This peaceful, beautiful place is probably one of the progressive towns on the northeastern part of Bohol. It has been a depository of rich minerals and fishing resources which make it haven of miners and and fishermen from Mindanao and from neighboring provinces.
It has also a rich agricultural rice and corn lands which help much in alleviating the Talibongnon’s plight during this economic crisis of our country these days.
Talibon has an emergency hospital established during the incumbency of the late President Carlos P. Garcia, which can accommodate seventy-five (75) patients at a time. Besides the hospital, Talibon has a rural health center, barangay health centers under the supervision of the municipal health officer, rural health nurses, midwives, and sanitary inspectors to look after the health needs of the people in town proper and in the rural areas.
This town has earned a niche in Philippine history for it is the birthplace and hometown of President Carlos P. Garcia of the Philippines.
Origin of the Name. No records are available to show the origin of the name of the town but the old folks claim that the place got its name from “talibong”, an ancient name for bolo or appear. The early settlers indicate this term as the origin of the town’s name. Even at that early period of the 17th century, gold was already mined by the natives who used “talibong” in its mines. Later on, the letter g was cancelled so the name “Talibon” has prevailed up to this day.
Historical Background. This progressive town lies on the north-western coast of Bohol 114.8 kilometers via Tagbilaran north road, 149.55 kilometers via Tagbilaran East Road and 108.83 kilometers via interior road. It is located almost halfway between Ubay and Jetafe. It was established in 1830.
Before 1830, Talibon was part of Inabanga. With the creation of Trinidad, Danao, San Miguel and Bien Unido as independent municipalities, the number of barangays under its territoriral jurisdiction was reduces to twenty-five (25). Seventeen (17) of the barangays are on the mainland and eight (8) are on the islands.
In 1831,Talibon became a separate parish with the Blessed Trinity as its patron. The following year, Fr. Ramon de Santa Ana became the town’s first parish priest. A ramshackle but built by natives served as the church. In 1832, the construction of a concrete church began. As was the practice during the Spanish regime, forced labor was employed. Blocks of coral rock were hauled by the inhabitants from the sea and used in the construction. The church was built on an elevated plain overlooking the sea. It was completed in 1899 and the convent was constructed also in that year.
It may be recalled that, after working successfully in Loboc or thereabout, the Jesuit missionary, Fr. Juan de Torres, went to the gold mines of Talibong. An earlier hostile impression that the Spaninsh were after gold, then already mined in Talibon, was dispelled by the good priest’s testimony and sincerity. Fr. de Torres made clear that it was their souls or their evangelization he was after. Christianity was gradually embraced by the natives. As a result, the native hut was replaced by a stone church.
When the Philippine Revolution broke out, the prominent men of the town organized a small revolutionary force to fight the Spaniards. It was also during those troubled times that several armed men led by a certain Felix Taran of Cebu came to Talibon and began to harass the inhabitants. They collected taxes from the people who were already suffering from extreme hardships. Those who were not able to give money had their personal belongings confiscated. Because of these abuses, Marcelo Evangelista led a group in an armed attack against Taran and his band who were then in Carmen. With the help of some men from other towns who had also been victimized by Taran, they attacked his hideout and killed Taran and almost all of his men. Evangelista was seriously wounded in the encounter but he survived.
When the Americans came in 1898, the members of the revolutionary forces were still well-organized. Led by Miguel Valmoria and his aides – Eufemio Mumar, Eufemio Quiachon, Eufemio Eronico and Marcelo Evangelista, they engaged the Americans in several bloody battles. Becauser of his gallantry and courage, Valmoria rose to become a general of the revolution.
On the religious aspect, it may be mentioned that in 1947, with many other parishes being established all over the island of Bohol, the capital, Tagbilaran, also became the seat of a new diocese. The young bishop, Most Rev. Julio Rosales from Samar was appointed the first bishop of the Diocese of Tagbilaran, suffragan to the Archdiocese of Cebu.
