Capital of Pangasinan

Pangasinan Capital Town During periods of crises, when a government is fighting for its survival, necessity sometimes demand that it moves its seal of power from place to place. To most Pangasinanses, Lingayen has always been the capital town of the province. The contrary is also true. Pangasinan, as a province, antedates the Spanish conquest, Long before Ferdinand Magellan, the Portuguese navigator who discovered the Philippines for Spain was born, Pangasinan was already having her commercial relations with China , particularly during the time of the Chinese emperor Yung-Lo in 4 th century of the Christian era. Ling Ah Yen In fact, in years 628-636 A.D., in the course of the trade and diplomatic relations between China and Pangasinan, a Chinese nobleman named Ling Ah Yen, migrated to the province and settled in a coastal area which later came to be known as Lingayen. Lingayen, the cradle of Chinese culture in Pangasinan, which gave the province six...

Pangasinan Capital Town During periods of crises, when a government is fighting for its survival, necessity sometimes demand that it moves its seal of power from place to place. To most Pangasinanses, Lingayen has always been the capital town of the province. The contrary is also true. Pangasinan, as a province, antedates the Spanish conquest, Long before Ferdinand Magellan, the Portuguese navigator who discovered the Philippines for Spain was born, Pangasinan was already having her commercial relations with China, particularly during the time of the Chinese emperor Yung-Lo in 4th century of the Christian era. Ling Ah Yen In fact, in years 628-636 A.D., in the course of the trade and diplomatic relations between China and Pangasinan, a Chinese nobleman named Ling Ah Yen, migrated to the province and settled in a coastal area which later came to be known as Lingayen. Lingayen, the cradle of Chinese culture in Pangasinan, which gave the province six Governors of Chinese extraction (Sison...

This town, with the original name of Sarapsap, was founded in 1766 by the Augustinian Recollects. The first church of the town built in 1770 was burned to-Gether with the convent and the tribunal by a fire that razed the town in 1814. The First parish priest of the town was Fr. Toribio Raymundo (1778-1815). In 1875 the name Alaminos was adopted in ho or of the Spanish Governor General, who visited the town. Between the years 1837-1849, Fr. Manuel Busquete, the Recollectos parish priest started the construction of the present church and the convent of Alaminos. Fr. Jose Tornos (1849-1878) continued the work. Fr. Victoriano Vereciano (1879-1893) changed the nipa roofing and installed the wooden flooring. He also painted the church. Fr. Toribio Macazo (1998-1926) established the INSTITUTE OF SAN JOSE in the town, Fr, Tomas Changco (1926-1915) improved the church tower, donated three bells and roofed the church with galvanized iron.

The town of Agno is said to have been originally founded in the year 1917 and was named efter Governor General Agno. The town site was formerly situated in a place called Binabalian, northwest of the present town proper. Due to piratical depradations, the inhabitants moved southeast into the interior and established the town permanently in 1818 on the site which is now occupies. In its beginnings, Agno was populated by Zambals, but as years went by these were outnumbered by Ilocano immigrants. Agno was a part of Zambales until 1904.

This town, form by cattle owners who established their settlement in the place, formerly was a part of San Carlos and was erected civilly on July 16, 1805. On May 9, 1806, the election of the first Minister of Justice was made. The Dominican Provincial Chapter of 1810 accepted Aguilar as a parish under the patronage of St. Joseph, with Fr. Juan Villa as its first parish priest. The town is named after Governor General Rafael Maria Aguilar. The first church of the town constructed by Fr. Vila was of light materials and did not last for long. Fr. Pons began the constuction of a new church in 1809. Fr. Benito Sanchez Fraga, often called the second founder of Aguilar, started to cement the actual church and tower in 1846. Transferred to Manaoag, he was unable to finish the job which was continued by Frs. Ramon Dumlau and Francisco Treserra and completed by Fr. Pedro Villanova. It was repaired by Fr. Victor Herrero, The church is 66.40 meters long and 15.73 meters wide. Fr. Juan Manzano sta...

The parish of St. Mark the Evangelist was erected on June 1969, comprising five barrios of Alaminos centered in Alos and serving the spiritual needs of 2,300 families. It was Archbishop Mariano Madriaga who chose. St. Mark the Evangelist as the patron of the church, with Father Asterio Doque as the first Parish Priest. The spiritual needs of Alos used to be taken care by the parish priest of Mabini. Because of these spiritual needs and the growing religious fervor of the people, they petitioned the Archishop to send them a resident pastor. And to show their sincerity and cooperation in their request, they constructed their own parish church before the arrival of the parish preist.

This town named after Governor General Simon de Anda Y Salazar, was founded around the year 1858. As a part of the Zambales mission, its spiritual administration was taken care of by the Recollects up to the early years of the Philippines Revolution. From the outbreak of the Revolution up to 1931, the town had no resident priest. The spiritual life of the faithful was taken care of by the resident priest from Bolinao, who came to the town once a year.

As a town Bani was founded around the year 1762 with the original name of San Simon. The original site of the old town is in Barrio Namagbagan which is located some three kilometers west of the present site. The name Bani was adopted since 1816. The town was transferred to its present location in 1857. Originally a part of Zambales, Bani was aggregated to the province of Pangasinan on May 10, 1903.

