag-wielding American army.

While Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo and company were on their way to Bayambang, his daughter Flora Victoria died of undisclosed cause, and when they reached the town, she was buried at the local church.

Around this time, an equally historical event was the stealthy publication of an issue or issues of "La Independencia," the First Philippine Republic's newspaper. Originally edited by General Antonio Luna, this issue must have been edited by poet-soldier Jose Palma. Recounts historian Ricardo Jose in his book on the history of local journalism, "As the Americans advanced, the press moved northward (right inside the coach of the Ferrocarril de Manila-Dagupan): to Angeles, Tarlac and finally to Bautista, Pangasinan."

"Due to the difficult conditions and shortage of printing materials, the size of the paper shrank and the number of pages dropped to two. Paper was never totally lacking, as loyal Filipinos somehow were able to maintain the supply of newsprint, but the difficulties of putting out the paper under siege conditions finally became so great that the press and its materials were buried near the final office of the paper. Palma and his compatriots then escaped to Camiling, Tarlac."

An account of General Elwell Stephen Otis reveals that the American Army was eventually able to retrieve the buried printing press. How they were able to locate the printing press in its place of concealment is a mystery.

Ricardo Jose also wrote that, apart from "La Independencia" in Manila, "there were other local nationalistic papers" published between 1899 to 1900 in the Philippines, and "Bayambang, Pangasinan had Babasaey Ombaley, a bilingual paper in Pangasinan and Ilocano."

 

1900?

When the military government was inaugurated by the Americans, Evaristo E. Dimalanta was appointed president.

1900?

At the inauguration of the American-era civil government, Laureano Roldan was appointed first president of the town. The succeeding presidents according to their terms of office were Albino Garcia, Gavino de Guzman, Mateo Mananzan, Marciano Fajardo, Agustin Carungay, Emeterio Mananzan, and Eusebio Camacho.

1901

Bautista, a sitio of Bayambang, became a separate town.

1903

On October 13, the US colonial government declared 289 hectares of land in Bayambang as Camp Gregg Military Reservation, covering 12 barangays.  American forces established camps and posts in different parts of Bayambang. 

1906

Gavino de Guzman became Municipal President up to 1907.

1908

The Philippine Postal Savings Bank opened a branch in Bayambang two years after it opened for business in 1906.

1910

According to historian Ian Alfonso, on July 17, “Major Eugene Randolph Whitmore, M.D. administered the first anti-rabies vaccine shot to an American soldier, believed to have been bitten by a rabid dog, at Camp Gregg in Bayambang. From then on, the Philippine government began its quest to eradicate rabies through vaccination.”

1914

Bayambang Central School was built by virtue of Act No. 1801 framed by Assemblyman Isauro Gabaldon of Nueva Ecija. The original building, which used to house the school library for the longest time, was demolished reportedly due to termite infestation.

1919

Dr. Raymundo O. Camacho became Assemblyman of the third district of Pangasinan in 1919-1922 and 1922-1925. He became the founder of the Pangasinan Medical Society and the first director of the Pangasinan Provincial Hospital.

1920

Eusebio C. Camacho became Municipal President up to 1925. He held office for two terms but died during the second year of his second term. He was succeeded by his vice president, Eustaquio Bautista.

1922 

Gabaldon buildings were erected at the old Bayambang Central School campus and the present site of Pangasinan State University - Bayambang Campus. The Bayambang Normal School started operations to produce much-needed public school teachers until it was temporarily closed in 1935.

1926

Emeterio C. Camacho became Municipal President up to 1928 when he won the election against Enrique M. Roldan.

Farmacia San Rafael, Bayambang’s first drug store, was established.

1929

Enrique M. Roldan started his three terms as Municipal President up to 1937.

1930

Victorina Cayabyab (Brillante) was crowned as the first Miss Bayambang.

1933

On January 21, the Mangabul Fishery Reservation was established by virtue of Republic Act 4041, with usufructuary rights awarded by the national government to the Municipality of Bayambang.

1930s

The local parish church was popularly called a shrine of Saint Vincent Ferrer. Everyday, devotees from other towns would visit the church because of what they believed was the saint’s miraculous power.  People who were suffering from certain ailments would walk with their knees from the last pew up to the altar, then up to the statue of the saint. The church was open wide daily, as devotees came and went, with the devotees claiming they felt well after paying homage to the saint.

Bubon nen San Vicente Ferrer near M.H. Del Pilar St. became popular with devotees as a site in which to bathe or to procure what they professed to be healing water.

In the latter part of the decade, the original plaza was a vast uninterrupted expanse of open space extending to the lot occupied by the old accessoria that included the lot occupied by Royal Mall today right along the Agno River.

?1920s

The town’s Puericulture Center opened, and it was managed by a private organization under Dr. Santos.

According to Perfector Beltran’s recollection, Dr. Dimalanta was the first Puericulture Center physician, Dr. Anselmo Gomez the first private medical practitioner, Dr. Pacia the first dental practitioner and school dentist, Mrs. Felomena Ferrer the first Puericulture Center nurse/midwife. Other doctors were Dr. Mateo Aguirre and Dr. Lamberto Paragas, who both trained in the US and practiced in Bayambang.

 

1934

The public bandstand was erected, and was fashioned to look like a giant crown. A gazebo or pavilion-like structure in the middle of what is now the Public Auditorium, the bandstand was constructed under the administration of Atty. Gerundio Umengan, Sr., then Presidente (the old term for Mayor) from 1937 to 1940. The roofless structure was designed by the renowned architect Juan Arellano in the Art Deco style. Surrounding the gazebo are coconut-like concrete structures that once served as posts of big white globular lights which illuminated the plaza at night.

 

1935

Mary Help of Christians Institution, Bayambang’s first private Catholic school, was founded under the administration of the RVM sisters. It is now known as Saint Vincent Catholic School of Bayambang Inc.

 

1936

On October 27, more than 200 alleged Sakdalistas, an anti-American, left-leaning group of discontented peasants and urban workers, were arrested and locked up in the municipal jail then faced sedition charges in connection with their frustrated attempt to attack several municipalities in the province, with Bayambang as their “center of operation” in the entire province. Pablo Penullar of Bayambang was revealed to be the head of all Sakdals in Pangasinan. An attempt to bomb the Bayambang Municipal Hall and burn the entire town was discovered and thus foiled. 24 of them were eventually acquitted due to “insufficient evidence.”

1937

Bayambang’s municipal building was built to serve as “abong na baley,” literally the town’s house. A fusion of California Mission Revival style and bahay na bato features, the architecture was based on a standard plan known as Narvacan Type by Juan Arellano that was adopted for other similar edifices (called Presidencia at the time) around the country. The structure was accented vertically by a mirador (lookout room). Through the years, the municipal building has undergone structural changes under different administrations. The most significant changes had been made in its facade.

1938

Atty. Gerundio Umengan took over the office of the president of Bayambang after winning over Valentin Caragan. There was a time, however, when Faustino van Bosch was appointed Acting President. Umengan’s term ended in 1940.

1940

Leopoldo de Aquino won the election as municipal mayor and served up to the outbreak of the war in 1942.

1941

Japanese troops invaded Bayambang. Residents fled to the barrios by walking at midnight.

?1941

During the Japanese regime, Bayambang was made the capital of Pangasinan when Dr. Diaz was appointed Governor by the Japanese Imperial Government. Dr. Diaz held his Provincial Administration Office at the residence of Eulogio Dauz at the junction of Quezon Blvd. and M.H. Del Pilar St.

 

1943 

During World War II, noted American military official, Col. Edwin Ramsey, set foot in Bayambang to organize Filipino guerrillas against a common nemesis: the Japanese Imperial Army. In the country's bitter struggle against Japanese imperialism, Bayambang had been Lt. Edwin P. Ramsey's East Central Luzon Guerrilla Area (ECLGA) headquarters for some time. ECLGA encompassed Manila, Nueva Ecija, Pampanga, Tarlac, Pangasinan, Zambales and La Union. Ramsey's aide de camp was our very own Major Claro J. Camacho of Barangay Nalsian.

According to local lore, Col. Ramsey evaded capture by the Japanese by hiding inside a taltagan (giant boat-shaped wooden mortar) in the barrio of Inirangan.

When liberation came, American forces bombed the big buildings including the church and Calvo Bridge.

One bomb was dropped in the church and fell right in the middle of the aisle but did not explode, causing no damage – a miracle attributed to the patron, St. Vincent Ferrer.

Another bomb created a huge crater north of M.H. Del Pilar. The crater has since been filled up with assorted materials and converted into the present barangay hall complex.

Another bomb hit the Calvo Bridge.

After the war, a huge part of Bayambang became the site of the American colonial government’s Camp Gregg Military Reservation.

When the military government of the Japanese Imperial Army relinquished its military rule, Leopoldo Aquino was named municipal mayor and served up to mid-1944.

 

1944

Mariano Fernandez took over as acting municipal mayor up to Liberation time. He was appointed by Pangasinan governor Santiago Estrada.

