Liciada, Philippines

History

Bustos was a part of the town of Baliuag as its barrio during the Spanish Period. The town was separated from Baliuag by an incident in 1860, when during a rainy Sunday, a group of natives from Bustos with babies in their arms were on their way to St. Augustine Parish Church of Baliuag for baptismal when they drowned after the planceta or raft they were riding capsized while crossing the Angat River due to the strong water current. This event led the people of Bustos to request and build their own parish church to avoid the river crossings. The locals chose the Holy Child Jesus (Santo Niño) as their patron saint in honor of those infants that died in the river.

Bustos gained its independence from Baliuag on April 29, 1867, with the integration of barrios Bonga Mayor and Bonga Menor. However, it was returned to Baliuag on October 8, 1903, with San Rafael merging as well.

Bustos became a distinct municipality on January 1, 1916, during the Philippine Assembly through Assemblyman Ricardo Lloret Gonzalez (Bulacan–2nd). The town inaugurated its municipal hall on January 1, 1917. Leon Prado became its first Municipal Mayor and served from 1917 to 1919. Gabriel Alvarez served as the first parish priest of the institutionalized Santo Niño de Bustos Parish Church.

From the History section of Bustos, Bulacan on Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.