In the early years of the 1860s, four families from the barrio of Magaspac, Gerona, surreptitiously left their homes for fear of the Spanish curate, Father Modesto Perez. They settled in Sitio Caarosipan, the northern part of Paniqui. When the place became flooded and their crops were destroyed, they sought higher grounds and resettled in Sitio Payakan. The bounties of the place attracted other people from Pangasinan and Ilocos. These people joined those who were from Magaspac. Its people being hardworking, the sitio grew into a town. Later, it was named San Ramon in honor of their patron, Saint Raymond Nonnatus.
On May 1, 1845, a royal decree was issued by the Ministerio de Ultramar converting San Ramon into a town independent from its mother town, Paniqui and changing its name to Moncada.
Moncada lies in the northern part of Tarlac. It is bounded in the North by the municipality of San Manuel, in the West by Camiling, in the East by Anao, and in the South by Paniqui. It is comprised of 33 agricultural barangays and 4 poblacions with a total area of 8,575 hectares.
A third class municipality, it has a population of 49,607 people in 10,144 households (NSO, 200).
Beyond its traditional tobacco crops, Moncada is fast emerging as an emporium of commerce and trade fairs in the province today. Trade fairs enliven the industrial and technological ingenuities of the Tarlaquenos as craftsmen and entrepreneurs. As a manifestation of economic synergism, Moncada continues to strive forward towards progress and development and beyond time and standards. As an effect, the dignity of every Moncadeno benefits from the fruits of the town’s budding boom and economy.