On December 27, former mayor Enrique Roldan was executed over a fishpond (Mangabul?) dispute with a rival guerilla unit but under the guise that he was a Japanese collaborator. The masterminds were sentenced with reclusion perpetua. (People of the Philippines vs Bato; date of decision: May 31, 1950)

 

Early 1940s

The Odon Rice Mill was put up in M.H. Del Pilar. It burned down in the ‘60s.

 

1945

On January 7, the Pangasinan Normal School (formerly Bayambang Normal School) started operations with 293 students.

During Liberation era, Ambrosio Gloria became the next municipal mayor after he was appointed by the Philippine Civil Affairs Unit of the United States Army. He served for about a year.

?1945

The Bayambang Public Cemetery was transferred to Zone V.

The Wawa bridge was built as a wooden bridge across Agno River to connect the barrios of Oaoa (now Wawa) and San Vicente.

1946

Eligio Sagun became mayor up to 1947.

?Leopoldo Aquino reassumed the mayorship of the town for several months, and later Bernardo Lagoy took over as municipal mayor.

The Agno River Dike was constructed.

The Adam and Eve Chapel was constructed in Sitio Bengal, Barangay Tanolong, as a private Roman Catholic chapel originally owned by Simplicio Junio and wife Emelia Iglesias Junio. The structure attracted curiosity because of its unusual dedication to humanity’s purported first parents and its underground chapel.

~1946-1948

A lawyer from this town, Atty. Onofre Guevara, became president of the Malacañang Press Corps under the term of President Manuel Roxas.

1948

Amado Cruz of BNHS class of 1948 entered the Philippine Military Academy just after graduation, but did not complete the four-year cadetship.

1947

The Sagun Brothers' Rice Mill or E.T. Sagun Rice Mill was established in what is now known as Zone VII.

Upon the assumption of President Manuel Roxas, Eligio Sagun was appointed municipal mayor and held office up to the time of election.

1948

Leopoldo Aquino became Municipal President again up to 1950.

In the summertime, the construction of the main building of Bayambang National High School began.

Bayambang National High School came out with "The Torch," its school publication, with Felipe Santillan as editor-in-chief.

BNS reopened as the Pangasinan Normal School or PNS, becoming one of the first normal schools in the Philippines. It offered a two-year teacher education program.

1949

Upon the return of US forces after the war, the American colonial government returned the Camp Gregg military reservation lands on March 27 to the Philippine government, particularly to the Bureau of Lands. Today, surviving artifacts from this period include a flagpole on the top of Cadre Site, which used to be a timberland, and a water tank nearby, now reduced to a third of its original height and transferred to PSU-Bayambang Campus ground.

1950

The Bayambang Municipal Library was established and operated under the Mayor’s Office through the assistance of the United States Information Service.

Mayor Eligio Sagun gave an opportunity to several municipal councilors to act as acting municipal mayor while he was on official business in Manila. Those appointed as acting mayor in succession were Municipal Councilors Paulino Martinez, Miguel Matabang, Leonardo dela Cruz, and Marcos Junio.

Engr./Lt.Cdr Rudolfo Martinez Ferrer, PN, AFP was probably the first Bayambangueño to enter a U.S. Service Academy, after he completed a 4-year scholarship for cadetship at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA) in New York, under the RP-US Rehabilitation Act of 1946, to train as naval officer and marine engineer.

1951

The term of Leopoldo Aquino would have expired in December but he resigned to run for Provincial Board Member in Pangasinan.

Numeriano de Castro was appointed acting municipal mayor by then President Elpidio Quirino. He served until 1952.

 

Early 1950s

Val Theater, owned by the Guevara family, opened at the Public Market.

Vista Theater, also owned by the Guevara family, opened along Rizal Ave. (at the present site of Caragan grocery store).

?1950s

Pangasinan Normal School came out with "The Hilltop" as school publication.

1952

Eligio Sagun then won the election. Luis Cancino was Vice Mayor.

 

The present-day Municipal Plaza was constructed from a plot of land donated by the family of Dr. Ramon de Castro, the town's first doctor and the father of former mayor, Atty. Numeriano de Castro Sr.

 

On October 23 to 25, Bayambang hosted the solemn celebration of the grand feast of Christ the King in the whole Pangasinan Archdiocese of Lingayen-Dagupan.

PNS expanded to offer a four-year degree program in teacher education.

1953

On June 17, Bayambang became the first pilot town in the Far East when the Pangasinan Normal School (PNS), together with the elementary schools in the District of Bautista and the Bayambang National High School, was chosen to be the seat of the Philippine-UNESCO National Community Training Center (PUNCTC) by virtue of Republic Act No. 1142.  Waves of educational dignitaries from all over the country and other countries arrived to attend conferences and visit model communities of the municipality. 

Salvador F. Quinto was municipal mayor, and his term expired in 1959. Jose Lopez was Vice Mayor.

The first religious nun hailing from Bayambang was Sr. Maria Anastasia T. Arenas, RVM, who made her final profession on August 15.

 

1955

The first Child Study Center in the country was put up at PNS in Bayambang. The Center made initial studies on the Filipino child in order for the country to have its own data about Filipino children.

In October, President Ramon Magsaysay caused a stampede in Mangabul when he brought there with him his entire Cabinet to meet out-of-town for the first time. Thousands of rural folk turned out and mobbed the "champion of the masses," causing some disturbance at the makeshift venue, as they freely sought his attention to their concerns. Eschewing protocol and formalities, he addressed those concerns one by one, including a big land dispute, among other grievances. Magsaysay is said to donate a water pump as well for the barrio people. This little incident is commemorated in the erection of a statue of Pres. Magsaysay years later at the Municipal Plaza.

1956

Salvador Quinto became Municipal President up to 1959.

Opportunity Class was organized at PNS Bayambang ahead of any other school in the country to pay attention to exceptional children.

The first kindergarten was also established at Pangasinan Normal Laboratory School to provide a working laboratory for the Child Study Center.

~1956-1958

Onion farming was introduced in Bayambang in the then barrio of Manambong by a Chinese "boat person" (a refugee from the Chinese communist government) named Ching Tong who married a Filipina named Catalina Vinluan Sanchez of Manambong Norte. The farm was located inside a hacienda owned by Mrs. Asuncion Palma Guevara which used to encompass Manambong Norte, Manambong Sur, and Manambong Parte. (Today, a school is named after her, the A.P. Guevara Integrated School, in the place that is now called Barangay Manambong Norte.)

1957

Jing Abalos of Brgy. San Vicente became one of Philippine show business's most bankable action stars. He top-billed several movies during his prime, and was most active in the years 1957-1972.

1958  

Bayambang’s first optical clinic and store was established by the Urbi family.

On July 5 to August 3, Bayambang was the venue of the First National Institute in Physical Education and Recreation in the Philippines, being the seat of the PUNCTC.

On March 22, the first Bayambangueño to become a priest was Rev. Fr. Gerardo R. Frias.

 

1959

Ex-Councilor Miguel C. Matabang won the election in November and served his term of office from 1960 to 1963.

?1950s

Rustico Roldan, a Bayambangueño, became a famous matinee idol as 'Carlos Salazar.' A grandchild of former town mayor Leo Roldan, Carlos "Rusty" Salazar was discovered by Fernando Poe, Sr. when he got the lead male role in a stage play at the Far Eastern University where he was studying. Salazar became a bankable actor, making numerous films in the '50s, '60s, and '70s, starring side by side the most popular actors and actresses of his time.

1960

Bayambang's first cold storage rose up in Bayambang.

In this decade, a water tower rose up at the Municipal Hall compound and served as the office of the Bayambang Waterworks and Sewerage System.

Vic Pacia of Roxas St. made it big as an actor and TV personality in Manila from the 1960s to the early '70s. As a mainstay of the TV show "Oras ng Ligaya" at ABS-CBN Channel 3, he worked the same stage while sharing the limelight alongside some of the most famous names of the day. From 1960 to 1973, Vic Pacia starred in about 30 TV shows and movies.

1961

On April 22, two orchestra stands inside the Public Plaza Auditorium of Bayambang were inaugurated under the charge of the Bayambang Civic Club, Inc.

~1962-1965

Atty. Onofre Guevara served as Undersecretary of Labor and Secretary of Labor during the presidency of Diosdado Macapagal.

 

1963

Atty. Jaime P. Junio was elected as mayor. He would eventually earn the distinction of being the longest-serving mayor in the Philippines in his prime. Serving from 1963 to 1986, Atty. Junio laid the grounds for the long-term development of the town: asphalting of municipal streets, opening of feeder roads, construction of the two public market buildings, and improvement of the public plaza and auditorium.

The income of the municipality increased annually until it was more than ₱35,000.00. Salaries of employees were increased as provided by the Minimum Wage Law. Municipal Building Annex No. 2 was constructed. A concrete fence was built for the municipal campus. A monument of President Magsaysay was constructed. A children’s park and fountains were constructed. Several equipment were acquired such as the firetruck, siren, and many others.

A velodrome was constructed in Brgy. Magsaysay, the first of its kind in the Philippines. It would be the starting point for the famed Tour of Luzon cycling competition, which would earn for its organizer, Atty. Geruncio 'Gerry' Lacuesta, the moniker "father of Philippine cycling."