Sometime in 1585 Fr. Esteban Marin, an Augustinian Friar, was the very first missionary ever to set foot in Bolinao, an island town, which he formed out of the People he baptized. He worked there till 1587, when he was appointed Prior of the town of Batac, Ilocos Norte. Bolinao was then assigned to the Dpminican Fathers who took charge of it till 1599. In 1600, however, the Augustinian Fathers came back with Fr. Francisco Martinez as their superior. In 1602 Fr. Estacio Ortiz took over, and later on, Fr. Antonio Figueroa. The Augustinian Fathers were the very first sowers of the seeds of the Gospel in this town. They ended their missionary work in 1607. With their departure, the Most Illustrious Governor and Capt. General Rodrigo de Rivera and the Dean of the Metropolitan Church requested the Recoletos de San Juan Agustin Fathers to take over the work begun by the Augustinian Fathers. Immediately, thereafter, Father Jeronimo de Cristo and Fr. Andres del Espiritu Santo rallied to the cal...

This is the name of the new town which replaced the old town of Salasa. It was named Bugallon in honor of General Jose Torres Bugallon who was a native of Salasa. Salasa enjoyed being the seat of the municipal government until year 1916 when by resolution of the municipal council approved by the Provincial Board, the town site was transferred Andrew was later built.to barrio Anagao, the present seat of the town where a church dedicated to St. The parish of Bugallon was established in 1920. The construction of the church was started by Father Benjamin Ilarduya of the Capuchin Order and continued by his successor Father Hipolito Azeutia, also of the same Order. Father Fidel Lekamania, put up the present convent. Further improvement of the church was done by the late Father Pedro V. Sison.

The town’s chronicles do not show when the first inhabitants first settled in the upland part of Burgos, Western Pangasinan. But it is certain in that these immigrants came from the town of Paoay, Ilocos Norte. During the Spanish rule, this municipality was a part of the province of Zambales In the year 1876, the Dominican created the Parish of St. Isidore of St. Isidore, the patron saint of farmers, because majority of the settlers were farmers. The patron’s feast is annually celebrated on May 15. It is also the town fiesta. It was the founding missionaries who built the present façade of the church, made mostly of quarried adobe stones contributed by the faithful. The Dominicans left during the American regime and were succeeded by Filipino clergymen who continued the improvement of the house of God and the ministration of the faithful.

This parish was first recognized way back in 1800. During this time, and during the pre-war period, St. Vincent Ferrer Parish was only visited by the parish priest of Burgos when necessary. After the second world war, Fr. Jose Velasco was assigned the first resident parish priest. In 1955, the site of the church was transferred from the “old center” of Dasol to its new place.

As a Public Oratory, the church of Eguia was founded in 1888 with St. Raphael Archangel as the Patron Saint. On March 19, 1958, it was elevated to the Status of a parish. Its elevation was realized through the insistent pleading of the people and was expedited through the generosity of Don Natalio nd Dona Jacoba Espiritu who donated more than one hectare of rice land for the exclusive use of the parish priest, thus insuring his sustenance. Father Vicente Gabriel was commissioned by His Excellency Mariano Madriaga, then Bishop of Lingayen-Dagupan, to be the first priest of the parish. The church was small measuring 20 x 10 meters.

Originally a barrio Zambales, Infnta was known as San Juan in honor of the Patron Saint of the barrio. It was organized into a town in 1878, under the patronage of San Felipe. The poblacion then was located in barrio Nangalisan, six kilometers southeast of the present poblacion. It said that the poblacion while in this site was often ransacked and plundered and so for security reasons it was moved to its present site in 1892. Since then, the town has been called Infanta. The church of the town is dedicated to St. John the Evangelist. Constructed in 1897, its measures approximately 7 meters wide and 10 meters long. Its walls were made of coconut leaves and its roof of cogon grass. It had no ground flooring. Ten years later, the ground floor area was enlarge while galvanized iron roofing replaced the cogon grass. Unfortunately a strong typhoon wrecked the church. Reconstruction was made with whatever available materials were salvaged after the typhoon. The construction of a semi-permanen...

The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass was first offered in Labrador in 1575 when a section of the Spanish army was encamped on the shores of Lingayen Gulf at the mouth of the Agno River in an attempt to cut off the retreat of a Chinese pirate, named Limahong, who had invaded this area. It was not until 1755 that Labrador was set up as a priest under the care of the Dominican Father Antonio Ruiz. The parish was dedicated to St. Isidore the Farmer, who is the patron saint of Madrid and who is still greatly venerated here, especially by farmers.

Balingcaguing is the original name of this town which was founded in the year 1610. Originally part of Zambales, it consists of a land area of 27,150 hectares. No record exists to show the exacts date when it became part of Pangasinan. However, the church’s records show that in 1930 the name Balingcaguing was changed to Mabini. The town’s patron is the Holy Child or “Sto. NiÑo”.