In June 1942, the people woke up one morning to see truckleads of heavily arned Japanese soldiers in the Poblacion. It was the first entry of the Japanese troops in the comparatively peaceful town. The Japanese soldiers ransacked the cabinets in the municipal building for important records. They went from house to house, rounded up the civilians and conducted them to the municipal hall. Through an interpreter, a Japanese officer inquired for the municipal officials and learning that they had fled, he ordered the people to organize a civil government by electing the necessary officials. The Japanese threatened to burn the houses in the Poblacion if the people would fail to organize the government. To save the town from the possibility of being reduced to ashes, the people organized a civil government with young lawyer, Maximino C. Boiser, Sr. as Mayor.
On August 1, 1942, a young army officer, Lt. Vidal V. Crescencio, organized a guerilla force known as the Northern Bohol Guerilla Command in Pinamgo, Jao. This outfit grew by leaps and bounds until it became quite a threat to the Japanese.
Sometime in September, 1942, the guerilla force took complete control and authority in Talibon. The following composed the staff of the Command:1. Lt. Vidal V. Crescencio – Commanding Officer2. Lt. Gregorio G. BUnado, Sr. – Executive Officer and Adjutant3. Lt. Anselmo R. Avenido, Sr. – Junior Officer In-Charge of Civil and Criminal Cases4. Lt. Elpidio G. Mumar, Sr. – Junior Officer5. Lt. Benito Z. Mallari – Junior Officer6. Lt. Filomeno G. Gonzales – Junior Officer7. Lt. Julio L. Nacua – Junior Officer In-Charge of Propaganda8. Sen. Carlos P. Garcia – High Adviser
The force maintained peace and order in the town and restored for a time the normal functions of the municipal government. As Higher Adviser, the then Senator Garcia gave his men moral support and encouragement they needed in those of trying days. He inspired the soldiers by assuring them of the return of the American Liberation Forces to the Philippines, to free the Philippines from bondage and tyranny.
It may be recalled that when Japanese occupied Bohol in 1942, one of their first acts was to dispatch a patrol to capture Carlos P. Garcia who was then staying in Talibon with his wife, the former Leonila Dimataga, and only daughter, Linda. A volunteer guard, Cesario Avergonzado, saved Garcia and his family. Asked by the Japanese patrol where Senator Garcia and his family were, Avergonzado replied that they evacuated to barrio San Isidro, about a kilometer from the Poblacion. The Japanese no longer search the Garcia house in Balico, a sitio near the seashore.
The failure to locate Garcia in San Isidro infuriated the Japanese who consequently subjected Avergonzado to severe torture. The Japanese rushed back to Poblacion and searched the Garcia house but to no avail for the Garcias had fled to the mountains of Talibon and finally to Inopacan, a town in Southern Leyte, on a sailboat. That was indeed a narrow escape for the man who was destined to be the President of the Philippines. In their wrath, the Japanese burned down the Garcia house and with it his law library, his researches, and other precious possessions, on July 4, 1942.
Today the people earn their livelihood according to the place in which they live. Those residing on the island and along the coast are engaged in fishing. The women and children help by weaving hats, mats and baskets made of buri, romblon leaves and bamboo which are abundant. The famous Talibon hat which compare favorably with the Panama hat in durability, appearance and comfort are woven by the women on Jao Island. It is made of buri raffia. A good number of people in Talibon are skillful sailors and traders. They sail without the aid of reliable instruments but they reached their destination as far as Sandukan, North Borneo where they barter their cargoes for the things needed at home.
The Talibongnons living on the mainland are farmers, whereas those who like neither fishing nor farming have become peddlers or traders and businessmen.
Back on the religious development of this progressive town, it may recalled that from Tagbilaran, Bishop Julio Rosales was elevated to Archbishop of Cebu in 1950, a position he held for over thirty years. It was during this incumbency that one of Cebu’s clergy would be made bishop – the most Reverand Christian Vicente F. Noel, D.D., was appointed as the first bishop of the newly created Diocese of Talibon.Known for its religiousity and vocation center, Bohol has become a major point in the Catholic Philippines. In time it had to be divided into two dioceses. Thus, last January, 1986, the Holy See sent a word from Rome declaring Talibon as the seat of a new diocese, under the titular of the Blessed Trinity, with the young Bishop, Christian Vicente F. Noel, as its first shepherd. His installation was on December 3, 1986.
Thus Talibon, a progressive town along the northwestern coast, opens a new chapter in its venerable history; from native hut, to a stone church, to Cathedral.
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