 

1965

Purificacion Angeles Terrado-Lalas put up the Bayambang Fashion School, which lasted until 1979, before it became the Makapuri Fashion from 1979 to 2014. Lalas was not just the owner, but also the directress and instructor of the said fashion school. She taught Hundreds of students graduated from said institution in vocational courses such as fashion design, dressmaking, tailoring, hair and makeup arts, artificial flower making and floral arrangement, crocheting, tatting, and embroidery.

 

1966

Pangasinan Normal School pioneered in child nutrition studies in the Philippines, being the seat of the UNESCO's Applied Nutrition Project or the Bayambang Applied Nutrition Project, with Sylvia Manlungat as head.

1967

Mayor Jaime P. Junio ran for re-election and won against ex-Mayor Miguel C. Matabang for the second time.

 

?1960s

Casingal Building was erected. It was the first five-story building in town serving both as residence and commercial space for rent.

1967

Manganaan Building was erected across the Public Market and along M.H. Del Pilar St. It rented out spaces for merchants of basic commodities, becoming the town’s first commercial complex.

1968

Marina Sabangan compiled Pangasinan folk songs, tales, and sayings in her dissertation, “A Study of the Legends, Customs, Superstitions, Proverbs, Folksongs, Folk Dances and Ballads of Pangasinan-speaking Towns in Pangasinan” at the Pangasinan Normal School.

1969

Republic Act 5705 converted the PNS into a chartered institution, the Central Luzon Teachers College or CLTC on June 21.

On December 27, Bayambang held its first Inter-Color Basketball Tournament at the Bayambang Open Court.

?1960s

The town’s first gymnasium was built in PNS (PSU) and named after prominent educator Benigno V. Aldana.

1970

Atty. Geruncio 'Gerry' Lacuesta pioneered not just bicycle tours in the Philippines. Being a media man and the editor of “Katas” (a local version of the “Reader’s Digest”), he also pioneered Bayambang's  community newspaper, "Bayambang-Bautista Post," which first came out on February 15, and later became the "Bayambang Post." Domingo Tagulao, a former school teacher, was the editor-in chief of "Bayambang-Bautista Post."

On February 15, "the Wawa Timber Bridge was inaugurated, and it was said to be the longest timber bridge in the Philippines consisting of 38 spans measuring 1,160 feet."

The Philippine Police Commission designated Bayambang as one of the screening centers in Pangasinan to approve applicants to take Patrolman Civil Service Examination for municipal and chartered cities. Atty. Ruperto de Guzman, the Chief of Police, chaired the screening committee.

?1970s

Mayor Jaime Junio organized the Bayambang Choral Group. The group, with The Brown Boys, once guested in a popular late-night show by Joe Quirino. 

Priscila de Vera became the first female municipal councilor, and the number one councilor too at the young age of 27, ending the era of “Dons” as exclusive rulers. 

Norma Lomibao Cancino of Brgy. Alinggan became the first barangay captain when she was all of 19. 

1972

"The great flood of 1972," when it rained for 40 days straight, did not spare the town. The Wawa timber bridge was destroyed by a great flood brought on by Typhoon 'Biring.'

1974

On April 5, the towering belfry beside the church was blessed and inaugurated. It houses the old bells.

1975

The first community of Muslim traders settled along Quezon Blvd. corner Burgos St.

On April 4, the Secretary of Agriculture and Natural Resources disapproved a municipal ordinance granting fishery privileges to Atty. Geruncio Lacuesta as administrator of Mangabul Fishery Reservation because it was reportedly illegal since it was bereft of public bidding.

1976

The [Central] Pangasinan Electric Cooperative Inc. (CENPELCO), a non-stock electric cooperative, started its operations and extended services to Bayambang.

In July, Typhoon Didang, a typhoon of unusual ferocity, flooded the Poblacion area. The flood caused the Estacion (train station) to cease operation, as the bridge connecting Bautista town was washed away. The bridge would never be built again, and the train station would soon go down the path of obsolescence.  Calvo Bridge, the other bridge running somewhat parallel to it, also sustained considerable damage.

Construction of a new concrete-and-steel bridge in Wawa began.

1977

Atty. Geruncio Lacuesta found himself in a legal battle after the fishery privileges granted to him was declared null and void and thus was challenged in court.

 

~1978

Homeowners Savings Bank became the town’s first air-conditioned establishment.

 

1979

CLTC became incorporated into the Pangasinan State University system when PSU was chartered through the issuance of Presidential Decree No. 1497 and became operational on July 1. CLTC became Pangasinan State University – College of Education or PSU-CE.

?1970s

A pretty local lass, Cecilia Montecillo, won in a national singing contest, “Superwheel Singing Contest,” aired on a popular TV show.

 

1980

Bayambang Water District (NAWASA) started its operations, and DIGITEL installed its first telephone system in Bayambang and constructed a building for its office.

On July 16, the Bayambang Emergency Hospital opened its doors to the public. It was temporarily housed at then Municipal Annex Building right on the left side of the Municipal Hall.

Music teacher Rufino Menor formed the Pangkat Kawayan (bamboo band) at PSU College of Education. The bamboo instruments included angklung, bamboo xylophone, etc. The group would eventually be invited to perform not just at home, but around also Pangasinan and the Ilocos region.

Prof. Rufino Menor pioneered other music bands, namely PSU Kitchenette Symphony Orchestra; Rhythm Band; Ukelele, Harmonica, Bottle Xylophone Ensemble; Elementary Rondalla; Children’s Choir; Elementary Drum & Bugle Corps; Drum & Lyre Corps; and PSU Band. Menor would be best known as the composer of the PSU Hymn. 

 

Early 1980s

The present Iglesia ni Kristo church, which started as a wooden structure in Burgos St. back in the 1950s, rose up in Zone VII.

Under Mayor Calixto Camacho, Bayambang was dubbed as "the corn belt of Central Pangasinan."

A new health center called RHU (Rural Health Unit) I was built during Mayor Calixto Camacho's term in a new location: at the left-most end of the Municipal Hall compound. It was first headed by Dr. Amado Layog. The facility was demolished to give way to a new two-story structure under Mayor Ricardo Camacho's second term (2010).

1980s

When PNS became CLTC and then PSU, the Tambayo Choral Group was organized by Sr. Natividad Parin, with help from Prof. Salome Malicdem Montemayor, thus perpetuating the rich legacy of Pangasinan folk songs against the pervading modern aesthetics of the time. The group has performed all over, including in well-known TV stations in Manila. 

 

1981

Art and Science courses were also offered in the College of Education in Bayambang. The Doctorate in Education (Ed.D.) program was also offered for the first time to school managers and teachers.

 

1982

While walking on the street, Atty. Geruncio Lacuesta was hacked to death by an unidentified assailant.

PSU College of Education’s (Bayambang Campus) Dr. Perla Nelmida defended her landmark thesis, "Pangasinan Folk Literature," in the University of the Philippines-Diliman while on study leave at PSU as professor. It was another comprehensive compilation of Pangasinan folk songs, tales, riddles, and sayings.

1983

The construction of a large concrete version of the Wawa bridge was finished by the Department of Public Works and Highways and opened to the public with a new name, Carlos P. Romulo Bridge, in honor of the former UN Secretary General, Foreign Affairs Secretary, and writer Carlos P. Romulo, who had roots in both Camiling and Bayambang towns. Romulo graced the event with his presence.

A scientist from this town, Dr. Carmen Velasquez, received the title of National Scientist of the Philippines in recognition of her discovery of 32 new species and one new genus of digenetic trematodes from 13 Philippine food fishes, two from birds, and five from mammals, and a new species of parasitic copepod in the goby fish, Glossogoblus giurus. Further in her career, she received the following equally prestigious awards and honors: Presidential Distinguished Service Medal and Diploma of Honor (1965), Special Award of the Biology Teachers Association of the Philippines, Inc. (1975), and Outstanding Woman in Science in the Philippines (1975). Because of her discoveries, Dr. Carmen Velasquez also was included in the registry of American Men and Women of Science, International Who’s Who of Intellectuals, and the World Who’s Who of Women and International Scholars Directory.

? Onion farming -- particularly of the red onion variety -- would become a booming industry in the Manambong area and would spread to the other barangays, during which time the farmers of Bayambang abandoned tobacco farming and other less profitable pursuits and cleared their land of coconuts and other native trees to give way to the growing of onions. This caused Bayambang to be dubbed "the onion capital of Pangasinan" and even of Region I.

Prof. Ben O. Romero founded “Banyuhay” as school organ of PSU-Bayambang Laboratory High School.

?1980s

BNHS published its school organ under a new name, “The Leader,” while PSU-Bayambang produced “Reflector” for college students.

Elementary teachers also came out with their own school publications. Bayambang District I had "In the Moulder's Eye," while Bayambang District II had "Horizon."

1985 

On July 1, the Bayambang District Hospital, built at Brgy. Bical Norte, opened for medical services, with Dr. Ernesto Matabang as its first director. The lot on which it was built was donated by the family of Teofilo Matabang.

The Mother Goose Special School Systems was established.

A big fire reduced the Public Market into ashes.