A barrio of San Carlos in its beginnings, Mangatarem flourished largely with the Ilocanos who flocked to the place, attracted by its good terrain which is very conducive for raising palay . In 1827 when it was established a “visita” of San Carlos, .the town had already 19 cabecerias. In 1835, it was separated as an independent town from San Carlos. The Dominicans accepted Mangatarem a former “visita”of San Carlos as a vacariate under the patronage of St. Raymond of Penafort, in 1837. Its firdt vicar was Fr. Joaquin Perez who stayed until 1844. Before Fr. Perez,however, there were other priest who served in Mangatarem, among them was Fr. Benito Focuberta, who administered the parish as a vicar ad interim during the whole year of 1834. The first church of the town was constructed under the supervision of Fr. Perez. It was burned in 1962. In 1851 began the construction of two remarkable towers started since Fr. Manzano and was continued by his successors, the last one of them Fr. Vicente ...

Originally, the site of this parish was Santiago Island. Today, the center is in barrio BINALBALAN. The town was founded as early as 1585 by the Augustinian missionaries. It was transferred to the present site in Bolinao in 1608. In July, 1968, the resident priest arrived in Santiago Island, in the person of Fr. Fraancisco Ganaden. The church is located in Barrio Salud.

On May 20, 1805, Governor General Rafael Maria Aguilar issued a decree, creating Sual as a civil town, independent from San Isidro until 1837 when, at the efforts of P.Gabriel Perez, it was declared as an independent parish under the patronage of San Pedro Martir by the Dominican Provincial Chapter of that year. Fr. Perez was appointed the pastor of the new vicariate which was definitely transferred from Labrador to Sual in July, 1835. The construction of the first church of Sual was completed by Fr. P. Villanueva between 1847 and 1848. The construction of the second church was begun under the term of Fr. Felix Casas in 1883. By order of the Bishop the work was suspended but in 1891, it was resumed by Father Eugenie Minguez and was consecrated on June 8, 1893. The present church is the third to be built in the town. It was destroyed by bombing during the Liberation in 1945.

The parish of Zaragosa is located between Bani and Bolinao proper. It was first a Barrio Apostolate of the Capuchin Fathers. Here they built a chapel where they officiated Mass every Sunday. Later in 1966, it was converted into a separate parish with Father Montero as parish priest. He was succeeded by Father Manuel Baraan.

This small town with the primitive name of Telbang was mentioned in the Acts of the Dominican Provincial Chapter of 1614. it was made and independent vicariate in 1668 when a resident pastor was assigned to it. In 1700, it was made a part of Malungay, now Bayambang. In 1764, during the infamous rebellion of “Palaris”, the town was razed by the advancing Royal Troops of Governor General Simon de Anda y Salazar. It reappeared later as Bautista in 1900.

The peresent municipality of Basista with its twelve barrios was erected civilly on September 5, 1961. The town as well as its twelve barrios formerly formed a part of San Carlos City. As a parish, Basista was for a long time a “visita” of San Carlos City. However, as early as 1947, it already had a resident priest. The first pastor of the town was Fr. Leon Bitanga.

This town with primitive name of Malungay was accepted by the Dominican Provincial Chapter in 1619, under the patronage of St. Vincent Ferrer. It was known as Malungay unitl 1741, when the name Bayambang was adopted-the name of the place or site where the old town site was transferred. Malungay, already existed as a settlement as early as 1614 but it was not established as a vicariate until 1619. By 1804, the three-naved church of Bayambang was deterio rating and so plans were made to built a new and bigger one. The work was begun by Fr. Manuel Sucias in 1813. It had a cruciform plan. It was continued by Fr. Juan Manzano, Fr. Joaquin Flores, and Fr. Benito Foncuberto, but the work was slow due to many difficulties. It was finally completed by Fr. Juan Ibañez (1832-1847), In 1856, the church was burned. It was reconstructed by Fr. Foncuberto who tore down the cruciform plan and built two sacrities. He roofed the church with tiles but due to earthquakes, he replaced the roofing with galv...

This town already existed as early as 1614 as part of San Carlos. In 1672, the Capitular Acts of the Dominicans assigned the first vicar of the town, Father Tomas Gutierrez. The church has been constructed in the 16th century and finished by Fr. Barrozo, O.P. in 1754. Its church bell is one of the three biggest bells in the Philippines, cast in 1804 weighing 4,130 pounds. It was damaged during the World War II. The church was destroyed and only the walls and the tower, partly damaged, were left by the shelling of the American warship from January 7-9, 1945.

The parish was erected in July, 1943 by Bishop Mariano Madriaga with St. Gabriel the Archangel as Patron Saint. Father Jesus Sison (now retired Bishop of Tarlac), was the first parish priest of Bonuan. He served the parish for 21 years. He buikt the first church, beside a big convent. Father Luis Ungson replaced the old Church with a big beautiful one in 1969.

Calasiao, the second town in Pangasinan founded by the Dominicans, was established as a vicariate by the Dominican Provincial Chapter of 1588 under the patronage of St. Dominic. It was originally known as Gabon, the name of a barrio adjacent to the actual poblacion. The missionaries however, encountered so much hostilities of Gabon that they decided to transfer to Calasiao. Calasiao is a corruption of “Calasian” which means “A place of lightnings”. The Provincial Chapter of 1596 placed the parish under the patronage of St. Paul but from the year 1621, it became the parish of Sts. Peter and Paul. The first parish priest of this town was Fr. Jaun Maldonado de San Pedro Martir. In the uprising of 1763, the Alcalde Mayor and other Spaniards besieged by the rebels of Binalatongan, took refuge in the church tower of this town as the convent and the church were burning. The religious saved themselves by escaping with the help of the insurgents who respected them. The church and the convent we...

