A number of theories  has been advanced on the origin of Binangonan yet none   could exactly point to the real beginning of this town.  Some observations can be noted thus:

a)Binangonan is a pure Tagalog word for the place where something or someone has voluntarily risen.
b)All barangays and sitios from Tayuman to Talim, with the exception of Janosa,  have pure Tagalog names indicating that these places could have existed even before the  Spanish rule.
c)A village in Infanta, Laguna was called Binangonan de Lampon which led some historians to theorize that settlers of the lake region could have originated from this place.
d)The history of Taytay includes a place called Batasin whose inhabitants were believed to be the ancestors of the few remaining tribes of  Negritoes.  There is no  Batasin in Taytay at present   but there is one in Binangonan.

Aetas inhabited Binangonan until 1928. Evidence of their culture are found in  Lungga Ita  in Pila-Pila and in Aeta words like Wawa and Ithan.

2. Historical Background

According to the records of Huerta Cavada, Binangonan, originally a visita of Morong, was separated and became independent parish in 1621. Another version stated, however,  that Binangonan was separated from Morong  in 1737.
Binangonan was first under the ecclesiastical administration of the Franciscans. A treaty between the Franciscans and the Jesuits in 1679 assigned Binangonan to the latter  in exchange of the former dominion over  Baras. 
After 18 years, the Jesuits transferred their power over Binangonan to the Calced Augustinians in 1697.   Forty years later, the Calced Augustinians restored it back to the Franciscans in 1731.
In 1766, the Superior Gobierno licensed Angono as an independent parish  separating it from Binangonan.  Angono’s ecclesiastical activities were placed under the care of the secular clergy.

In 1835, Binangonan was separated from the province of Laguna and  incorporated in the newly created Districts de los Mateo,  later on renamed Distrito Politico Militar de Morong.
On August 6, 1898, the natives of Binangonan joined the revolutionary government of General Emilio Aguinaldo against the Spanish rule.
Under the American regime, Binangonan became an independent municipality under General Order No. 40 of March 29, 1900.  On June 11, 1901, Act No. 137 of the Philippine Commission incorporated this town with the newly created province of Rizal.
Binangonan temporarily lost independence when it was combined with Morong, Baras and Cardona by virtue of Act. No. 942 in 1903.
Act. No. 948 of November 6, 1903 restored independence to Binangonan and made Angono a part of Binangonan again.  On January 1, 1939, Angono was made an independent town and part of the province of Rizal.     

3. Christianization of the Natives

The first missionary group to work in the Philippines in 1574 was the Augustinians.In Rizal province, the Franciscans, led by Fr. Juan de la Plesencia and Fr. Diego de Oropera, started evangelical work with the conversion of people from the Morong region.
The missionaries built a chapel near the lake to gain access in the native settlements around the lake area.  The largest settlement was  Batasin, a tribe of Negritos from  Taytay, which was discovered during Salcedo's first expedition in 1571.  This occupied the rocky terrain overlooking the Laguna de Bay, located west of the chapel.
Population growth started with  families living near the chapel and added with  converts from the outlying villages in the mainland and Talim Island.  The gradual expansion of population around the chapel area was accomplished through the system of reducciones designed by Fr. Juan de Plasencia in 1577.
The expansion and increase in population could have been the basis for the name Binangonan, meaning the place where the new settlement rose.  Unlike other towns which grew from within going outwards, Binangonan expanded from outside going inwards.  The name was given at a time when the Spanish language had not made its impact yet on the native tongue. 

4.  Political History

a)     Spanish Period

During the Spanish period, the town head was the Captain and the seat of government, the Tribunal located in the heart of the poblacion.  The second     highest town official was the Teniente Mayor. Next in rank was the Teniente de Ganado   whose  main  function  was  to  register  carabaos,  horses   and    other animals, collecting fees and taxes in the process.  The Teniente de Montera was in charge of real estate matters in the municipality.
In 1772, a Spanish priest from Aliaga, Pampanga requested the Captain to send delinquent taxpayers to work at  the construction of the church.  All male delinquent taxpayers worked until the church’s completion in 1800.  During this period, old folks claimed that the cross in the Kalbaryo in Libid grew out of the hill’s summit.
In later part of the Spanish period, pirates from the other side of Laguna de Bay landed in Lunsad and plundered the town.  They were repulsed in 1897 by  policemen called Commisarios under Captain Pedro Capistrano.
When the insurrectos revolted against the Spanish authorities,  Captain Capistrano joined the rebels and changed his name to Tirana while Pedro Mechilina adopted the name del Rosario to elude arrest.
In 1896, the natives of Binangonan joined the revolutionary government under General Aguinaldo.  The following events might have taken place between the execution of Dr. Jose Rizal and the enlistment of Binangonan in the revolutionary government.  These were assumed to be part of the national revolution.
Katipuneros from Binangonan attacked the Spanish headquarters in Casadores  at night when the enemies were asleep.  A white handkerchief spread out at the second floor signalled the invasion that killed many Spaniards. Dead bodies were loaded in carabao sleds and buried at Kay-Pantina.
Two Spaniards escaped death: Sgt. Francisco Lagarejos sought refuge from his Filipina wife while Sgt. Arceo was spared because of his kindness to the Filipinos.
Katipuneros from Binangonan together with the forces from San Guillermo captured the Spaniards in Morong.  The Spaniards were made to walk barefooted in columns parading amidst the people shouting Viva Garrovillas in honor of the leader Candido Garrovillas.  Called Kumander Kunding,  Garrovillas was believed to have possessed anting-anting which made him invisible.

