Gonzaga

Gonzaga, officially the Municipality of Gonzaga (Ibanag: Ili nat Gonzaga; Ilocano: Ili ti Gonzaga; Tagalog: Bayan ng Gonzaga), is a 1st class municipality in the province of Cagayan, Philippines. According to the 2015 census, it has a population of 38,892 people.

The 2012 film The Mistress, starring John Lloyd Cruz and Bea Alonzo, was partly shot in the town.

The history of Gonzaga ban be traced back in the 17th century. The aboriginal inhabitants, the Negritoes, called the place Gampao, which means “mountainous”. They survived in these mountains and virgin forests by wild fruits and raising crops. Hunting and fishing supplemented their source of livelihood. Later, the place was called WANGAG due to the abundance of clear rivers and creeks. In the 18th , adventurous Ilocanos from Ilocos Region settled in the river banks near the Babuyan Channel. The means of transportation then were by boat passing the Babuyan Channel, by cart and hiking the trails near the seashore and through the sharp ranges of Caraballo Mountains. The promise of the new settlement for a better tomorrow lured other Ilocano migrants to settle at Wangag. Bringing with them their civilized culture, the Negritoes were threatened because they were considered as minorities. A feud between the Ilocanos and the Negritoes followed. The latter fled into the jungles and treacherously attacked the first at night time. During a long period of time, the conflict continued until the arrival of the Spanish missionaries. Peace reigned through amicable settlement between the warring groups. Over the Years, Other settlers as the Ibanags also migrated to the place, but to this day, it is the Ilocano influence which dominates the culture of Gonzaga.

Wangag began its political identify as a barrio of Buguey, which was already separated from its mother town of Camalaniugan. It as given ecclesiastical recognition on February 23,1869 with Nuestra Senora del Pilar as their patroness. In 1917, the place was renamed RUMANG-AY, meaning “to be progressive”. In the same year, a noted pioneer leader, Francisco Torres, initiated and submitted a petition converting this place into an independent town, thus became a municipality on January 1,1918 by virtue of Executive Order No. 81 signed by Governor General Francis Burton Harrison. It was named in honor of GRACIO P. GONZAGA. the first Filipino Governor of Cagayan.

The first elected Municipal President was Hon. Francisco Torres. Followed by Hon. Leandro Zuniega in 1922 who designed the existing municipal brand and mark of large cattle. In the year 1925, Hon Teodoro Castro took the municipal administration. Then Hon. Francisco Torres returned in 1928. Hon Cesario P. Peralta assumed as Municipal Mayor when he was elected in 1932.Then Hon. Federio G. Navvaro, administered the municipality in1940. His service was terminated down when the World War II broke upon 1941.