Bacnotan, La Union
| Bacnotan | |||
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| — Municipality — | |||
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 Bacnotan
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| Coordinates: 16°43′N 120°21′E / 16.717°N 120.35°ECoordinates: 16°43′N 120°21′E / 16.717°N 120.35°E | |||
| Country |  Philippines |
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| Region | Ilocos Region (Region I) | ||
| Province | La Union | ||
| District | 1st District | ||
| Founded | |||
| Barangays | 47 | ||
| Government | |||
| • Mayor | |||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 76.60 km2 (29.58 sq mi) | ||
| Population (2007) | |||
| • Total | 38,743 | ||
| • Density | 510/km2 (1,300/sq mi) | ||
| Time zone | PST (UTC+8) | ||
| ZIP code | 2515 | ||
| Municipal Phone Number | 072 712 1171 [1] | ||
| Income class | First class | ||
| Website | bacnotan.gov.ph | ||
| Population Census of Bacnotan | |||
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| Census | Pop. | Rate | |
| 1995 | 32,634 |
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| 2000 | 35,419 | 1.77% | |
| 2007 | 38,743 | 1.24% | |
Bacnotan is a first class municipality in the province of La Union, Philippines. According to the 2007 census, it has a population of 38,743 people in 7,183 households.
Ilocano is the language spoken. English and Filipino are the languages used in government and business while English is the medium of instruction in the schools.
Economic activities in Bacnotan mostly involve farming, fishing, bee-keeping, pebble extraction, tourism and Portland cement manufacture. Bacnotan is the seat of the beekeeping industry in La Union. A mining engineer from Bacnotan who saw the limestone deposits in Dumarang (renamed Quirino) also saw deposits of coal and traces of gas.
Schools in Bacnotan include the Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University, the North Provincial High School (now Bacnotan National High School), the Bacnotan Elementary School, other elementary schools located in various barangays, and a prep school operated by the United Church of Christ in the Philippines in Bacnotan.
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[edit] Barangays
Bacnotan is politically subdivided into 47 barangays. Below is a list of these barangays and their respective populations as of 2007.
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[edit] Geography and climate
Bacnotan is located at 120°17'E 16°42'N. It is bounded on the north by Balaoan, on the east by San Gabriel, on the south by San Juan, and on the west by the South China Sea.
The western side of Bacnotan faces the South China Sea and has a long stretch of black sand beaches, indicating a large amount of magnetite. Some portions of the seashore have pebble and limestone deposits. The beaches stretching about 16 kilometers are suitable for fishing, boating, swimming, snorkeling, diving and surfing.
Although San Juan is a favorite place among serious surfers, the waves in Quirino have been discovered to be likewise excellent for surfing.
The Baroro River, located at the southern boundary of Bacnotan, provides fresh water fishing, aquaculture farming and recreation.
Climate in Bacnotan is dry from November to May and wet from mid-May to October. The southwest monsoon brings an abundant rainfall experienced during the wet season. The relatively dry season is caused by the northeast monsoon passing over the Cordillera Mountain Range. Average temperature is 27.21 °C.
[edit] History
The town of Bacnotan was formally founded in 1599 as part of Ilocos Sur. In 1785, during the administration of the Governor-General Jose Basco, Bacnotan became a part of Pangasinan. When La Union was created in 1850, Bacnotan was one of the 12 towns that formed the province.
In the past, Bacnotan was only a vast expanse of wilderness inhabited by natives with a rudimentary form of government. There was a time when it was ruled by a despotic chieftain who had absolute control over all his constituents. Disobedience to his directives meant severe flogging of the culprit. After several years under the tyrannical rule of the chieftain, the people overthrew him and flogged their chieftain to death. The word "basnutan" means "flog" in the local dialect, and become a byword among the inhabitants, hence the name of the town. During the Spanish period, the name of the town was changed from "basnutan" to "Bacnotan" as shown by documents which are still kept intact at the National Archives in Manila.
The town's history is linked with the deeds of heroic men who fought, bled, and died for their own native land. At the turn of the century, during the Spanish-American War, Dumarang (now known as Quirino), was a scene of carnage and plunder.
In December 1941, during World War II, the first organized resistance against the Japanese invaders that landed in the north in their advance southward to Manila was at Barrios Baroro and Bacsil.