  b)American Period

In 1898, the first Americans to reach Binangonan aboard a steamboat  Pagsanjan  fired cannon at the church hitting its bells.  A week later, another boat from Marikina, C Vocals shelled the town proper simultaneous with Pagsanjan's continued firing in Pritil.  More Americans arrived by land and water after a week-long raid.
The people planned attacks against invading Americans; intercepted horse riding Americans at Mambog, killing 12 of them.  In retaliation, the Americans captured native males in  Malanggam and turned the place into a concentration camp.
Despite the punishments inflicted on the captured Filipinos, the Americans failed   to  squeeze out   information   about   the  natives’ counter   activities.  The

Americans stationed bancas at Navotas Strait to guard their camp and prevent the escape of prisoners  using the Laguna de Bay as passageway.
When the Filipino-American war ended, the Laguna de Bay became the major mode of transportation in Binangonan. The regular passenger and cargo vessels were the Margarita and the Nueva York.  The Americans were allowed to use the places they occupied as their headquarters even after the war.

c)Municipal Government during the American Regime

In 1901, Don Jose Ynares Y Granados was appointed Presidente by the American Governor.  He won the first municipal election held in 1902 and served for four years holding office at his house as the Presidencia.  With  help from the Americans, Ynares made remarkable improvements in the town.
The second elected President was Manuel Ison, a former councilor.  Seeing the need for a municipal building, Ison sought the municipal council’s approval and enlisted financiers for the construction of the structure.   Money collected were deposited in the local treasury.  Ison also approached an American mining engineer at the San Guillermo quarry for material donations, which were granted after his term.
The municipal building was realized during the term of Clemente Antiporda. The house of Maria Cortez and Francisco Fuentes was purchased and remodeled in 1912 to accommodate the various municipal offices.  Antiporda was also responsible for the construction of public roads, artesian wells and repair of the public market.
The present site of the Binangonan Elementary School was purchased during the term of Valentino C. Antazo.  A former teacher and Municipal Secretary, Antazo was responsible for the construction of Home Economics building, elementary school, Puericulture Center, and improvement of the Public Market.
The next mayor was Julio Antiporda, son of Clemente Antiporda. His accomplishments included the construction of additional rooms in the municipal building, artesian wells, and barrio roads.  He even funded, out of his personal money, the establishment of a school in Janosa.

d)Mayors During the American Period

Jose G. Ynares - (1901-1905)  First appointed executive of the municipality in 1901 and elected President the following year.
Manuel Y. Ison - (1906-1907)  He raised funds for the construction of the first municipal building.
Clemente Antiporda - (1908-1912)  During his term, a permanent municipal building was  constructed.
Antonio Sisante - (1913-1915) His achievement was the construction of three artesian wells.


Lorenzo Flores - (1916-1922)  Roads and bridges were built and the old market was repaired during his term.
Valentin Antazo - (1922-1928)  He purchased the present Binangonan Central Elementary School site; built the H.E. Building and the Puericulture Center for the Women's Club.
Julio Antiporda - (1928-1936)  He planned the establishment of a public market in Pila-pila