Formerly a public oratory of the Parish of St. John, the Evangelist of Dagupan City, Calmay was administered by previous Rectors such as Father Desiderio Sandoval, Calixto Armas, Severino Lopez, and Emeterio Domagas. It was canonicallyerected as a parish on January 21, 1973 by the most Rev. Mariano A. Madriaga, Archbishopo of Lingayen-Dagupan, with Rev. Clemente T. Godoy as the first parish priest.

The parish of St. Rose of Lima was created in 1965.

The Dominican Provincial Chapter of 1614 accepted this town together with its “visita”, Bagnotan (Dagupan), under the patronage of the Three Kings, after the Augustinians ceded these missions to the Dominican Order in the Preceding year. In 1616, the town was given its first pastor in the person of Father Juan Martinez with Fathers Juan de San Jacinto, Pedro Vasquez and Antonio de San Vicente as his assistant. Records show that it was the natives of Lingayen themselves who petitioned Archbishop Miguel de Benavides while making a visit in Binmaley that the spiritual care of their town be entrusted to the Dominicans. Since 1575, the Augustinians were already in Lingayen having accompanied the military expedition under Juan Salcedo in pursuit of Limahong. The old church of Lingayen used to be the best in the province, perhaps in the whole northern Luzon. The dome was the work of famous Father Miguel Aparicio (1862-1834). Like many churches in Pangasinan, the church and the convent of Ling...

The parish of Malasiqui was formerly a “visita” of San Carlos. In 1665, it became a town which the venerable Fr. Juan Camacho as founder and first pastor. The original town of Malasiqui was located some two kilometers to the east of the road leading to Villasis. After an uprising in1660, the town was transferred to the present site in1661-1662. In 1971, Malasiqui was separated as a parish from San Carlos and in 1677, it was accepted by the Dominicans. Fr. Juan Catalan was administrator of the parish. In 1746, the construction of the church and the convent was started by Fr. Luis Delfin. These buildings were burned in 1763. In 1770 another convent was built and, in 1773, the construction of a new church began under Fr. Tapias. It was completed in 1790. On February 29, 1820, another conflagration gutted down the town together with the church, the convent and the parish archives. The building of a new church began in 1823. This was also burned. A provincial church and a convent were again...

This town, once a visita of Lingayen, owes its beginnings from the zeal of the Augustinians. Here in 1600, some children were baptized and a chapel was erected (on the site of the actual cemetery) under the patronage of Santa Monica. Five years later, due to lack of personnel and the great difficulties of the Minister of Doctrine who had to go back and forth from Lingayen, the Augustinians handed the mission to Sr. Diego de Soria , then bishop of Nueva Segovia of which Pangasinan formed a part. In 1608 the bishop in turn turned over the mission to the Dominicans residing in Mangaldan and placed it under the patronage of our Lady of the Most Holy Rosary. The Dominicans Provincial Chaptere of 1601 established Manaoag as an independent parish assigning the first pastor of the town, V.P. Tomas Gutierrez.This was after Fr. Juan de San Jacinto had resettled the natives of the placed. The church of Manaoag is a sanctuary frequented by countless people from Pangasinan and from the neighboring ...

Mangaldan owns the distinction as the third town in Pangasinan to be founded by the Dominican missionaries. As early as 1591, Mangaldan already existed as a Spanish encomienda. Its foundation as a town is attributed to Blessed Juan Martinez de Santo Domingo, a former missionary of Pangasinan who died a martry’s death in Japan on March 19, 1618. Mangaldan started as a “visita” of Calasiao and it remained as such until the Dominicans created it as an independent vicariate under the patronage of St. Thomas Aquinas on June 2, 1600. It is said that of all the people of Pangasinan, the Mangaldanes were the most difficult to convert. The greatest enemy of the missionaries in the town was a certain man named Casipit who tried to force them out of the town and even attempted to kill some of them. Yet, when he was converted by the first apostle, Fr. Pedro Soto, he became the principal propagator of the Faith. He contributed a great sum of money for the construction of the first church. In the se...

The organization of Mapandan (once a part of Mangaldan) into a town was made through the initiative of the old men from the place with the support of Fr. Benigno Jimenez then parish priest of Mangaldan, and of Don Hilario Aquino, a barrio captain. Originally, the town was located in the hilly region in the south where “pandan”-a plant the leaves of which are stripped and women wove into mats – grew in abundance. Thus, the town was named Mapandan. Later the town was transferred to Torres, a barrio named after the famous priest of Mangaldan, Fr. Jose Torres, O.P. Finally, in 1902, the town site was transferred to its present location The first church was built about the time Mapandan was founded as a parish in 1905 with Fr. Juan Ballesteros as the first parish priest. Since then, around twenty-three priests served Mapandan parish. Among them is most Rev. Emilio Cinense, former Bishop of San Fernando, (Pampanga) who served from September, 1934 to April 25, 1936.

Naguelguel was established as a Public Oratory in 1950. It has not been formally erected as a parish yet.

