After the Independence in 1844, the town was elevated by the Dominican government to the category of municipality of the Azua province. But again the town was abandoned by its inhabitants. After the "Restoration War" (1863–1865), some families from other towns close to the Haitian border came to live in Bánica. Bánica was the first place where Dominican President Rafael Trujillo implemented his campaign against the Haitians, later known as the Parsley Massacre.