e)Japanese Occupation

During World War II, Binangonan was one of the evacuation centers for the residents of Manila and neighboring suburbs.  People hid in the mountains and in Talim Island.  The war brought untold difficulties and sufferings.  Schools were temporarys closed; professionals turned to fishing, buy and sell for living. Many died of starvation, malnutrition and diseases while others survived by eating camote tops, papaya, corn, coconut and vegetables.  Several people were killed when the Japanese machine- gunned the Rizal Cement Factory.
Months after the Japanese occupied the town, Faustino Antiporda organized Bantay Sunog, a brigade tasked in maintaining  peace and order by providing  volunteer  males as nightly guards against looters and trouble makers.  At that time, Col. Augustin Marking was recruiting members for his guerilla unit.  Thus, the brigade became the local guerillas  secretly affiliated with Marking’s group. 
Major Teofilo Cenido was appointed Mayor of the Provost Marshall of Military Police.  Weapons available then were one Spring Field Riffle and five Granadora from five USAFFE soldiers who escaped from Bataan.
In 1942, Japanese troop, guided by two Filipinas, landed in Matikiw and inspected the Rizal Cement Factory.  Resisting local guerillas were killed by the invaders. Filipino reinforcement retaliated by wiping out the entire Japanese troop.  Dead soldiers,  initially buried in  the factory, were  dug up and fed to the kiln.  Even  Japanese vessels were sunk in the lake to hide the massacre.
Because of this, the Japanese held sona or the screening of all males in the town.  The Japanese Kempetai punished suspected guerillas.  Inspite of the brutal torture inflicted on them, the Filipinos did not betray the guerilla organization.
Talim Island was also subjected to Japanese sona.  On August 7, 1942, bombs were dropped in the neighboring towns killing four in Janosa and claiming a number of casualties in Cardona.  Suspected guerillas were brought to Sta. Cruz, Laguna.  Even the parish priest at that time, a Columbian Fr. Martin Strong, was held in Los Banos concentration camp.
Late in 1944, the Makapilis, a group of pro-Japanese Filipinos, occupied the convent and served as Japanese interpreters.  They were instruments in the cruelties suffered by the Filipinos.

In January 1945, the Japanese took the convent from the Makapilis and put up their headquarters.  But they only stayed there for one week, scared of the nightly apparitions of a white lady believed to be the ghost haunting the convent.
Mayor Emerenciano Unida was killed by the Japanese when he refused to reveal the guerilla organization.

f)Mayors during the Japanese Period

Felix Katipunan - (1936-1942) He built roads and artesian wells and added rooms to the municipal building.
Emerenciano M. Unida - (1942-1945) He was the deputy mayor when Katipunan got ill.  He supplied starving residents with foods and worked for the release of captured Filipinos.
Juan Jerusalem - (1945) He took over as Mayor after Unida's death.  He was shot in the Rizal Cement Compound before the Americans liberated the country.

g)Period of  Independence

Binangonan was liberated from the Japanese forces in February 25, 1945, the feast day of the patroness of the town, Sta. Ursula. The Japanese' plan to burn the town was prevented by the timely arrival of American forces on the eve of the feast day.  The local guerillas, with Major Ceñido deploying his men in Bunot Mountain, prevented the escape of Japanese forces. The Japanese peacefully retreated and pulled their forces out.  
The liberation was quite peaceful for no fighting ever took place.  It was also a glorious celebration as barrio folks rode on top of tanks and jeepneys with the Americans.  People lined along the streets, jumping with glee, weeping tears of joy while shouting "Victory".
The American commander instructed the guerillas led by Major Ceñido to set up temporary headquarters in poblacion and to do surveillance work.  When the American troops proceeded to Angono, they left the command under the local Military  Police, composed of all units in Binangonan.
Napoleon Antazo, the town commander of the ROTC Hunter guerillas, was appointed Mayor through the orders of the 43rd Infantry Division of the U.S. army.  Next to be appointed town mayor from 1945 to 1946 was Casimiro Ynares, Sr., son of Don Jose Ynares.  When the Philippines became a Republic in 1946, the municipal government was allowed greater autonomy.

h)Post -War Accomplishments (1946 - 1951)

The first Mayor after World War II was Dr. Jose Pacis.  Among his accomplishments were:

1.Construction of wharf linking the Muella de Sta. Ursula to Pritil.
2.Construction of a modern public market, a self-liquidating project
funded by the Rehabilitation Finance Corporation.
3.Construction of combined basketball courts and tennis  courts in the town’s plaza.
4.Beautification of the Kalbaryo.
5.Additional artesian wells.
6.Construction of a new street extending from Munting Bundok  to M. H. del Pilar Street.
7.Construction of a double market tienda, the only one in eastern Rizal at that time, which was completed with the P25,000.00 funds donated by ex-
Senator Vicente Madrigal to Mayor Jose Pacis.