This town with the primitive name of Binalatongan was the first in Pangasinan to be founded by the Dominican missionaries. Its creation as a vicariate dates back to 1588 when it was placed under the patronage of St. Dominic. The first pastor of the town was Father Bernardo Navarro de Santa Catalina. Binalatongan which means “a place of mangos” have had three different town sites with the same name. Originally it was situated on the western side of the Agno River near the mountains of Zambales. Later it was moved to the eastern side of the Agno which site still conserves the name of “Baloydaan”. It was here that the church and the Dominican House were burned on August 4, 1718. It appears that the town was again transferred around the year 1721 to the site it now occupies where the church and the Domincan House were pillaged and burned in 1763. In 1770, the construction of a massive brick church began. When completed by Father Cristobal Ausina in 1773, it was the biggest church in the is...

The creation of San Fabian into a town and parish was made through the efforts of the Dominican Provincial who petitioned the Province as early as January 9, 1716, to that effect. The provincial Chapter of the Dominican Order in 1718 made San Fabian as a covariates assigning Father Andres Caballero its first pastor. Before San Fabian became a parish, however, it already had a resident priest since March 21, 1717- Father Manuel del Rio (elected bishop but died before receiving the Bull) whom Father Caballero succeeded. Because of its excellent geographical location, it is the common tradition that San Fabian was founded to serve as an Infirmary for the religious of Pangasinan. A semi-claustral convent which was converted into a public oratory before it was burned in 1856 was constructed in the town by Fr. Holego Francisco Ferrer in 1763.There used to be a brick building in front of the convent where Bishop Ustaris stayed. Between the years 1857-1860, Father Juan Gutierrez rebuilt the ch...

The account of Father Diego Aduarte implies that San Jacinto existed as a town as early as 1598. This is confirmed by what the Dominican capitular acts 1604 state and this is: that the Ilocanos who did not wish to return to their towns formed their community in San Jacinto. From 1699, the town began to have a resident vicar although now and then it was annexed either to Manaoag or Mangaldan. In 1598, the town had already a church. In 1653, a new brick church was constructed but was burned in 1719. In 1721, the construction of another church was started. It was finished in 1731 when the first Mass was said in it. The facade of this beautiful church cracked during an earthquake in 1848. During the stronger tremors of 1892, both the church and the tower collapsed.

The Augustinians had change of the spiritual administration of this town from 1590 to 1613. Formerly known as Bagnotan, it was accepted as vicariate by the Dominican Provincial Chapter of 1614, under the patronage of St. John the vangelist, and assigning Father Kuis Huete, as the first Dominican pastor. Up to 1643, the town was annexed to Calasiao. The town began to be called Dagupan since 1720. An early church and a convent were burned in 1660 when Andres Malong’s men razed the ton. The Rev. Pedro de Rama rebuilt the church in 1816. In 1895, the Rev. Vicente Iztegui rebuilt the façade that the earthquake of March 16, 1892, had destroyed. The construction of the old convent which is the present Bishop’s residence was begun and completed by father Gregorio Paz. In 1891, a famous College was established in the town by the Dominicans under the patronage of St. Albert the Great.The Massive building was, as everybody knows, washed out by floods in 1936. The church was further repaired and i...

The parish was founded in October 3, 1955 as Chinese Parish. The Church was built in 1966-1967. Blessing on January 15, 1967.

The creation of the town named after Governor General Antonio Urbiztondo of Villasis, was due to the efforts of Father Ramon Dalmau, parish priest of San Carlos. It was canonically erected and separated from San Carlos around the year 1853 or 1854. The Dominicans accepted Urbiztondo as vicariate in 1855 assigning Father P. Treserra as its first vicar, although Father Treserra was already in the town as early as November 28, 1853. When Father Treserra was transferred from Urbiztondo in 1861, the town already had a church, a tribunal and convent- all made of bricks. And the plaza and the streets in the poblacion were already traced. Father Treserra was also responsible for relocating the town to the place where Father Dalmau founded the town was a low terrain and was often flooded. The parish convent was mysteriously burned down in 1947. The old church building was condemned due to the weakness of its framework. It was replaced by a new structure by the late Father Domingo Frias.

The town of Alcala was originally one of the biggest sitios of Bayambang. It was separated civilly from its mother, Bayambang, by the Royal Decree No. 682 of the Spanish Government dated September 20, 1875. It was comprised by the barrios of Dangla, Namalutan, Ba-ong, Baguiyao, Cupi, Bacud and Bitulao. It was first called “Dabgla”, a vernacular name of a medicinal shrub, which was then in abundance in the locality. This name was changed, however, into Alcala in honor of the then incumbent Spanish Governor of Pangasinan who was a native of Alcala, Spain. Alcala was ceated as an independent parish by another Royal Decree of the Spanish Government dated January 4, 1881, and was given the name, Parish of the Holy Cross. The Dominicans accepted it as a House of the Order on November of 1881 and made Rev. Fr. Eduardo Saamaniego, O.P., the first parish priest on February 21, 1882. Fr. Samaniego started the construction of the convent. Fr. Revilla continued it, and Fr. Casamitjana finished it....