1986

When the EDSA or ‘people power’ revolution toppled the Marcos regime, Feliciano Casingal Jr. was appointed by President Corazon C. Aquino as OIC Municipal Mayor, followed by three others: Miguel Matabang, Domingo Tagulao, and Danilo Bato.

On August 28, 454 Bayambangueños led by Dr. Orlando M. de Guzman signed and addressed a petition to President Corazon C. Aquino for the concreting (cementing) of the Bayambang-Camiling Road.

Dr. Orlando M. de Guzman was the first Bayambangueño to become Board Member to the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Pangasinan, serving from 1986 to 1988, after being appointed by President Corazon C. Aquino right after the EDSA/'people power' revolution.

The Matalunggaring Dance Troupe was founded by Prof. Januario Cuchapin at PSU to promote the cultural dances and songs of Pangasinan. Since then, the troupe has performed, not only during special occasions in Bayambang, but also in big gatherings in the province, region, and elsewhere.

1987

On March 17, the petition for concreting the Bayambang-Camiling Road was approved and Phase I funding in the amount of PhP2.04 million was released.

In October, the cementing of the Bayambang-Camiling Road started.

The present Mormon Church or Church of Latter-Day Saints was inaugurated.

?Late 1980s

Sancagulis Rice Crackers started manufacturing no-fish rice crackers.

 

1988

Dr. Orlando de Guzman was appointed Provincial Board Member, the first time a Bayambangueño held a position in the Provincial Board. He was in position from November 17, 1987 to February 1988.

The nationalization of barangay high schools began, with the high school in Carungay being the first to be nationalized.

 

1989

In January, Atty. Ferdinand Quintos, a Bayambangueño, joined the Philippine Commission on Human Rights (CHR). Earlier, he was a columnist and crossword puzzle constructor of “Peryodiko Dabaw,” the forerunner of Sun.Star Davao and the first daily in Davao City and Mindanao, after which he became the paper’s second editor-in-chief.

Calixto Camacho became mayor up to 1998.

Mayor Camacho cut the ceremonial ribbon for the formal opening of a Bayambang Mini-Museum established through a joint venture of the municipality and the Pangasinan State University Bayambang Campus. The Museum was housed at the former Municipal Jail.

1990

Ronald Tomas, a talented musician from this town, started to make a name in Manila by playing the saxophone for jazz/acid jazz band Artstart, and subsequently for Parliament Syndicate, then Wdouji, and so on.

On February 28, the Sunbeam Methodist School was founded.

The great earthquake of July 16 slightly damaged the parish church, causing cracks and the palitada of its walls to peel off and crumble to the ground. Calvo Bridge also sustained damage and had to be closed for a length of time for major repair works. Commuters had to go back to using boats to cross Agno River. The upper half of the NAWASA water tank had to be demolished for safety reasons.

The first appointed female department head of the municipal government was Jesusa Menor of the Local Civil Registry Office. 

1991

Much of Mangabul Lake started to be covered in lahar after the Mt. Pinatubo volcanic eruption. This unfortunate geologic event transformed the once sprawling (2,059-hectare) water resource teeming with aquatic life into a farmland today.

In line with the nationwide implementation of Local Government Code of 1991, the Poblacion area was divided into 11 barangays, namely Barangay Zone I, Barangay Zone II, Barangay Zone III, Barangay Zone IV, Barangay Zone V, Barangay Zone VI, Barangay Zone VII, Barangay Cadre Site, Barangay M.H. Del Pilar, Barangay Magsaysay, and Barangay Poblacion Sur.

1992

GEO Farm was opened in Brgy. Mangayao, an "eco-village concept” offering eco-youth camp training, holistic healing modules, and climate change solutions. Originally the brainchild of the Guevara clan in 1984, it was eventually managed by one of their own, environmentalist and artist Edgard Guevara, one of the founders of EcoWaste Coalition or Zero Waste Philippines, and his Swiss wife Yvonne. Among his products were the culture of spirulina (blue green algae), bottled organic lemongrass concentrate, and typhoon-resistant 'earth domes.'

 

1993

Another fire badly damaged the Public Market.

1994

1994

Indonesia-based businessman Cezar T. Quiambao went back home for good and initiated, together with his batch-mates from Bayambang National High School Class of 1965, a program called “Baley Ko, Pawilen Ko, Aroen Ko, tan Tulungan Ko” (“My hometown – where I shall come back to, to love and to help”) conceived out of a dream to create a lasting legacy by bringing economic progress to their hometown.

In March, the Marianne College of Science and Technology started operations.

1995

The Pangasinan State University (PSU) Hymn was composed by Professor Rufino M. Menor. He penned the hymn while at the PSU-Bayambang Campus. He collaborated with another faculty member, Natividad Parin, who helped submit the song. The hymn was approved by the Board of Regents and is now played in all PSU events. 

 

1996

On September 25, the first private hospital in Bayambang, the Señor Sto. Niño General Hospital, was established along Juan Luna Street. It has a 25-bed capacity.

Big Thumb Bakeshop was popular for its pan de sal and other bread products.

1997 

Rehabilitation of the Bayambang Town Plaza started.

A skating rink was put up at the corner of the plaza nearest the parish church. (It is now a basketball court.)

 

1998

Mayor Leocadio Casingal de Vera Jr. served the town of Bayambang for three consecutive terms, from 1998 to 2007. Mayor de Vera's accomplishments included the construction of the two-story commercial complex at the Public Market, Rural Health Unit I, Municipal Slaughterhouse/Abattoir, PNP Station, Municipal Sports Complex, rehabilitation of the Public Plaza, and the improvement, concreting, and asphalting of many Poblacion and barangay roads. He was able to increase the LGU’s income by more than P10-million in 1999. He convinced Bayambangueño businessmen outside of town to pay their business taxes in Bayambang. He also held the first Business Forum to attract more investors in this town. He granted scholarships, provided water supply facilities, conducted yearly medical missions to 77 barangays for 9 years, and provided incentives to municipal employees.

Located at Brgy. Telbang, the Municipal Abattoir had a biogas system.

The town had the 8th highest revenue collection among 48 municipalities in Pangasinan during an 8-month period.

Cezar Quiambao, a successful Bayambangueño businessman based in Indonesia, was dubbed by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo as the “local boy who made good” after he successfully helped build the Metro Manila Skyway. Quiambao eventually would be the prime move of other big-ticket projects such as the automation of the 2008 elections in the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao, a project that eliminated electoral fraud, Land Transportation Office computerization project, and Land Registration Authority’s land titling computerization project.

 

?1990s

The notorious Akyat Bahay criminal gang victimized a number of well-to-do residents, terrorizing the entire town with their modus operandi of knocking on doors in the dead of the night, trapping unsuspecting residents into giving access to their homes.

A boy named Perfecto Ceralde became the grand champion of a singing contest on TV, "Tanghalan ng Kampeon."

 

1999

On January 18, businessman Cezar Quiambao put up the CSF Rural Bank of Bayambang to provide microfinancing programs to help small entrepreneurs.

Bayambang held a month-long “Sentenaryong Pagdiriwang” from October to November to commemorate its being once the capital of the Philippines.

Activities included the unveiling of a historical marker at the municipal grounds by Dr. Pablo S. Trillana III, director of the National Historical Institute.

 

2000

The College of Information Technology was established in PSU-Bayambang Campus.

The Saint Vincent Village or SVV was established as a residential village in Brgy. Bical Norte.

 

2001

The Manganaan Cinema opened on the second floor of Manganaan Bldg.

Gina Pareño (Bautista) was crowned as Mrs. Bayambang.

 

2002

On April 26, Ariel & Fe Garden Resort and Restaurant started operations in Brgy. Tambac.

The Muslim community’s first mosque rose up in Zone VII right across the public cemetery and beside the Iglesia ni Kristo church.

Pangasinan State University Prof. Elsa F. Quinto compiled the surviving folk songs of Pangasinan, with the help of several collaborators, in the book "Cancansion na Pangasinan" (Mga Katutubong Awiting Pangasinan) published by the Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino. 

2003

In March, Hands of Heaven, the first private memorial park in Bayambang, started operations.

The Cojuangcos’ CAT Realty put up an office near Hands of Heaven.

The Northern Plain Mansions was established as a residential village in Brgy. Bical Norte.

On April 4, several buildings were opened in time for the annual town fiesta: the Philippine National Police building, the Bayambang Sports Complex, and the Bayambang Commercial Center.

Lita’s Grocery was the one and only open-shelf grocery store in town.

Ariel and Fe Lechon House and Restaurant was popular for its roast chicken.

2004 

On March 19, the first resort intown was opened, the Rock Island Nature Resort in Brgy. Telbang.

The Institute of Nursing was opened in PSU.

The Kasama Kita sa Barangay Foundation Inc. was established by Dr. Cezar T. Quiambao in Brgy. Amanperez offering a variety of livelihood training programs to tens of thousands of residents, especially out-of-school youth and the unemployed. The foundation would eventually win a string of awards from the National Literacy Council for this feat.

Mayor Leocadio C. de Vera Jr. ran unopposed in 2004 and won.

2005

Bayambang became a first-class municipality under the term of Mayor Leocadio de Vera.