5)Mayors from 1952 to 2001

Casimiro Ynares, Sr.was elected Mayor and served from 1952 to 1956.  Other officials were Vice Mayor Pedro Fineza, Councilors Bonifacio Gahol, Policarpio Aralar, Aniano Bautista, Bonifacio Capre, Antonio Antiporda and Alfredo Bonifacio.
Dr. Jose Pacis was the Mayor for two consecutive terms.  Antonio Antiporda was  the Vice-Mayor while the reelected councilors were Mariano Cervo, Francisco Matematico and Romulo de los Reyes.  Newly elected councilors were Zoilo Estacio, Monico Tirana, Graciano Plegaria, and Lucio Cenina.  During Pacis’ term, a resolution   specifying the construction of new municipal building in Calumpang was approved.
Atty. Pedro Fineza was elected Mayor in 1963.  Under his banner, Vice-Mayor Zoilo Estacio and eight councilors also won.  The same line up made a clean sweep of the elections that followed.  A lone opposition, Reynaldo Aralar, joined the council.
Casimiro Ynares, Jr., the youngest mayor, was elected in 1971. Other officers were Vice-Mayor Zoilo Estacio and Councilors Mariano Erasga, Reynaldo Aralar, Pedro Vital, Jr., Felimon Gonzales, Remedios Paralejas, Lorenzo Barlinan, Pedro San Felipe and Macario Cenidoza.  Mayor Ynares remained unchallenged for 15 years because no elections were held after President Ferdinand Marcos declared Martial Law in 1972.

Atty. Mariano Cervo was appointed Officer in Charge (OIC) of Binangonan under the Revolutionary Government of President Corazon Aquino in 1986.
In the 1988 elections, Casimiro Ynares, Jr.  won by a landslide victory over the protégés of the national leaders.  Atty. Joaquin Mendoza was the Vice Mayor.  The   elected   councilors   were   Dr. Amos  P. Callanta,   Emiliana   Rivera,

Longino del Mundo, Ronaldo Cenidoza, Antonio Reyes III, Mauricio A. Mixto, Jr., Lorenzo Lirio, and Raul Miguel.

In 1992, in the first synchronized national and local elections that saw the fielding of multi-party candidates, Engr. Isidro B. Pacis won over six mayoralty aspirants.  The Sangguniang Bayan was headed by Vice- Mayor Amos Callanta with the following member-councilors:  Raul Antazo, Esmer Discimulacion, Manuel Barretto, Jaime Aragones, Reynaldo Punelas, Jhoulan Aralar, Enrique Lirio and Arnel Chulvo.
Mayor Isidro Pacis was reelected in 1995.  Also reeleceted were Vice-Mayor Callanta along with Councilors Reynaldo Punelas, Manuel Barretto, Jaime Aragones, Jhoulan Aralar and Esmer Discimulacion.   Newly elected councilors were Allan Sunglao, Rhoniel Rivera and Mar S.J. Cenidoza.
Engr. Cesar M. Ynares was elected in 1998 by an overwhelming majority vote against incumbent Mayor Isidro B. Pacis and  Raul A. Miguel was elected as Vice Mayor. Elected Councilor’s were   Alfredo O. Cenidoza, Esmeraldo A. Discimulacion, Allan D. Sunglao, Reynaldo C. Dela Cuesta, Jaime A . Aragones, Ian P. Cervo, Jhoulan Aralar, and Miguel P. Manuson.

In 2001 election, Engr. Cesar M. Ynares was reelected against former Mayor Isidro B. Pacis. Also reelected was Engr. Raul A. Miguel as Vice-Mayor along with Councilors Alfredo C. Ceñidoza, Allan D. Sunglao, Newly elected councilors were Jane Z. Apostadero, Cresencio M. Ojoy, Donato O. Paralejas, Ruben M. Patag, Domingo C. Francisco and Gilderaldo D. Antiporda.

The year 2004 proved to be another victorious year for Engr. Cesar M. Ynares who was the sole candidate for mayoralty seat. He was again re-elected together with Engr. Raul A. Miguel as Vice Mayor along with Councilors Jane Z.  Apostadero, Crisencio M. Ojoy,  Alfredo C. Ceñidoza, Donato Paralejas, Ruben M. Patag and Gilderaldo D. Antiporda, newly elected councilor was Mr. Cecilio M. Ynares.

In 2007 election, Cecilio M. Ynares was elected against Brgy. Captain Manuel Reyes of Brgy. Lunsad. Former Administrator Engr. Reynaldo dela Cuesta was elected as Vice Mayor. Re-elected Councilors were Jane Z. Apostadero, Cresencio M. Ojoy,Donato Paralejas, Ruben Patag, Gilderaldo Antiporda, Napo Mesa and newly elected Councilors were Ruben Magdalena and Rodel Cerrero.


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