[3] Nabumali town council has an area of 11.1 square kilometres (4.3 sq mi).

[1] At the end of the 19th century the Baganda leader Semei Kakungulu led his army into Bugisu against the Bangokho, then the Bawalasi and Bafumbo further north, and then south to Busoba where he built a fort named Nabumali.

[5] Nabumali High School was founded by the Church Mission Society (CMS) at Mivule near the town of Mbale, and was moved to Nabumale in 1912.

[3] For many years Archdeacon Henry Mathers (1877–1951) of the CMS Nabumali Mission was the official patron of the Bagishu Welfare Association.

This was a largely Anglican organization with the stated objectives of working for the uplift of the Gisu people, developing the land and assisting members who needed help.