The PSU Himig Ensemble or PSU Bayambang Chorale was organized by Maria Cristina C. Gamo and became the official singing group of Pangasinan State University Bayambang Campus. Throughout the years, the group has proved its mettle in competitions and performances around Pangasinan and beyond.

Brgy. Dusoc almost became a dumpsite. Councilor Gerry de Vera worked to prevent WIN Corp. from doing so. Strong public outcry also worked against the proposal.

 

2006

On March 19, Emmanuel’s Way started operations.

PSU-Bayambang’s Prof. Januario Cuchapin published his research on and compilation of notated local folk dances and song lyrics, the “Bali-Balin Pangasinan,” a National Commission on Culture and Arts grant. It served as the basis of cultural performances around the province.

2007

[To be confirmed???] CSI Mall and Grocery Store opened together with a franchise of McDonald’s, Shakey’s, Goldilocks, St. Joseph Drugstore, Siapno Tada Optical, and other shops. It was the first establishment in town to have an escalator.

Engr. Ricardo Camacho was elected as mayor and would finish his three terms up to 2016.

2009

In April, a distinct and unique festival called “Malangsi Fish-tival” was launched to celebrate the harvest of freshwater fishes locally grown in Bayambang.

On June 30, Bayambang inked the sisterhood pact with Guam, USA through the joint efforts of Mayor Ricardo Camacho and businessman Cezar T. Quiambao.

Christopher Q. Gozum, a Bayambangueño, made history by producing and directing the first full-length film in the Pangasinan language. His "Anacbanua" ("The Child of the Sun"), an experimental film about Pangasinan’s history, art, and culture, received the Prix des Signes in the Cinema in Transgression section of the 10th International Festival Signes de Nuit in Paris together with local recognitions. He would go on to produce other award-winning films featuring Pangasinan culture and history.

In December, an all-night rakrakan (rock music) fest (concert-cum-contest) was held at the town plaza. Billed as "Band-Natan" (a pun on 'banatan,' obviously), the battle of the bands was sponsored by the local chapters of Alpha Phi Omega and Samahang Kabataan.

?Bayambang launched an official website, bayambang.gov.ph.

?Bayambang had a Wikipedia page.

 

2010

?A blog site carrying the town’s news was created: bayambangnewsletter.blogspot.com.

In June 29, the Bayambang municipal hall annex was completed after construction began in August 2007.

Built at a cost of P28-million, it was to be the new home of the Sangguniang Bayan ng Bayambang, LGU departments, the Municipal Trial Court, and the DILG, among others. Today, it is called the Legislative Building.

Bayambang was awarded the “Model LGU with Best Practices in Solid Waste Management” by the Environmental Management Bureau under the Regional Office I of the Department of Environment and natural Resources in San Fernando City, La Union.

On August 9, the Sangguniang Bayan of Bayambang passed a resolution creation a Research and study Committee to determine the exact date of the foundation of the municipality.

Archbishop Socrates Villegas canonically erected the San Lorenzo Ruiz Chaplaincy in Brgy. Wawa as a separate parish on March 21, with Rev. Fr. Reydentor G. Mejia as the first parish priest. First established as a chapel in 1970, the church was elevated to chaplaincy in 2006.

The Sangguniang Bayan of Bayambang headed by Vice-Mayor Mylvin. T. Junio unanimously adopted a resolution on August 9, creating a Research and Study Committee to determine the exact date of the foundation of the Municipality, and the resolution was approved by the Mayor Ricardo M. Camacho. It later resulted in a Committee Report determining the exact date of the town's foundation day to be April 5, 1614.

Guadalupe Germono-Zoller and Swiss husband Christian Zoller's Alalay Foundation started donating truckloads of top-quality school equipment and educational supplies to selected local schools as well countless high-grade medical equipment and supplies to local public hospitals. Among the Foundation’s biggest projects were the construction of the more than P5-million worth of two-story Multi-Purpose Conference Hall and school building in Idong-Inanlorenza Elementary School and a three-classroom building in Brgy. Idong.

 

2011

On March 14, the National Historical Commission of the Philippines formally established 5 April 1614 as Bayambang’s foundation date.

On November 3, the Municipality of Bayambang adopted a new Corporate Seal (Official Seal) as endorsed by the Sangguniang Bayan and recommended by the National Historical Commission of the Philippines.

The Telbang Mosque was built.

2012

On February 27, Mayor Ricardo Camacho formally organized a committee in charge of Bayambang’s Quadricentennial Celebration.

The town’s first proper mall, Royal Mall, rose at a major corner. Owned by Cezar Quiambao, it was also the first establishment to have an elevator. Locals also got to have a taste of Jollibee fast-food products, shop for groceries at SM’s Savemore (later replaced by Puregold), and buy any needs 24/7 at 7-Eleven right in their hometown.

Quiambao then transferred the headquarters of his Manila-based businesses -- Strategic Alliance Holdings Inc. (SAHI), Land Registration Systems Inc (LARES), Philippines, and Stradcom Corp. (an IT firm) -- to Bayambang. The move became a huge source of funds for the local government due to the taxes in millions of pesos that they put into the coffers of the municipal treasury. 

The town’s first ATM or automated teller machine was installed by Landbank in front of the then Local Civil Registrar's Office of the Municipal Hall.

In March, Liahona Learning Center was founded.

In June, a huge fire gutted the biggest Gabaldon building of Bayambang Central School at the opening of the school year due to faulty electrical wiring, according to the Bureau of Fire and Protection. This displaced some 500 first and second graders occupying the 13 classrooms of the Main Building.

Policeman Executive Master Sergeant Eduardo G. Santiago was honored by Metrobank Foundation as one of the country’s Most Outstanding Policemen, after heroically saving victims during a dramatic hostage-taking incident at NLEX on May 30, 2011. He almost died after sustaining wounds and being stabbed by the hostage-taker, which he was able to eventually neutralize after a few grueling hours of volunteering to drive the bus on the road.

 

2013

?Mercury Drug set up a branch at the Public Market.

The Department of Education was ordered by the local court to transfer the Bayambang Central School campus to a private lot in Brgy. Magsaysay, the site of the former velodrome, after the school head petitioned the local government for the transfer reportedly due to dengue cases at the often-flooded old school grounds. The move would be opposed by residents led by the Parents-Teachers Association president, Filipinas Alcantara, who would find herself alone in a protracted legal battle with the powers-that-be.

The Sto. Domingo Ybañez de Erquicia Parish was established as a parish in Brgy. Sapang.

On August 1, Bishop Socrates Villegas officially announced the elevation of San Isidro Labrador Chaplaincy, established in 2011, in Brgy. Carungay into a parish, with Fr. Leovigildo Acierto, CP, as the first parish priest.

On November 29, a bronze statue of former Philippine president, Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo, was unveiled in front of the Municipal Hall, as witnessed by Pangasinan Governor Amado T. Espino Jr., together with the relatives of Gen. Aguinaldo and municipal health officials from Kawit, Cavite. A sisterhood pact with the said town was also signed.

The first battle of the bands contest was launched by the municipal government.

2014

Bayambang held a series of special week-long activities for its quadricentennial fiesta celebration, including a grand commemoration of Aguinaldo’s visit to Bayambang.

On April 5, Bayambang was declared the new holder of the Guinness World of Record for Longest Barbeque, after mounting 8,000 grills and 50,000 kilograms of fish spanning 8.16 kilometers. 

On the same day, a bronze statue representing Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo proudly was inaugurated by local officials, with members of the Aguinaldo clan in attendance. The local government commissioned no less than National Artist Napoleon Abueva to work on this sculpture as part of the celebration of the town's quadricentennial.

The public market was expanded and called the Bayambang Quadricentennial Public Market.

A caricature of the town center was commissioned by Cezar T. Quiambao as part of the quadricentennial celebrations.

?With support from local leaders and private citizens, a monograph on the history of the town was drafted by Dr. Clarita Jimenez and her team with the intention of turning it into Bayambang’s first coffee-table book. This was a major development, after much earlier attempts to write the history of Bayambang failed to see completion for the following reasons: the research materials were destroyed by flood, in the case of the efforts of Emiliano R. Santos's, an editor of the “Philippines Free Press” and “Manila Times,” at the National Library, and the untimely demise of the author, in the case of Atty. Felixberto Mataban.

On April 4, Jess and Genevieve U. Benebe's Highlands Golden Bean Cafe opened as the town's first café, thus the couple became the proprietor of the first full coffee shop brewery in a semi-formal dining setting.

Pook ni Urduja started operations as a small resort. It would eventually expand into a hotel, restaurant and café.

Kuya Tiano's Place Ihaw-Ihaw and Restaurant started operations, and its offerings of native Filipino dishes earned them a loyal following.

Local boy Kirst Viray made a name in the ramp modeling world. He would eventually enter the world of acting as well, appearing in the most popular shows of the day. Locals would discover the following show biz celebrities to be direct descendants of Bayambangueños: actor Wendell Ramos and MTV VJ Donita Rose, grandchildren of the Ramos clan, and deadpan comic Ramon Bautista.

