Canlubang, An Illustrated History (Part 1)

Canlubang AN ILLUSTRATED HISTORY

OCAMPO PAGASPAS PALLES

To the people of

Canlubang Old and New

CANLUBANG AN ILLUSTRATED HISTORY Contents I. A Barrio, Hacienda, Barangay 1 II. Oriental and Friar Roots 4 III. Arrival of the Americans

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IV. Hacienda Canlubang

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V. Jose Yulo

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VI. Paradise

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VII. Paradise Lost

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VIII. Modern Industrialization

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IX.. Memories

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X. Acknowledgement

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Barrio Canlubang in 1913

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TIMELINE

Early 1600's

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rowing up, we familiarize ourselves with people’s faces and the things that surrounded us. As time passes, the same figures, paths and routines stick to our memory. Though, have you ever wondered why they were the way they were? Everything has its own distinct characteristic.

Everything has a story that goes deep down its roots. As for those in Canlubang, this is how their story goes.

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1687 - 1898

1912

outhwest of Metro manila, in the province of Laguna, a barangay called Canlubang lies. It has a total land area of 3912 hectares making it the largest barangay in the city of Calamba and the second largest in the country. Today, it is mostly known as a major industrialized zone with all the companies and factories that lie within.

Canlubang had small beginnings to get to where it is today In the 1600’s it was just a place where Chinese oriental people, mostly merchants From there, the Dominican and Jesuit order claimed the said area when the country was under Spanish colonization. Being put to one auction to another, it was owned

by different personalities. It was during the occupancy of the Americans that they saw opportunities for business in Canlubang. The land was converted into a hacienda that housed sugar cane and coconut plantations. Since then, its industry grew as well as the community of workers.

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anlubang has a rich history that goes deep down its roots. It is worthy of being known to all and being proud of.

Unfortunately, not all of the residents in this community are even aware of it.

There are far more to the milling days stories that locals tell their children. It is just a part of something bigger. That is why we have decided to produce a book on that matter. The community lacks a reliable and concrete reference material to state facts and real-life events that contributes to the history of our barangay. In order to raise awareness among the residents, specially among the youth, the reason why this book is illustrated with drawings and photographs and articles. To encourage them about their own heritage, to accept it with pride. A community and a home to nurture and cherish

1945

1948

1987

I. CANLUBANG A BARRIO, HACIENDA, BARANGAY

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n the 16th century, the Philippines opportunities for business. A group of was under the Spanish colonization. It iiAmerican businessmen bought was during then that the Spanish Canlubang; the 12,000 hectare friar land government seized numerous lands all from the government. It was listed as over the country and Canlubang was Calamba Sugar Estate as its corporate one of them. It was confiscated from a name and was one of the pioneer in the group of Chinese people residing in sugar milling industry of the country.

Calamba, also known as the “Sangleys”, With this being said, the Calamba Sugar who are mostly merchants. The land Estate became the second sugar was later on sold at auctions several central of the Philippines. Alongside the times, with each time ending up with a sugar milling was the coconut different owner. At some point, it plantations which started with became a barrio run by the Jesuits and approximately 250,000 trees.

Dominican order thus being acquired as “Friar Land”. ue to the threat of war, the estate was later on put to auction, with fter Spain ceded the Philippines Mr. Vicente Madrigal; a half Filipino-half to the U.S, the Americans saw Spanish businessman

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Barrio

Hacienda

Barangay 2

Canlubang in 1913

being the new owner. WWII broke and the Japanese military forces attacked the Philippines, given that it was under the occupation and control of the Americans. Japanese soldiers were arriving in the country to fight the Filipino-American army. It was during this time that they ransacked towns including Canlubang, killing numerous civilians. This brought Canlubang and its industry down to its knees.

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projects and facilities on site. Aside from the sugar and coconut plantations, poultry and dairy farms were added.

Canlubang even had new recreational facilities like baseball fields. With Canlubang’s industry rising up to its glory, more and more people were given the opportunity for work and their work benefits led them to settle down in the hacienda with their families.