Asingan, whose Titular and Patron Saint is St. Louis Bertrand, O.P., and whose former name was SINNAPOG, was founded in 1669. However, the town began having its resident pastor and parish priest only in 1698, the Reverend Father Fernando de Santa Maria, O.P. He is known as the author of a popular booklet entitled “Medicinas Caseras”. The first inhabitants of Asingan were pure Pangasinenses. By 1830, however, Ilocanos from Ilocos Norte and Sur began migrating to Asingan so much so that today Asingan is predominantly an Ilocano town. In 1763, Asingan received from the Spanish Governor General the titles of “Villa Real” and “Villa Muy Leal”, for her loyalty to Spain, the town having been the refuge of the Spaniards of Pangasinan during the revolt of Palaris.In fact, he town’s forces, led by the Captain or townhead met and defeated the invading armed men of Palaris at Bactad, then a barrio belonging to Asingan, now of Urdaneta. From 1698 to 1898 there were 61 parish priest belonging to the...

The town of Balungao is located at the southern part of Pangasinan. Historical records do not show it was founded but it formerly was a part of Cuyapo, Nueva Ecija. Due to the geographical conditions it was deemed proper to convert it to a town. As a parish, Balungao was erected in 1944. The first pastor of the ton was Fr. Casimiro Castillo.

The original site of the present town of Binalonan was located and founded by Fr. Julian Izaga in the barrio of San Felipe. It was created a civil town independent from Manaoag to which it had formerly belonged in1834. Later, the townsite was moved through the efforts of the same Fr. Izaga to the barrio of Santa Catalina. Here he constructed a church and a convent, made of light materials, much against the will of some people of Manaoag and the Ilocanos of Santa Catalina, Fr. Ramon Fernandez transferred the town in 1938 to the place where it now stands. The Dominicans created Binalonan as a parish in 1841.The first pastor of the town was Fr. Domingo Llue who was succeeded shorthly by Fr,. Policarpio Illanan, whom the Dominicans appointed when they created the parish. Fr. Illana, a church and a convent. Between the years 1854 and 1855, Fr. Antonio Vinelas gathered the materials to build a bigger church. But it was Fr. Ruperto Alarcon who started the actual construction in 1861. Meanwhil...

The town of Natividad was created by the Philippine Commission on December 25, 1904. The name Natividad was given in honor of the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ. The town formerly a barrio of San Nicolas, was then inhabited by immigrants from the Ilocos region who spoke the BAGO dialect, and so as a brrio it was known as Caaguan. Four some time after its foundation, Natividad had no resident priest, the town being a “visita” of Tayug. Foundation of the present church was laid in the year 1927 by Father Reynaldo Rola. The first parish priest of the town was Fr. Alfredo Obedoza.

This town known befor as Claris was formerly a sitio of San Jacinto. It was founded on March 12, 1834, by Fr. Domingo Naval, Vicar of San Jacinto. In 1839, the foundation of an ermita was laid down which was later finished in 1842. Although Pozorrubio became an independent town on January 30, 1870, by a royal decree of Governor General. When Pozorrubio became an independent parish, a temporary church was built at Cablong (now the town proper). The new church was blessed on July 26, 1879, by Fr. Julian Lopez, Vicar of San Jacinto, and on December 5, 1879, Fr. Joaquin Gonzales (1879-1884) came as its resident parish priest. The old convent was built in 1888 by Fr. Silvestre Fernandez (1887-1893) who also established the “escuelas” where people learned to read and write by the “caton” system of instruction. He taught the people how to make mortae as well as ladrillo, how to choose the best wood for house construction. He supervised the construction of the roads leading to Binalonan and Ma...

The present town of Rosales, with the ancient name if Pinac-aban was erected as a town by decree of the Governor General on March 16, 1852. The name Rosales was given to the town in honor of Capt. Herminio Rosaleszzz for his true and efficient leadership in the community. During the Spanish regime the Parish was under the jurisdiction of the Archbishop of Manila, and a vicar of a district of his archdiocese resided in the town. At the outbreak of the Revolution in 1896, the church and the convent of the town were completely burned, and religious functions in the town became irregular. By a decree of the Archbishop of Manila dated February 27, 1915, religious functions in the town were restored. The substitute for the burned church Fr. Nicasio Mabante built a modest church and a small convent where he could reside. Meanwhile, after religious functions were interrupted from 1896 to 1915, many of the town’s inhabitants become Aglipayans. It is said that in the early months of 1915, the Mo...

Hitory states that the town site of San Manuel was originally established in Pao (now the sitio of Bato) a barrio of the town in the year1614. The first church was built in Pao in 1688. In 1720, the church in Pao was burned so that the people went to Sinapug, the first name of the town of Asingan, for their religious services. In 1860, San Manuel of today was established at its present site. It was accepted as a House of the Dominican Order in 1878, by a Royal Decree dated July 6, 1878, San Manuel was made an independent parish from Asingan. The first “ermita” of the town was erected with the help of the faithful by Fr. Bonifacio Provanza, the first pastor of the town. The foundations of a concrete church building were laid by the same pastor in 1882, with a cruciform. The work on the church of masonry was continued by Fr. Jose Ma. Puente. The church, inaugurated on October 1, 1894, was destroyed by a powerful whirlwind on the same day. Fr, Fuente began the construction of another chur...

