Kupiškis was mentioned for the first time in written sources in 1480, when Stanislaus Johannis de Cupyschky, i.e. Stanislovas Jonaitis from Kupiškis, started the studies at Krakow University. Kupiškis, as the lord’s township, was first mentioned in 1529, when regulations, obligating towns and townships to pay for war matters, were concluded. According to written historical sources, witch trials were organized in town in the middle of the 17th century. Kupiškis was repeatedly devastated by the fires, wars, and was also affected by the plague.