ST. JAMES THE GREAT PARISH

BOLINAO 2406 Pangasinan

F-1610 

Tel. (075) 554-0236

Titular: St. James the Great, July 25

Google Map

The first contact of the people of Bolinao with the Spaniards is given in the following account: “Juan de Salcedo, the last of the Spanish Conquistadores sailed from Manila on May 20, 1572, and three days later reached Bolinao at a place located on the island of Santiago or Purro just across the channel from the present location. There Salcedo came upon a Chinese sampan which had captured a native chief and some of his men with the intention of taking them along China. Salcedo liberated the natives who were so thankful for the generous action of the Castilians that they voluntarily pledged vassalage to the King of Spain.”
Three years later, local unwritten history which had been handed down from generation to generation and from mouth to mouth, narrates that the town of Bolinao started as a small settlement or barangay in what is now the site of Binabalian, a barrio in Santiago Island. With a little over a hundred families, Captain Pedro Lombi foundede the town of Bolinao in 1575.
Sometime in the year 1585, an Augustinian Father was assigned to Bolinao. He was Friar Esteban Marin, the first missionary ever to set foot in Bolinao. He baptized many people and organized them into a town. He worked in Bolinao till the year 1587 when he was appointed prior of the town of Batac, ,Ilocos Norte.
Bolinao (Binabalian) is located on the coast of the province, faces (Purra Island). Bounded in the east, north, and west by the sea and south by the Cordillera Mountains of Zambales. From its capital Iba, it is 22 leagues distant, while only 10 leagues separated it from Lingayen, the capital of Pangasinan. To this house, at another time, it was assigned to the Dominican Order Corporation which had under its charge the administration of this last province, and in effect consists in having been accepted in the Chapter in 1596 and 1598 assigning in the first that house to Rev. Fr. Lorenzo de San Miguel leaving under the charge of the Reverend Father Provincial, the freedom to appoint a Vicar, and giving in 1599 as Vicar Fr. Tomas Castellar and assigned two companions-Rev. Father Salvador Millan and the eminent Fr. Diego Aduarte. From this day on nothing had been mentioned about the place up to 1680, perhaps due to the fact that they left the place inasmuch as in the successive Chapters, it admits that the administration of the whole Zambales although annexing this house of the Province of Pangasinan mostly known though communications with it. During this period, the Poblacion of Bolinao had 5699 inhabitants and 3344 tribute Prayers.
From 1587 up to 1600 no references of other Augustinian activities had been mentioned. In the year 1600m however, Augustinian Fathers came back with appointment of Fr. Francisco Martinez as Superior of the Convent of Bolinao. In 1602, Fr. Estacio Ortiz took over and later on Fathers were the very first sowers of the seeds of the Gospel in this town. They ended their missionary work in 1607.
When the Augustinian Fathers left Bolinao, the most Illustrious Governor and Captain General Rodrigo de Rivera and the Dean of the Recoletos de San Augustinian Fathers. Immediately thereafter Fr. Jeronimo de Cristo and Fr. Andres del Espiritu Santo rallied to the call and upon arrival in this island town of Bolinao began to undertake the great task of spreading the Gospel and religious doctrines; taught the people by precepts and gave the best examples of life and endured all kinds of privations and great hardships which such strength of will that the Fathers were preaching the true religion. In due time these hardworking missionaries began to reap the fruits toils and privations when over 1800 infidels accepted the sweet yoke of the Lord and were regenerated that Fr. Jeronimo de Cristo, a native Aragon joined the N.P. San Agustin friars, and in the prime of his life, he studied arts and Theology. Having held different positions in his native country, he was sent on a mission to the Philippines with an assignment as the first prior of the Recollect Convent in Manila and in 1608 he succeeded Fr. Juan de San Jeronimo as Provincial Vicar. He devoted himself to preaching in the province of Zambales and founded the convent of Bolinao and his rounds of the district, he contracted a very high fever which made him return with difficulty to the Convent of Bolinao where he died in the year 1608.”
In the course of time, around 1609, due to piratical molestation’s, the town was transferred to the mainland, appoint nearer north of but the said island remained to be populated. The present site is near a libsong where clear spring kept on gushing. Just a stone’s throw about 30 meters from this Libsong, the Roman Catholic Church was erected, which on this date of writing is undergoing major repairs and innovations, it present a pleasant view and enjoys a healthy temperature.
Bolinao has a very safe port and with an easy entry. It can harbor vessels of all kinds. The strait is between Santiago Island and the mainland of Bolinao. It has a navigable area up to a distance of eight to ten leagues.
The Church tower of Bolinao was the tallest in Pangasinan, if not in the entire Northern Luzon. Its height measures seventy-five feet. An earthquake in 1788 toppled about half of the tower. In 1819, the Church convent was accidentally burned.