The town of Batac, Ilocos Norte, was founded by the famous conqustador Juan de Salcedo, way back in 1577, shortly after he had established Spanish sovereignty in Vigan, Ilocos Sur. It is one of the oldest towns in Ilocos Norte and its hoary Catholic Church attests to the glory and grandeur that once were Spain's in our beloved Philippines.

The word "Batac" in the dialect means "pull" - which depicts the people's pulling their efforts together." Batac has an interesting legend about the origin of its name. Many years ago, in a certain spot in the town of Batac which was still a wilderness, there was a man digging the ground for the root crop "camangeg". It is said that while he was digging, he accidentally fell in an upside down position into a deep narrow and circular hole. He struggled hard to get out but his efforts were all in vain. He cried for help but there was nobody around. He waited for hours and had given up hope of being saved. Fortunately, two men from neighboring town of Paoay happened to pass by. They heard the cries of the man, Upon seeing his God-brought saviors, the man said "bataquennac! Bataquennac! Which means "pull me up". The two men did not understand the word and they look at each other in wonderment. The man in the hole tried his best to explain the meaning of his word which is "help me!" The two men then hauled him out of the hole. It is further said that when the two men reached their hometown, they told their story to their friends. Since then, the town has been called "Batac" which is derived from the word "bataquennac."

In the early 1867, the first site of the town of Batac has San Josef, now the Palplaicong or Barrio No. 12. There were two separate communities at that time. One was the Christian Community headed by a chief called Captain Bazar, and the other one a non-Christian group called "Itneg", headed by Captain Tagley who was then occupying Sitio Nagalisan, now a part of Barrio No. 25.

With the passing of time, the non-Christian were assimilated by the earnest and peace-loving Christians as Spain as Spain pushed through the frontiers by means of the cross and the sword the doctrines taught and left us by Christ. From then on, the united communities grew into the town Batac.

Batac is primarily an agricultural town, although commerce is now in boom. Principal products in the place are rice, corn, tobacco, beans, sugarcane, onion, fruits and root crops. The people also raise cattle, poultry, swine and other domestic animals. The town is known for its delicious "pakpak" (chicken) and "tukak (frog).

Aside from its revolutionary heroes as General Ricarte and Bishop Aglipay, Batac is also noted for its vernacular poet. "The life and suffering of Jesus Christ," is still sung and recited during the Lenten Season wherever the Ilocano dialect is spoken and appreciated.

President Ferdinand E. Marcos, dubbed as the pride of Ilocandia from the time he was elected congressman in 1949, is a beloved and most worthy son of Batac. A mausuleom and museum exist in the Marcos home compound.

No account of Batac's history would be completed without mentioning the Philippine Independent Church (more often known as the Aglipay Church) founded by the late Bishop Gregorio Aglipay. From a handful of followers, this Filipino Christian Sect has greatly grown in numbers and now counts with thousands of followers.

Batac is made up of 43 barrios, a land area of 15,811.29 hectares.

In the field of education, Batac is not far behind any first class town in the country. It has one university, the Mariano Marcos State University, the main campus of eight (8) other units spread in Dingras, Laoag, Currimao, and Pasuquin; five high schools, the Batac Institute, Immaculate Conception Academy, Eurela High School, Batac Junior College and the Batac National High School in Baay Bungon and an annex in Payao. This augurs well with the municipality because with Laoag now a city, Batac is expected to be next provincial capital.