The early Mahammedan rulers in Gour reigned almost independently and rarely paid tributes to the Emperors of Delhi. Alauddin reigned during 1340-42 AD. His successor Shamsuddin had an encounter with the Emperor Firoz Shah. During Mahammedan rule in North Bengal, Dumduma was a frontier military fort and  the ruins of a number of brick buildings in Gangarampur area were probably the lines where the troops quartered.
At the beginning of the 15th century, Ganesh, a Hindu king became a powerful ruler in Dinajpur. One of his family members had built a lofty brick temple with fine teracotta work at Amritapur on river Ichhamati in Mohana GP in Kumarganj PS, the ruins of which embraced by a huge old tree and numerous mounds all round can still be seen.

Jalauddin the next king, by killing Ganesh, usurped the throne and compelled the Hindus to become Muslims. Jalauddin  was assassinated in 1426. The Mahammedan rulers of Gour at that time were fanatics and in their iconoclastic fury they had destroyed indiscriminately all the Hindu and Buddhist centres of art, culture and education, monuments, idols, buildings and temples in the area. That is why, not a single old temple can now be seen in the district and most of the stone images are found damaged or ruthlessly mutilated-either found under earth or recovered from tanks. The Hindus fled in fear and took refuge in Kamrupa Kingdom. The rest of the people were forcibly converted to Islam.

Hussain Shah  ruled in this region during the period from 1497 to 1521. At Hemtabad, a tomb of a Pir shows the signs of having being built with materials from Hindu temple.On the bank of Dhal Dighi at Gangarampur. there is a mosque and monument of Saint Mullah Atauddin, the same also been built with materials brought from Bangarh. The Afghan rule in Gour lasted till 1576 AD, when Daud Khan was defeated and the Maghals got control over Gour.
The Muslim rule lasted for about three hundred years. The Afghan rulers had their capital at Gour and they took little interest in developing this area. This district at that time formed the northern most boundary for the Mahammedan kingdom - that is why defence was their main concern. They utilised the old garrisson and rampart at Bangarh for quartering their troops and seldom built any structure worth mentioning from architectural point of view except a few small tombs and mosques. Constant warfare, and distability led to economic depression. The land once prosperous became poor. It has sarcastically been told by a historian in early British period that it was Dinajanapur (land of the poor) from which the word Dinajpur might have been derived.
During the reign of Akbar, we find authentic references to the famous Zamindary family of Dinajpur. The Zamindary of Dinajpur mentions among other estates Bangshihari, Gangarampur and Patiram. Sukdev and his son Prannath, two notable Rajas of Dinajpur ruled in this region in the later half of the 17th century. The village Sukdevpur and the nice lake Pransagar both in Gangarampur PS remind us about these two royal characters. The Rajas of Dinajpur continued to rule over this area for a considerable period.

In 1765 the British got the Dewani of Bengal and in 1772 an English District Collector and Chief of  Revenue was appointed in Dinajpur. The area was then notorious for lawlessness. Mr Marriott was Collector in l786. Next to him Mr Red Fern and Mr Vansittart were Collectors for short periods. The next Collector Mr Hatch started to exercise judicial powers too. The District Magistrate's area at that time extended to Malda, Bagura and Dinajpur.
In the last decade of the 18th century indego plantation started in the district. In 1793 two indego factories - one at Madnabati and another at Mahipal Dighi were established by Mr Carey and Mr Thomas respectively.
Mr Carey was a missionary, while Mr Thomas was a medical practitioner. Mr Carey's name would be remembered as he established the first printing Press in Bengal at Madhabati in Bangshihari PS. He translated the Bible into Bengali in 1801.
It is interesting to note, however, that the Sepoy Mutiny which rocked many parts of north India in the year l857, left this district undisturbed.
The district Dinajpur in British times included greater portion of Bagura. Malda and parts of Rajshahi, Rangpur and Purnea. At the time of Revenue Survey in 1857 - 61 the total area of the district was 4586 Sq miles. Between 1795 and l800, large tracts of land were transferred to Purnea, Rangpur and Rajshahi for administrative convenience and better enforcement of law and order. In 1833 again some estates were transferred to Bagura and Malda. In 1864-65, 1868 and 1870 further transfer of territory from Dinajpur to Malda and Bagura took place. Finally in l897-98 the whole of Thana Mahadevpur was made over to Rajshahi. At that time, except Thakurgaon Sub division, the rest of Dinajpur district remained under the direct supervision of the Collector. In November, 1904 five Thanas of Balurghat, Gangarampur, Porsha, Patnitola and Phulbari were separated to form a new subdivision called Balurghat. As per census 1911. the total area of Balurghat Sub division at that time was 1177 Sq miles, comprising 2776 villages. Total population of the Sub division was 4,47,343, density of population being 38 per sq mile. Bangshihari was then a part of Dinajpur sub division.
This is in brief the outline history of the district till the first decade of the present century. A good number of archaeological objects of this district of different ages have been collected and preserved at Balurghat College and District Library museum. But due to negligence and lack of awareness we have lost by this time, many of the valuable pieces of antiquities. Even today we have not made sufficient arrangements for protection and preservation of these objects. Time has come to take care of these silent speakers of golden past.

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