 

2015

Cezar Quiambao initiated, through CS First Green Agri-Industrial Development, Inc., the development of an extensive bamboo farming industry in seven towns in Western Pangasinan, an ecologically sustainable, inclusive growth project. For this, he set up a trial production facility in Brgy. Amanperez.

 

2016

On February 18, Asiana Learning Institute was founded.

In the 2016 Fiesta Souvenir Program, Tourism Officer-Designate Emma I. Mula published rare photos of old Bayambang from her museum collection.

Successful businessman and philanthropist Cezar T. Quiambao went home from abroad, ran for Mayor, and won. He introduced new politics in town with the battlecry, “No to political dynasty, corruption, poverty and criminality.”

His first year of public service together with Vice-Mayor Raul R. Sabangan was marked by many firsts all at the same time.

Atty. Rodelynn Rajini A. Sagarino, a former beauty queen, was appointed Municipal Administrator, thus becoming Bayambang’s first female municipal administrator.

A CCTV Command Center with an emergency hotline number (#4357) was opened.

The St. Vincent Dialysis Center, a private enterprise, was opened.

An air-conditioned Events Center with Tarraflex rubberized flooring was built, replacing the old multipurpose covered court.

Satellite markets (talipapas) were built in eight barangays.

Municipal employees were provided with free uniforms, enabling them to save their clothing allowance.

A registered nutritionist-dietician was hired for the first time by the municipal government to head the nutrition section of the Municipal Health Office, now called the Municipal Nutrition Action Office, and to oversee a comprehensive program for malnourished children.

Additional police precincts were built, to ensure strong police presence in all nine districts.

Barangay roads were concretized at a fast pace like never before.

Operation Birthright was launched, giving free late registration birth certificates from the Philippine Statistics Authority to residents who did not possess such a basic legal document as proof of identity and existence.

The annual municipal budget rose to unprecedented levels.

Quiambao’s companies were among the town’s top five taxpayers, and this feat would be repeated annually.

He also took up the fight to reclaim the old Bayambang Central School campus. Among other things, he discovered the land swap deal to be lopsided in favor of the private landowner.

He likewise asserted the local government’s right to sell off government land in Magsaysay to long-time occupants, knowing the political risks of such a move.

He also created the following new offices: Public Order and Safety Office, General Services Office, Public Information Office, Information and Communication Technology Office, Nutrition Office, Public Employment Services Office, and Tourism Office.

He went all out on his tax education campaign, despite its being an unpopular and politically risky cause, by asserting that paying one’s taxes means good citizenship, one’s contribution to community-building and not government’s instrument of oppression.

A new official website and the Balon Bayambang Facebook page was launched by the ICT Office, and the official newsletter, Balon Bayambang Newsletter, was published in September, edited by Dr. Leticia B. Ursua and Resty S. Odon.

The ICT Office took the lead in the computerization of all major LGU operations, making work processes more efficient and impervious to irregularities and paving the way for Bayambang to become a ‘smart town.’

The Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office was institutionalized through ordinance after its creation in 2011.

Mayor Quiambao donated his annual salary from the local government to the Local School Board, from the start of his term until 2022, a gesture of generosity that his wife would emulate herself as next mayor.

On October 13, after 20 long years of litigation, the local government unit (LGU) of Bayambang demolished an illegal structure built by Homeowners Savings & Loan Association Inc. on municipal plaza grounds. The ceremonial demolition was led by Mayor Quiambao himself together with all members of the Municipal Council and residents who had filed the petition against the structure: Dr. Henry Fernandez, Feliciano Casingal Jr., et al.

A proper bagsakan or drop-off point for retail and wholesale produce was inaugurated.

The Tourism Office improved the Municipal Public Plaza by creating a flower garden and erecting a giant ‘Balon Bayambang’ signage, now a favorite spot of locals and visitors alike to take selfies. 

The town was actively promoted by dubbing it as “the country’s 5^th capital during the 1^st Philippine Republic,” “home of the binasuan dance,” “makers of the best-tasting fish buro,” “corn belt of Pangasinan,” and “onion capital of northern Luzon.”

The town's children were treated to an annual animated Christmas display, the Paskuhan sa Bayambang, the biggest in the country according to the Rosario family of the COD Mall Christmas display fame in Cubao in the '70s. A personal gift of the mayor and his family, this project was repeated annually with varying themes: Filipino traditions, Rebolusyon Laban sa Kahirapan (poverty alleviation program), Disney World characters.

It built a Mini-Amusement Park with fun rides at the plaza through the public-private partnership mode of procurement.

The first official Bayambang Hymn, “Baley Ko, Tawir Ko," (My Hometown My Heritage) was composed by Jane Frances Ambat van Doorn of Brgy. Nalsian Sur and originally interpreted by the composer's own mother, Gilconida Ambat van Doorn. (“Pinablin Baley,” (Beloved Hometown) another hymn, had been composed earlier by Oscar Ora but it was not institutionalized through legal or official recognition.)

 “Lanceros na Bayambang” was declared the town’s first official social dance, and it was choreographed by Prof. Januario Cuchapin.

The UP Board of Regents elected Danilo Lardizabal Concepcion as UP President. Concepcion has roots in Bayambang, for he grew up spending summer vacations at his mother's house in Estacion.

 A local boy, Al Vincent Casela, became a finalist in “The Voice Kids Philippines,” a popular singing competition on TV.

 

2017

Mayor Cezar T. Quiambao continued to bring Bayambang to greater heights with new feats.

He installed the town’s first traffic lights.

He expanded the drainage system in Poblacion area to address perennial flooding problems.

He built a proper tricycle terminal for an estimated 2,000 tricycle drivers in the center of town.

On February 4, the ‘Komprehensibong Serbisyo sa Bayan’ was launched in Brgy. Warding, a project that sent all municipal government services for one day to a chosen barangay located far away from the center, benefiting hundreds of thousands of residents since then.

The local government bought a fleet of vehicles and rescue equipment, which would eventually include a coaster (small bus) and aluminum rescue boats.

The Municipal Cooperative Development Office was created to help develop local cooperatives as engines of local economic growth.

SingKapital or the commemoration of Bayambang as the country's fifth capital during the 1st Philippine Republic was institutionalized through an ordinance.

Binasuan dance was adopted as Bayambang’s official folk dance.

The first-ever official tourism jingle was released.

In the week-long fiesta celebrations, then first lady Niña Jose-Quiambao, with Mayor Quiambao's support, started to organize a grand and glittering version of the Binibining Bayambang beauty pageant, complete with professional training-workshops for the lucky ladies, creative costumes, superb stage preparations, awe-inspiring performances, and a star-studded list of judges and guest performers.

The first-ever official Binibining Bayambang jingle was released.

A mural painting contest transformed the Agno River dike into an elongated canvas.

The first-ever Cutest Baby Contest was held.

The Quiambao family also began sponsoring concerts of the day's biggest names in the local show biz industry (rock stars, pop divas, balladeers, stand-up comics, etc.).

The first Matalunggaring Awards were also held as part of the town fiesta in honor of Bayambangueños who have brought pride and honor to the town. It would subsequently be held yearly and eventually institutionalized. Among the distinguished individuals accorded the town’s highest honor were the pioneering feminist and activist Sr. Mary John Mananzan, OSB, Tour of Luzon organizer Atty. Geruncio Lacuesta, fashion designer Rusty Lopez, actor Carlos Salazar (Rustico Roldan), national scientist Carmen Velasquez, former Labor Secretary Onofre Guevara, and Commission on Higher Education Chairman, Dr. Prospero ‘Popoy’ de Vera.

On September 16, the Balaybuaya Footbridge was inaugurated.

On October 12, world-renowned urban planner Felino Palafox Jr. and his staff from Palafox Associates were hired by Dr. Quiambao to help the local government updated its Comprehensive Land Use Plan.

On October 30, first lady Niña Jose-Quiambao launched the Bayambangueña Pasalubong and Tourist Assistance Center at the Mini-Bus and Van Terminal.

Niñas Café opened at SVV, ushering in a café culture in town after dozens of cafés and restaurants sprouted around not just the Poblacion area but even in the far-flung barangays of Bayambang in the succeeding years.

A smart card called ‘Community Service Card’ was issued to citizens as proof of being bona fide residents.

Louise Anne C. Calimlim was crowned as the first Ms. Palarong Bayan.

Pangasinan State University Bayambang Campus (PSU-BC) programs first underwent AACCUP accreditation on November 27-28 for their flagship programs, Bachelor of Elementary Education (BEEd) and Bachelor of Secondary Education (BSEd).

A municipal canteen, Kusina na Balon Bayambang, was put up beside the NAWASA water tank. It was envisioned as a self-sustaining facility that would provide funds in feeding the town’s undernourished children. It stopped operations in 2019 due to challenges.

Mayor Quiambao faced a series of legal battles from political opponents, all of which turned out to be nuisance cases and were promptly dismissed by the courts.

2018

Mayor Cezar Quiambao declared an all-out war against poverty in the program called “Rebolusyon Laban sa Kahirapan” (Revolution Against Poverty) and gave the marching order to Municipal Administrator, Atty. Rodelynn Rajini Sagarino, who happened to be formerly with the National Anti-Poverty Commission, to draft the Bayambang Poverty Reduction Action Plan 2018-2028.

