Dipolog's earliest recorded history started in 1834 when a Civil Government was organized by the Spanish Provincial Government of Misamis under whose jurisdiction Dipolog belonged. A town executive called “Capitan” was appointed together with a "Teniente" and an "Aguacil" to maintain law and order. Don Domingo Ruiz was appointed as town executive at that time. As more and more settlers came to stay composed mostly Boholanos, Cebuanos and pioneers from Negros, a succession of capitanes governed the town.

In 1903, while visiting Dapitan, Judge William H. Taft, President of the Second Philippine Commission, decreed that Dapitan district which included Dipolog and the neighboring township must be separated from Cagayan de Oro and Misamis Province and annexed to the Provincia Mora which later become Zamboanga Province. The Town Executive then called Presidente Local was Gaudencio Dalmacio Y Zorilla.

The following years came the “reversion”. On March 4, 1904 while Isidro Patangan was the Presidente Local, the Provincial Secretary of the Provincia Mora, an American, delivered a written order that effective immediately, Dipolog was converted into Barangay of Dapitan to be represented only by two councilors with two policemen to maintain peace and order. People filed protests and petitions against the order to no avail.