Socorro, Surigao del Norte

History of the Community

Bunga" was the ancient name of the place, which means fruit.

A popular folklore says that "socorro" was derived from Spanish's plea for "help" when the sailboat he was boarding with his church worker-companions was about to capsize due to gigantic wave brought about by the coming thunderstorm. It happened while they were approaching towards the sitio to officiate mass on a Sunday morning in 1920.

The said priest and company were saved by the brave men of the place who rushed to the scene notwithstanding the wrath of nature. Such heroic acts prompted the priest to name the place "socorro" in honor of the fearlessness of the men and as a way of paying tribute to the populace who were willing to offer help and assistance to others even in times of danger.

Since then, the village, which was converted into a barrio, rosed from a sleepy settlement into a progressive locality. On February 22, 1961, Socorro was granted the status of a municipality with the entire Bucas Grande Island as its jurisdiction with the signing g of Executive order No. 419 by then president Carlos P. Garcia.

Socorro, same as with other places, had a history to be proud of. But unlike its contemporaries, Socorro’s history is written in blood.

A group with religious proclivity called the Cofradia de Sagrado Corazon de Jesus settled in the island in 1917 from Maasin Leyte. The earlier setters joined the group. But the leader of the Cofradia broke up with the Roman Catholic Church and Joined the Filipina Independiente in 1923. The enraged Catholic priest in Dapa reported to the provincial Constabulary Command in Surigao that a colorum group in the island will rebel against the government . A troop was sent to the island and committed atrocities. The islanders retaliated. A military mission was sent from Dapa and some members were killed. Another encounter occurred in January 1924 resulting to the death of 16 soldiers and 40 local men. The American colonial government later sent men to attack and later negotiated the surrender of the local combatants.

The island municipality is composed of fourteen(14) barangays covering an area of 12,445 hectares. The town proper located in the eastern side of the island nestles tranquilly along the seashore of a bay where one can behold the first ray of sunlight arising out of the bosom of the Pacific Ocean in the wee hours of the morning. It has many exquisite natural attractions, with the Sohoton Lagoons emerging as the most popular, as well as tree(3) man made attractions that enticed a number of tourists to flock to the island. Its populace numbering 17,932 based on the 200 NSO survey,are mostly immigrants from Leyte,Bohl,Cantilan and Tago towns in Surigao del Sur and Mainit and other towns ot surigao del Norte. The islanders are noted for nurturing and practicing th”Bayanihan” way of life,a pround legacy of their forebears,whereunto,each and every socorronhon vow to aphold and pass on the next generatios.