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ver the years, the said hacienda ears passed and the Philippine- turned into the Canlubang today a Japanese war officially ended. With the barangay in Calamba City Laguna, hope of fully recovering from the war, reaching a total of 912 hectares. An Mr. Vicente Madrigal sold the ever-growing community with a Canlubang Sugar Estate to Mr. Jose population of over 70,000 people a mix Yulo, his good friend and a family of those from the old hacienda and lawyer. In the 16th of September 1948, those who have moved from other Canlubang was officially under new places. Even though the Sugar Central management. From then on, Mr. Jose has closed, Canlubang' industry has Yulo alongside his wife, Mrs. Cecilia evovled into an Industrial Park with over Araneta Yulo took over the 43 companies. management of the Estate.

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he Yulos continued to run the place and even developed more

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II. CANLUBANG ORIENTAL AND FRIAR ROOTS

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anlubang’s recorded history he Spanish Government held a goes way back as the 16th century. public auction on 1687 where in the Most of the property was originally land was sold to Don Tomas de Andaya occupied by a group of Sangleys, as an encomienda. Some years later, on ancestral Chinese-Filipino people. ii January 29, 1759 the land was then Sangleys are known for being business acquired by the Jesuit Missionaries. The oriented, for the word Sangley derived government again took the land from from the Hokkien Seng-Li literally the Jesuits and sold it at a public meaning business. During the auction. The best bid by Don Jose Philippine’s Spanish Colonization, the Clemente de Azanza, thus became the land was confiscated by the Spanish new owner of the Calamba property.

Government.

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Another religious order then acquired the land on June 28, 1831. It was the Dominican Order who later established the land as The Province of the Most Holy Rosary of the Philippines.

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he Philippine Revolution of 1898 ended with the American subjugation of all land. The new American Government later on consolidated the land, which originally reached up to Binan to Sta. Rosa, and renamed it as Friar Land on October 19, 1905.

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III. CANLUBANG ARRIVAL OF THE AMERICANS

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anlubang, once known for its he enterprise was newly sugar cane farms and mill run by the established as the second sugar central Yulo family, isn’t really what most of the country. The mill started people think it was. Many believe that producing sugar from the land crop on ii December 1 1914, producing a total of the Yulos alone ran the hacienda and its sugar business but the sugar estate 93,068 piculs or 5,628,657.9 kilograms goes further than that. Way back after of sugar. The enterprise also farmed the Filipino-American War, a group of coconuts alongside the sugar American businessmen from California, production. There were an average of led by Alfred Ehrman, acquired the land250,000 trees planted on the Western on June 14, 1912 and gave its corporate side of the hacienda by the mountain name as The Calamba Sugar Estate. boundaries covering all of 2467.7 9

2467.7 hectares. Total coconut production was from 12 – 15 million coconuts a year.

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he Americans also created a ii handful of facilities for them and their Filipino workers. They created a proper market, housings for the workers and a handful of recreational facilities. There was a recreational hall open for all employees and residents, it had a bowling alley, a bar, table games like table tennis and billiards, and it also had an outdoor pool with a diving board.

The Americans also created outdoor activities like the 9-hole golf course and a polo field and horse stables. The local Filipino workers would also enjoy a game of Sabong or cock-fighting, entertaining the Americans. Carl Mydans, a famed American war photographer, came to a Canlubang party on the 1940s showcasing the life of living in Canlubang back then before the second world war.

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IV. CANLUBANG HACIENDA CANLUBANG

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icente María Epifanio MadrigalLópez y Pardo de Tavera was a successful Spanish- Filipino business tycoon, industrialist and politician. Born in the 5th of April 1880, He was able to finish his studies at Colegio de San Juan De Letran, a Manila. Vicente Madrigal graduated with highest honors. His closest college classmates were future Presidents Manuel L. Quezon and Sergio Osmena,

who were poor relatives of rich families themselves.