On January 4, 1945, the tides of war changed in La Union as Filipino and American soldiers captured in Baroro Bridge in the town of Bacnotan, a strategic bridge that connects the rest of Northern Luzon to San Fernando. The victory ensured the liberation of La Union by joint Filipino and American troops at the end of World War II. It was followed by the historic Battle of San Fernando and Bacsil Bridge.
After the war, Bacnotan became the provisional seat of provincial government, since San Fernando was then in ruins. As a consequence of this transfer, the La Union National High School was also moved to Bacnotan. When things went back to normal, the provincial government was again moved to San Fernando and the La Union National High School followed afterwards. The transfer of the provincial high school in Bacnotan resulted in the establishment of the North Provincial High School (now Bacnotan National High School.)
In 1949, the vast mineral deposits of limestone used in portland cement production were noticed in Barrio Dumarang (now Quirino) by a mining engineer who was then a municipal councilor at that time. Because of the desire to create economic activity, the municipal council, through the efforts of this mining engineer, invited potential investors to set up a Portland cement plant. Within a year, a cement plant called Cebu Portland Cement (CEPOC), was established. On May 11, 1957, CEPOC, a government-owned corporation, was sold to the privately-owned Bacnotan Consolidated Industries (BCI). BCI is the manufacturer of "Union Cement". In 2004, BCI was sold to Holcim Cement.
On June 18, 1960, the La Union Agricultural School was established. Nestling at the foot of the mountains of Barangay Sapilang, the agricultural school progressed and was later named Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University. Its campus occupies an area of about 6 square kilometers.
[edit] Notable personalities from Bacnotan
Bacnotan has produced notable personalities in various endeavors. Some of them are as follows:
- Ambassador Erlinda Fadera-Basilio
- Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Philippines to the United Nations and Other International Organizations in Geneva, Switzerland. She was elected as the first woman Vice President of the UN Human Rights Council. She also holds the position of Undersecretary for Policy at the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs. She is a founding member of the English Speaking Union (ESU), Philippines Chapter.
- Among the honors she has received include the DFA Ladies Foundation Award in 1997; Outstanding Sigma Alphan Award in 2004; outstanding Zambaleno award by the Union Zambaleno during its Centennial celebration in 2006; the Gawad Mabini Award with the rank of Grand Cross conferred by the Secretary of Foreign Affairs in 2007; the Order of Lakandula conferred to her by the President of the Philippines in 2007, and the Order of Sikatuna, rank of Datu (gold distinction) conferred to her by the President of the Philippines in June 2010.
- She is a resident of Raois and a product of Bacnotan Elementary School (1951–1957), the North Provincial High School (1957–1960), and the University of the Philippines in Diliman, Quezon City (1965 and 1990).
- Fr. Bienvenido F. Nebres
- The longest-serving university president of Ateneo de Manila University; member of the board of trustees of Georgetown University, Regis University, the Asian Institute of Management (where he sits as Vice-Chair), and other colleges and universities in the Philippines. Founding President of the Mathematical Society of the Philippines in 1972; one of the founding officers of the Southeast Asian Mathematical Society (SEAMS) also in 1972.
- In 2011, the president of the Philippines conferred on Fr. Nebres the rank and title of National Scientist for his outstanding contributions to the development of science and mathematics education. The title of national scientist is considered the highest honor given to a scientist in the Philippines.
- He is a resident of Poblacion and studied at the Bacnotan Elementary School, and then moved to Christ the King College in San Fernando, La Union.
- Dr. Augusto A. Litonjua
- Founder and first Filipino president of Philippine Association for the Study of Overweight and Obesity (PASOO, 1994). He is called the father of Philippine Endocrinology.
- He was born and raised in Poblacion and is a product of the University of the Philippines and Harvard.
- Fr. Adolfo N. Dacanay, S.J.
- The chair of the Theology Department of the Ateneo de Manila University and a member of the Society of Jesus. He is also an officer of the Canon Law Society of the Philippines.
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Pasyalan La Union
- Philippine Standard Geographic Code
- 1995 Philippine Census Information
- 2000 Philippine Census Information
- 2007 Philippine Census Information
- Local Governance Performance Management System
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