Short history of Bansko

What we know about Bansko today is that it is a site of a settlement that has inhabited consequences of different cultures such as Thracian's, Romans, Byzantines and Slavs. Numerous remnants of ancient fortresses, medieval burials and gravestones in the town testify to several historical periods.

About 4 km southwest of Bansko in the place of the Old Town there are remains of ancient fortresses. In the near Old Town Thracian burial mounds were discovered. In the area of Dobrokyovitsa in the burial of the second century remains of medicinal preparations were found along with a set of bronze surgical instruments. Supposedly, the medieval settlement, was in the Holy Trinity.

Southeast of Bansko are the remains of late medieval single basilicas, the Church St. George and St. Elijah are Monuments of culture.

Bansko was formed as a settlement during the IX-X century by the grouping of several neighborhoods. Under the name Baniska mentioned in the middle of the XVI century in the Ottoman register. During the eighteenth century Bansko was mainly occupied with breeders and artisans (craftsmen) who rely on the vast grassland and rich forests. Along the Glazne River many built mills, sawmills, fulling mills and many others.

Manufactured wood, leather and hardware products have large market in the Aegean, in Serres and Drama. Horse caravans bring back cotton, fish, tobacco, olives, raw and processed leather. Banskos enterprising business firms were to disclose in Budapest, Vienna, Leipzig, Marseille and London. Bansko was formed as a major commercial and handicraft center of a new type of revival. Large families did not only carry the culture of the countries visited, but send their children to study abroad. Extensive contact with European culture appears to be an extremely fruitful influence on the spiritual progress of Bansko.

It improved the lifestyle of people to build strong fortresses, stone houses with high walls and heavy gates and massive long black beams of fir. This architectural style reached full bloom during the renaissance. Spacious rooms are painted with colored drawings by secular and religious paintings and the ceilings are carved.

The earliest houses, Hadzhivalchovata, Hadzhiruskovata and Velyanova are protected with internal caches and loopholes. Functional clarified composition and rich artistic decoration characterize the Sirleshtova, Todeva, Buinovata, Zagorchinata, Dzhidzhevite, Zlatev, Koyuvite, Stefanov houses.

Bansko is exempt from the Ottoman rule from 5th of October 1912, the day of the announcement of the Balkan war.

Bansko Bulgarian Municipality

Social organization of local government in the village of Bansko (today's town), was founded around 1850. Bansko Bulgarian Municipality is a continuation of council formed in the year of 1833. Headed by the Public Council Lazar Gherman for providing funds, materials and labor for construction and spelling of the Holy Trinity Church, consecrated in 1835.

In the management of the municipality are elected representatives of the influential trade artisan class. Their activities in the 60's - 70's in the XIX century was principally to fight against the Greek ecclesiastical authorities for the independence of the Bulgarian church and the development of education in the village. On their own initiative they build a new school building (1857), it has reconstructed a mutual school class, distributed newspapers and renaissance of literature. Municipality organized the construction of a bell for the ''The Holy Trinity " (1850) and the installation of a clock mechanism (1865).

In the 70's, together with other municipalities, Razlog offers resistance to the Protestant propaganda. Bansko Bulgarian Municipality materially assists of the families of victims of repression Kresna-Razlog Uprising 1878 - 1879 and Ilinden Uprising 1903.

During the Balkan war and the release of Bansko (October 1912), the municipality organized the collection of food and clothing for the Bulgarian army and detachments of voluntary IMRO, and five members in 1912 were selected to act as a new municipal administration for the Mayor Assen Todev which was included in the approved structure of the country's state-administrative system.