The Dominicans accepted the administration of the “visita” of San Nicolas with Tayug in 1841, the “visita” of San Nicolas was separated from Tayug, with Father Jose Manso as the first parish priest. The small church and the convent built by Fr. Jose Manso were improved by Fr. Juan Gutierrez and Fr. Ramon Suarez. The church, the convent and the town were burned in 1864. Another church with wooden walls and iron roofing was also burned in 1898. The construction of the convent of masonry was started by Fr. Jose Cienfuegos and completed by Father Ravuelta. But this, together with the tribunal and primary schools set up by Fr. Calle, were burned, by the revolutionaries in 1898. After the revolution, however, the church and the convent were provisionally retored The old church and the rectory were burned on January 26, 1944 by incendiary bombs dropped by American planes. The parish priest, then Fr. Jose Valdez and his successor, Fr.Antonio Salindong, built an used a semi-permanent church bui...

San Quintin, formerly known as the barrio of Lango-lango, was founded as a town and parish in 1863. It used to be a part of Tayug. The old parish church was begun by Fr. Domingo Frias in 1947 and was continued by Fr. Vicente Gabriel in 1966. The roofing and the flooring of the church were installed during the term of Fr. Joseph Casaclang (1969-1970). The cement finishing and painting were done in 1973-1974 under Rev. Jaime Allado.

This town originally known as Alava formerly formed a part of San Fabian. It was in fact a hacienda of a certain Spaniard named D. Antonio Bravo, who was a resident of San Fabian. Although this haciendero was forced to abandon his plantations, his farmers mained in the place. Together with some from Ilocos, La Union and San Fabian who came to settle with them, they formed the first community of Alava. At the petition of the inhbitants, Governor General Jose de Granada granted the license in 1898 to erect the town of Alava, inependent from San Fabian. After the town’s erection, 13 cabezas de barangay from San Fabian moved to Alava and together with the three cabecers of the town formed the principalia of Alava. From its foundation, Alava has no resident priest. It was administered by the assistant priest of San Fabian. On November 20, 1896, a Royal Decree created Alava as a parish and appointed Fr. Buitrago as its first pastor.

Santa Maria was declared as an independent town from Taug by a Royal decree dated September 6, 1875. It was erected as a parish on November 4, 1899. The first appointed pastor was Fr. Paulino Aguilar, O.P., but it was actually Father Francisco Pulido, O.P. who discharged the role of the former. Before the year 1940, the parish church was made of cogon and bamboo facing the north. The present church and the convent were constructed by Fr. Leon Bitanga.

As aparish, Santo Tomas was erected on March 15, 1974 by Archbishop Federico Limon. Prior to this date, the town was a ‘visita” of aAlcala. The church is situated in Santo Domingo, a barrio of the town of Santo Tomas. Before 1898, Santo Tomas was a barrio of Alcala. Arango was its name as a barrio, Such a name derived from “inarang”, a name given to the fresh water shells which abound near the bank of the Agno river In 1901, Santo Tomas was fused with Alcala for economic reasons. But through the Efforts of the leding citizens of the town, Santo Tomas was recreated as a town in 1908.

As a municipality, Tayug was established on March 10, 1817, the first Teniente absolute being Lorenzo Bernardo. But long before this date, the Augustinians were already in the settlement. Tayug was then a part of NUEVA ECIJA and was under the jurisdiction of the Archbishop of Manila. The Augustinians abandoned the place in 1785. From 1785 Tayug was administered by secular priests. In 817 the civil town of Tayug was ceded of Pangasinan. As a Parish it was given to the diocese of Nueva Segovia. At the instance of the Governor General, the Dominicans accepted the administration of Tayug and Fr. Matias Perez, O.P., took possession of the parish at the end of 1841. Finally the Dominicans accepted Tayug as their vicariate in their Provincial Chapter of 1846. Fr. Vinelas constructed a wooden convent in 1850. Fr. Juan Fernandez started the construction of the church and the walls of masonry. Fr. Remigio Zapicio, parish priest of the town from 1867 to 1871 together with Father...

In its beginnings Villasis was a “visita”of Malasiqui. Upon the petition of Fr. Fernando de Santa Maria then assigned in Malasiqui together with the Principals of the town, the license to form Pandoyocan into a town was granted by acting Governor General Miguel Ezpeleta, bishop of Cebu, on October 18, 1759 In 1763, the Dominicans accepted Pandoyocan as a vicariate and assigned Fr. Manuel de San Jose as its first pastor. In 1769, Pandoyocan was entrusted to the Vicar of Asingan. In 1807, the name Villasis (an ancestrat name of his predecessor Gov. General Antonio Urbiztondo Y. Villasis) replaced its primitive name. The Dominican Provincial Chapter accepted the new town of Villasis as a vicariate in 1841. The construction of the old church of Villasis was begun by Fr. Joaquin Palacios.