The Municipal Library, known for its collection of rare Pangasinan books, got its own building using the repurposed water tank beside the Municipal Hall.

ANCOP Ville, a free housing project with at least 30 units for selected indigent families, rose in Brgy. Sancagulis, sponsored by the Mojares family of Canada and Couples for Christ – Answering the Cry of the Poor (CFC-ANCOP).

RHU III in Brgy. Carungay opened on April 3, and was built on a lot donated by Punong Barangay Virgilio Romano's family. It was first headed by Dr. Adrienne Estrada, then by Dr. Roland M. Agbuya in 2020.

On August 11, the Pangasinan State University-Department of Science and Technology Food Innovation Center was inaugurated. Among its inventions were bottled odorless buro, vegetable (okra, squash, onion) chips, and bagoong powder.

In August, St. Alexander M. Sauli Catholic School started operations in Brgy. Sapang.

On September 10, the Bayambang Culture Mapping Project commenced, through the collaboration between Tourism Office, Bayambang National High School through Mr. Christopher Gozum, and Center for Pangasinan Studies of the provincial government. The project, which was a thorough inventory and cataloguing of the town’s cultural resources, won a major award from the Department of Tourism and Association of Tourism Officers of the Philippines.

On November 18, Mayor Quiambao’s closest aide, Councilor Levin N. Uy, was murdered by unidentified gunmen while jogging at Zone II.

The Quiambao-Sabangan Administration won a long list of awards from all levels, including the highest form of recognition from the national government, the Seal of Good Local Governance.

?The Municipal Warehouse was built in Telbang across the Municipal Motorpool.

 

2019

The Quiambao family inaugurated the Saint Vincent Ferrer Prayer Park in Brgy. Bani, by unveiling the engineered bamboo statue of St. Vincent Ferrer, which earned for Bayambang its second Guinness record: the tallest bamboo sculpture (supported) in the world.

Coinciding with the official opening of St. Vincent Ferrer Prayer Park was the 2019 Cristo Rey celebration, with no less than Archbishop Gabriele Giordano Caccia, the Apostolic Nuncio to the Philippines, leading the rites in the SVF Prayer Park Chapel in Brgy. Bani, with church and municipal officials and other dignitaries in attendance together with devotees from 39 parishes, 17 municipalities, 15 Catholic schools, 9 vicariates, 8 pastoral stations, 3 chaplaincies, and 3 seminaries.

On March 25, LGU Ville, a low-cost housing development of the local government, broke ground in Brgy. Sancagulis.

On May 8, Fr. Fidelis Layog of Bayambang was appointed by Pope Francis as Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Lingayen-Dagupan, the first priest from Bayambang to become a bishop.

Mayor Quiambao launched his farm modernization program with a purchase of a suite of farm machineries (rice planter, combine harvester, etc.) and other supporting activities.

Bayambang's first coffee-table book was published, as part of the 400th year celebration of the town’s parish church. Its title is "Parokya nen San Vicente Ferrer: Subol na Pananisia" and was authored by former Pangasinan State University-Bayambang college dean, Dr. Clarita D.G. Jimenez. “Subol” details the history of the St. Vincent Ferrer Parish Church from the time it was founded in 1619.

Forest Lake offered an alternative to Hands of Heaven as memorial park.

The Land Transportation Office (LTO) opened its Bayambang Extension Office in J.P. Rizal, Poblacion Sur on December 18.

Mayor Quiambao represented LGU-Bayambang as he graced the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s (DSWD) Panata Ko sa Bayan Awards ceremony on February 15 at the Landbank Plaza, Malate, Manila. LGU-Bayambang was chosen by the DSWD as GAPAS or Gawad sa Paglilingkod sa Sambahayan awardee for being the country's Model LGU in the Implementation of DSWD's Sustainable Livelihood Program (Microenterprise Development Model).

?Mayor Quiambao created two additional departments: Municipal Legal Office and Internal Audit Unit/Service.

Allan Michael Ibañez emerged as another internationally multi-awarded indie filmmaker from Bayambang, having bagged such awards as the Grand Jury Prize feature film at the San Diego International Kids' Film Festival, the Best Feature Film award under the Debut Directors category at the All Lights India International Film Festival, and Honorable Mention for Best Feature Film at the 12th Buffalo Niagara Film Festival.

2020

A survey by the Philippine Statistics Authority reported that Bayambang had a population of 120,000.

On January 28, Commodore Luzviminda A. Camacho, AFP, of Brgy. Cadre Site made history by being the Philippine Navy's first female Skipper and Contingent Commander, thus becoming the first female Commodore of the Philippine Navy, equivalent to Brigadier General or one-star rank in the Army, Air Force, and Marines.

Horror, panic, and sadness gripped the whole town during the global outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. One of its earliest casualties were the town’s “duktor ng bayan” Dr. Henry Fernandez and wife Julie. Mayor Cezar Quiambao and wife Niña were among the thousands who were struck down by the disease and got hospitalized.

The local government built the Bayambang Commercial Strip in front of the parish church under a public-private partnership scheme.

A new Municipal Annex Building was inaugurated at the back of the Municipal Hall compound.

RHU I got its own Department of Health -certified Animal Bite Treatment Center.

RHU IV in Brgy. Macayocayo opened on November 25, and was built on a lot donated by the Macayocayo Barangay Council under Punong Barangay Mario Cariño.

Two local rock musicians, Richmond Bancolita and Tom Patrick Cuison, became part of Nobita, a band that would have a reach nationwide and beyond.

Dr. Jose 'Dong' DV. Camacho, Jr., a Bayambang native, was elected by the Board of Regents as Chancellor of the University of the Philippines-Los Baños (UPLB).

On September 24, Dr. Jose Camacho, Jr., from this town, was elected by the University of the Philippines at Los Baños Board of Regents as the 10th UPLB chancellor.

2021

Mayor Quiambao’s petition for the Philippine government to convert Mangabul Lake into alienable and disposable land reached Philippine Congress and Senate with the help of Congresswoman Rose Marie ‘Baby’ Arenas and Senator Miguel Zubiri. 

An attempt was also made to have Bayambang declared as a city, but it lacked one major requirement: a population of at least 150,000.

RHU V in Brgy. Pantol opened in February. It was built using funds donated by 3rd District Congresswoman Rose Marie 'Baby' Arenas.

“Beauty and the Beast: The Musical” was staged for the first time in Region I. Sponsored by the town’s First Couple, it was staged at the Balon Bayambang Events Center showcasing local talents.

On March 16, Mayor Quiambao launched the Bayambang’s Best longanisa brand at the Public Market.

On April 14, 2021, a newly constructed Bayambang Municipal Fire Station was opened at its old location in Brgy. Zone VI.

Dr. Quiambao’s 1Food Corporation started its food manufacturing operations in Brgy. Dusoc. Their initial products included assorted vegetable chips and tomato salsa using local farmers’ produce.

Silver Concha Wavepool Resort, a water-based resort with artificial waves, was inaugurated in Brgy. Malimpec.

On May 15, Sta. Lucia Land Inc. broke ground for its Centro Verde Bayambang residential estate development across the St. Vincent Ferrer Prayer Park.

Sun Plaza Mall rose in Brgy. Telbang.

Forest Lake Memorial Park opened in Brgy. Nalsian Sur.

2022  

Mayor Cezar Quiambao launched the E-Agro app, a digital platform that addresses the various needs of farmers, especially loans, at their fingertips. Eight agricultural warehouses were constructed per farming district as supporting infrastructure.

On March 24, a tourism enterprise proposal of the Sangguniang Kabataan of Brgy. Amancosiling Norte was the grand prize winner of Mayor Quiambao's Bayambang Millennials’ Challenge. Patterned after Bloomberg's Mayors Challenge, the competition sought to solicit and reward the most innovative ideas from the youth that could solve one of their own community's problems. The winning team experimented with transforming a moribund river dike area into an Agno River cruise type of attraction.

On March 30, the biggest post-harvest facility complex in Northern Luzon was inaugurated by the Jose-Quiambao family in Brgy. Amancosiling Sur. It was operated by the Agricultural Infrastructure and Leasing Corporation or AILC with office at St. Vincent Village, Brgy. Bical Norte.

The main output of the Bayambang Culture Mapping Project was produced, the book “Say Nanlapuan.”

In May, two women made history by being the first women to get elected as Mayor and Vice-Mayor of the town: Mary Clare Judith Phyllis ‘Niña’ Jose-Quiambao and Ian Camille ‘IC’ Castillo Sabangan.

On June 10, the Bayambang Dairy Farm started operations in Brgy. Mangayao.

The Bayambang Polytechnic College (BPC) was established on June 27 by virtue of Municipal Ordinance No. 05, S-2022, later on approved through Sangguniang Panlalawigan Resolution No. 586-2022. An LGU-owned and operated college but initially funded privately by the Jose-Quiambao family, it initially opened in 3F Royal Mall and offered a ladderized program on tech-voc courses and four-year courses in Entrepreneurship and Agribusiness in response to the town’s pressing needs.