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adrigal established large businesses in coal, oil, sugar, cement, shipping and real estate. He was married to Susana Paterno y Ramos, who grew up in Pangil, Laguna. In the cement business, he acquired his Rizal Cement Corporation after the heirs of the Spanish-Filipino family lost life 13

and limb while helping fellow Basques in Spain. In the coal business, Madrigal was criticized for having engaged in war profiteering, supplying coal to the Japanese navy during its occupation of the Philippines between 1942 and 1945.

It appears that he did so under duress, as he was known to be patriotic.

Madrigal attributed this situation to the loss of the good luck that his wife Susana brought to his life, for she died a few months before the war began and left him a widower raising five girls and two boys. Before the war Susana acquired the 11,000 hectares (27,000 acres) hacienda Canlubang in Laguna.

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uring the war, in the 18th of February 1945, the Japanese military ransacked the hacienda, burning the main office along with the records and books of account. They also killed numerous men, women and children in the streets and even in their homes. The growing industry of hacienda Canlubang was jeopardized. A lot has been lost or damaged in the hacienda’s sugar and coconut plantations.

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The Japanese military established Prison Camp no.1 at Canlubang. At a typical peak time during the operation of New Bilibid and the camp , the professional surgical personnel consisted of a chief of service, a surgical ward officer, a radiologist, an anesthetist, and two Dental Corps officers. The hospital census rapidly outstripped the ability of U.S. Army personnel to care for it. At one time, only two medical officers were caring for 1,900 patients, many of whom were critically ill. As the war was put to an end, the Japanese soldiers as well as nurses and other personnel finally surrendered to the Americans

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ith all the loss and damages in hacienda Canlubang ,Vicente Madrigal was set to labor unrest by the farmers and staff that works under him. In the hope of recovering from the war, he sold hacienda Canlubang and all its rights to his good friend and lawyer; Jose Yulo Sr. in the 16th of September 1948.

V. CANLUBANG JOSE YULO

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" e is a son, a brother, a husband, a father, a politician and a leader”, these are the things that come to the minds of the people who have known him. Yet all of these words are not enough to even begin to describe the man beneath the white suit.

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ose Yulo Sr. was born on the 24th of September 1894 in the town of Bago, Negros Occidental to Sofronio Yulo and Segunda Yulo. One who looks at Jose Yulo’s life

from afar would see that he is one amongst the many who literally started from rags and ended up in riches.

Driven by his passion and determination to finish his studies, he conquered each and every trials in his college days. Who would have guessed that the poor young law student who could not even afford to buy his law books would then become one of the greatest corporation lawyers in the country. He obtained his Bachelor of Laws degree at the University of the Philippines 17

and placed third the Bar in 1913. He was the youngest graduate at the age of 19 in the UP Class Law of 1913, however, due to his age, did not practice law until two years later. Jose Yulo also became a part of the government. He was a Chief Justice from 1942 to 1945 and is said to be the county’s youngest at the age of 49. He also ran for President in 1957 but unfortunately was not elected.

Aside from being a renowned lawyer and working for the government, Jose Yulo was also a businessman.

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is good friend and client Vicente Madrigal a known successful businessman in the Philippines sold Canlubang to Jose Yulo, together with the Sugar Estate on September 16, 1948. At first, Jose Yulo was unsure of accepting Vicente Madrigal’s offer because Canlubang was just recovering from the PhilippineJapanese war but later on, Jose Yulo together with his wife, Cecila Araneta Yulo decided to take Vicente Madrigal’s offer.

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on Jose Yulo had a background in running a business. They owned a farm back then and he also has enough information on how to run the Sugar Estate. He turned out to be a very good businessman. Once the Sugar Cane Estate became his, employees were given additional benefits, the employees and their families were given a house in Canlubang and education for your family in Canlubang was also free if you work for Don Jose Yulo. And as

the Sugar Estate developed and succeeded, Don Jose Yulo built schools, cinemas, a baseball field and more for the people in Canlubang.

With his governance, Canlubang surely became a paradise.