This town one of the biggest in the province, was founded on January 8, 1858. It was accepted by the Dominicans as a parish in 1863. The first pastor of the town was Fr. Nicolas Manrique Alonzo. Before that, the parish had been administered by the parish priest of Binalonan. The town was form by the barrios of Bactad, taken from Asingan; Nancamaliran, taken from Santa Barbara, and Cayambanan, Mitura and the neighboring barrios, taken from Mangaldan. It was Fr. Manrique who made and executed the plans of the town. He transferred and old camarin which used to serve as the house of worship to the site where the first church of the town was later built. The construction of the old church was started by Fr. Rafael Cano on March 4, 1884. When finished, it was 77.10 meters long and 23.30 meters wide and had three naves. It was, however, destroyed by the American bombings in January, 1945.

Umingan as a parish began in 1845 under the Franciscan Order. The first church built by the Spanish Missionaries was destroyed by the Spanish-American War. For a long time Umingan had no church of its own and the spiritual needs of the people were attended to by the parish priest of San Quintin and Tayug and in borrowed, unoccupied rice granary. Finally, a church was put up through contributions of the townspeople and a counterpart coming from the Diocese. However, World War II broke out and this newly built church as bombed by the Japanese in 1941. In 1945, during liberation, Rev. Fr. Hidulfo Gabriel began the rebuilding of the church. The present church is the cumulative product of the efforts of the different parish priests assigned in Umingan after the liberation beginning with Rev. Fr. Hidulfo Gabriel down to Rev. Fr. Geronimo Marcelino, the present parish priest.

Be here on May 1st and take part in the people’s whole day summer sea festival Pista’y Dayat where tens of thousand of people literally fight for every available space and shade on the 5 kilometer-long beaches of romantic Lingayen town and urban Dagupan City. But you can come at anytime to any of Pangasinan’s Sunday beaches which are among the picturesque and finest in the Philippines from Dasol Bay in the far west to White Beach up north in San Fabian town more than 100 kilometers long, along historic Lingayen Gulf where Gen. Mac Arthur’s army landed in 1945 to retake the Northern Philippines from the Japanese. Other places of interest are the legendary Manaoag Church, Sual fishing grounds, the Umbrella rocks of Agno, sunken Spanish Galleons off Cape Bolinao, the tree houses of Binalonan, the woodcarvers of Sison and other naturally beautiful places that away your “discovery”. What are you waiting for? Pack up and go, Like, right now.

Discover the ancient architecture of the province in its old Greco-Roman buildings and old Spanish houses in Lingayen, the Capital town, and in old Spanish churches that can be found in almost all of the province’s 45 towns. Haggle with a beetle nut-chewing native vendor in any of our big town Sunday markets and take home succulent tropical fruits and hand-crafted baskets and break-a-bracs at bargain prices. Another unforgettable experience is a treat to boondocks of Mangatarem and Balungao where you can find hot springs so well hidden in the forest that you might enjoy the forest more than the springs.

You can make one of the most exiting excursions of your life to the province’s most popular international holiday place – the Hundred Islands off the coast of Alaminos, town. This is a 1,844 hectare Philippine national park composed of over 400 islets of setting of several movie and television production. The Islands are of hard solid granite covered with trees and shrubs. The whole area is rich in underwater Life like corals, fish of different species and colors and pearls. The water around the islands are crystal clear. Very ideal for skin diving, swimming and fishing. You can easily hop from island to island on a rented motor banca. Accommodations on the part are not yet, sufficient for big groups. It is advisable to stay in any of the four big hotels in Dagupan City, 60 kilometers away.

Pangasinan, province of sunny beaches, smiling face, warm people, swaying palm tress, verdant mountains and raw nature, bagoong and bocayo and ricefields is full of pleasant discoveries and delightful surprises you’ll wonder to start. At first sight, Pangasinan seems like the rest of the other provinces in the Philippines. Yet the longer stay the more fascinating it becomes. Very much like the other discovery places in this “land of the morning” at present the province is undertaking an energetic development program.

Historical province of Pangasinan, created in 1580 by Governor General Ronquillo de Penalosa, was among the earliest political and administrative units in the Philippines. It was officially conquered and colonized by D. Martin Goiti in 1571. At that time, its territorial jurisdiction extended to the present province of Zambales and parts of La Union and Tarlac. By the middle of the 19th century, however the northern towns of Agoo to Bacnutan were separated from the province and became parts of La Union. The Provincial territory was furthered diminished in 1875 with the annexation of Paniqui and other tows south of it to Tarlac.

PARISH OF ST. JOSEPH ALAMINOS 1766 This town, with the original name of Sarapsap, was founded in 1766 by the Augustinian Recollects. The first church of the town built in 1770 was burned to-Gether with the convent and the tribunal by a fire that razed the town in 1814. The First parish priest of the town was Fr. Toribio Raymundo (1778-1815). In 1875 the name Alaminos was adopted in ho or of the Spanish Governor General, who visited the town. Between the years 1837-1849, Fr. Manuel Busquete, the Recollectos parish priest started the construction of the present church and the convent of Alaminos. Fr. Jose Tornos (1849-1878) continued the work. Fr. Victoriano Vereciano (1879-1893) changed the nipa roofing and installed the wooden flooring. He also painted the church. Fr. Toribio Macazo (1998-1926) established the INSTITUTE OF SAN JOSE in the town, Fr, Tomas Changco (1926-1915) improved the church tower, donated three bells and roofed the church with galvanized iron. PARISH OF ST. ...