On July 4, a groundbreaking ceremony was held for the Pantol-to-San Gabriel Farm-to-Market Road with Bridge Project, a grant worth P126,478,000.00 from the Department of Agriculture-Philippine Rural Development Project-World Bank.

On August 3, the Municipal Bonery beside the Bayambang Fire Station was constructed.

On September 19, the Municipal Hatchery opened in Brgy. Langiran.

On October 20, the northernmost span of Wawa Bridge collapsed after two overloaded trucks drove through it at the same time. On November 8, a bailey bridge was constructed by the DPWH to restore traffic in the area.

In early March, PSU-BC received AACCUP Institutional Accreditation Level IV Re-Accredited status. 

In November, Kenneth Mejia, the son of a Bayambangueña was elected as City of Los Angeles Controller or city accountant, the first-ever Filipino and the first Asian to reach such a milestone in the city's history.

A Seal of Good Local Governance for Barangays was conceptualized by Mayor Quiambao long before the Department of the Interior and Local Government introduced this form of recognition for barangay local government units.

Joseph Anthony F. Quinto, General Manager of San Fernando City Water District (La Union), was hired as the town’s first Municipal Environment and Natural Resources Officer or MENRO. Under his term, the Municipal Nursery was transferred to the Materials Recovery Facility in Brgy. Dusoc, Mayor Niña Jose-Quiambao’s intensive clean-and-green campaign, Bali-Bali’n Bayambang, was launched, he was elected as President of the Pangasinan Association of Environment and Natural Resources Officers, and the Ecological Solid Waste Management Office received several awards.

 

2023

On January 22, the Bayambang District Hospital's operating room became the largest among district hospitals in the province, after Kasama Kita sa Barangay Foundation, Inc., Niña Cares Foundation, and the provincial government expanded and improved it together with upgraded equipment.

On February 15, the Balon Bayambang Museum: Home of Innovation was formally opened to the public after a soft launch on October 14, 2022.

RHU VI was built in Brgy. Mangayao on a lot donated by Mayor Cezar T. Quiambao and opened on February 22.

On May 5, former Mayor Quiambao, through CS First Green Agri-Industrial Development Inc., entered into a memorandum of agreement for two solar power plants worth $503-million with a 321-megawatt capacity to be built in Infanta and Dasol towns in western Pangasinan. In the presence of Gov. Ramon Guico III, he signed the MOA in Lingayen together with URIT Limited Philippines Corp., China Energy International Group Co., and the China Energy International Group Co.

On May 8, CitiHardware opened in Brgy. Buayaen.

LGU-Bayambang accepted its hard-earned ISO 9001:2015 (Quality Management System) Certification from Certification Partner Global - Philippines, at an awarding ceremony held August 16 at the Balon Bayambang Events Center, with all LGU officials and “ISO champion-employees” in attendance.

On October 12, the local government won the Bayambang Central School case and wasted no time in reclaiming possession of the property.

On December 5, the first 3D LED screen in the country outside of Metro Manila was inaugurated in Royal Mall.

After this, a Christmas attraction inspired by Ghibli Studios’ anime films and characters at the Municipal Plaza attracted hundreds of thousands of visitors and media attention.

LGU-Bayambang scored an "Unmodified Opinion" from the Commission on Audit's Annual Audit Report for the first time, it was announced on June 30.

2024

On January 12, Former Vice-Mayor Raul R. Sabangan was elected as President of the provincial Federation of Liga ng mga Barangay, earning him a seat at the Pangasinan legislative body as an ex-officio Board Member.

On May 15, the National Irrigation Administration started digging in Brgy. Amancosiling Norte.

On June 6, the old Home Economics Building in the old Bayambang Central School campus was renovated and turned into temporary government offices. Soon, another surviving school building was rehabilitated and turned into temporary classrooms of the Bayambang Polytechnic College.

On June 24, BYB Metro broke ground in Brgy. Bical Norte as a new and modern town center that is envisioned to be “the BGC of the North.”

On July 29, Don Teofilo C. Mataban Memorial School opened in Brgy. Ligue, a school constructed by the local government on privately donated land.

On August 8, Bo’s Coffee opened a branch in Brgy. Asin.

On October 18, the seven-story Julius K. Quiambao Medical and Wellness Center was inaugurated in Brgy. Asin with First Lady Louise Araneta-Marcos leading the ceremony. The tertiary hospital was managed by The Medical City group.

A Christmas attraction inspired by the “Star Wars” film franchise at the Municipal Plaza attracted thousands of visitors. Digital projection mapping technology and animatronics were used in this attraction.

The bougainvillea was declared as the official municipal flower of Bayambang.

On December 13, a groundbreaking ceremony was held in Brgy. Nalsian Norte for the Nalsian Norte Onion Cold Storage, a grant from the Department of Agriculture worth ₱37,372,158.01.

During the year’s SingKapital celebration in November, the National Historical Commission of the Philippines unveiled a new marker in front of the Municipal Hall stating that Aguinaldo and company were in Bayambang for several days and not just overnight as long thought.

Susanna Rodriguez Evangelista, RN, of Barangay Nalsian Sur, was the topnotcher of the June 2024 Philippine Nurses Special Professional Licensure Examination, securing the top spot with a score of 86.20%.

On May 15, LGU-Bayambang received the Excellence Award from the Philippine Association of Local Government Accountants at the CAP-John Hay Trade and Cultural Center, Baguio City, in recognition of the LGU’s attainment of an “Unmodified or Unqualified Audit Opinion” based on the 2022 COA Annual Audit Report of the Commission on Audit, a first in the annals of the LGU.

On midnight of May 5, a portion of the Public Market caught fire due to octopus wiring in some stalls. Affected stall owners were immediatelygiven financial assistance from the LGU’s fund and the mayor’s personal fund.

In April, the parish church’s Museo de San Vicente was first inaugurated as a parish exhibit.

The local government officially created the positions of Local Youth Development Officer, PWD Affairs Development Officer, Local Revenue Collection Officer, and Business Permits and Licensing Officer and hired qualified personnel for the purpose.

A book, “220 Tula para sa Bayambang,” was published which compiles all winning and non-winning poems about the town’s history and culture from contests held since 2016. The compilation includes entries about the ‘SingKapital’ celebration.

2025

On February 6, the groundbreaking ceremony for the campus of Bayambang Polytechnic College was conducted in Brgy. Bical Norte beside Bayambang District Hospital on a lot donated by Dr. Cezar T. Quiambao. First Lady Louise Araneta-Marcos and Commission on Higher Education Chairman Prospero ‘Popoy’ de Vera led the ceremony together with Dr. Cezar T. Quiambao, BPC President, Dr. Rafael L. Saygo, and other dignitaries.

On March 7, Governor Ramon 'Mon-Mon' Guico III and other Pangasinan provincial government officials, together with municipal officials, inaugurated the new CT scan, stationary and portable ultrasound, and X-ray machines at the Bayambang District Hospital, and led the groundbreaking ceremony for the new hemodialysis center there.

On April 5, the St. Vincent Ferrer Parish Church was officially proclaimed by Lingayen-Dagupan Archbishop, Most Reverend Socrates Villegas, as an archdiocesan shrine.

This development coincided with the ordination of a new priest from Bayambang, Fr. Alexander I. Martinez, OCarm., after 29 long years.

A groundbreaking ceremony for the rehabilitation of Wawa Bridge was held as an opening activity for the town fiesta.

‘Rhianna’ Cerezo Poquiz of Brgy. San Gabriel 2nd was crowned as the first “Binibeking Bayambang.”

The local government won two other major infrastructure projects from DA-PRDP Scale-up and WB: the Pantol-to-San Gabriel Farm-to-Market Road with Bridge Project, a grant worth ₱319,180,000, and the Nalsian Cold Storage Project, a grant worth ₱246,015,000.

Bayambang was recognized by the National Nutrition Council with the CROWN or Consistent Regional Outstanding Winner in Nutrition Award in the presence of President Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr.

A Central Terminal for big buses was completed on the leftmost side of PSU-Bayambang Campus.

Kangaroo Hill Pavilion and Resort opened in Brgy. Sancagulis.

On May 12, Mayor Niña Jose-Quiambao was reelected with a slim margin of around 2,000 votes, with Dr. Cathy de Vera almost snatching the position from her second term.

 

Compiled by: Resty S. Odon

 

References: Dr. Clarita Jimenez & Bayambang Quadricentennial Research Team (for the period 1614-2014), Balon Bayambang Facebook page, various official websites

Contributors: Tessie Reyes, Gernalyn Santos, Jonathan de Castro, Karla de Vera-Cristobal, Boyette Santillan Poserio, Annie Seledio, Corazon Reyes, Jane Kristelle Domingo Macmod, Joel V. Camacho, Bernabe Mercado Jr., Joey Ferrer

 

Researchers: JV Baltazar, Vernaliza Ferrer, Camila Gatpo Garin, Geralyn Pagsolingan, Caryl Nikki Agdeppa, Mica Flores, Sheina Mae U. Gravidez

 

Addenda:

 

? Onofre Abalos was the first Court of First Instance judge from Bayambang.

? Atty. Guillermo Aguirre became the first municipal judge from Bayambang.