DOMAIN NAME:
pagsanjan.org
Reg'd: 05/05/00

HOME

CHAPTER 1
Page 1
Page 2
Page 3
Page 4
Page 5

CHAPTER 2
Page 1
Page 2
Page 3

CHAPTER 3
Page 1
Page 2
Page 3
Page 4
Page 5

CHAPTER 4
Page 1
Page 2

CHAPTER 5
Page 1
Page 2
Page 3
Page 4
Page 5
Page 6
Page 7
Page 8
Page 9

CHAPTER 6
Page 1
Page 2
Page 3
Page 4
Page 5
Page 6
Page 7

CHAPTER 7
Page 1
Page 2
Page 3
Page 4
Page 5
Page 6
Page 7
Page 8
Page 9

      Like a golden thread which is woven into a gorgeous tapestry, the saga of the mini-town of Pagsanjan is a part of the grander pageant of Philippine history. In both war and peace since it appeared in history's limelight, its gifted people have played a notable role in the written annals of the Filipino nation.

The Origin of Pagsanjan

      Pagsanjan first loomed in history as a barrio of Lumban, a town founded in 1578 by the famous Fray Juan de la Plasencia, Franciscan missionary-historian. The other barrios were Longos (now Kalayaan), Paete, Pakil, Cavinti, and Santa Cruz. The first settlers of Pagsanjan were eight Christian Chinese and Japanese traders named Diego Changco, Alfonso Changco, Mateo Caco, Jose Jegote, Juan Juco, Diego Suico, Marcos Suico, and Eugenio Vinco. Highly impressed by the strategic location of the barrio at the juncture of two rivers, they established their trading settlement and engaged in betel-nut industry.
      Because they had no wives, they married the daughters of the native families. Out of these interracial marriages sprang the first Sangley mestizos and mestizas of Pagsanjan. It should be noted that the Spanish colonizers called the Chinese Sangley, which term originated from the Chinese word shang-lu, meaning "traveling merchant." In due time, lured by the burgeoning prosperity of the settlement, many native families from the surrounding communities (Lumban, Cavinti, Santa Cruz, and Pila) migrated to the barrio. Also more Chinese, in search of greener pastures, came and married the native women.
      Throughout the ebb and flow of time Pagsanjan became a flourishing trading center of Eastern Laguna.

Foundation of Pagsanjan as a Town

      As the barrio folks of Pagsanjan prospered, they become irritated by their dependency on Lumban, and soon aspired for pueblohood (township). According to local tradition, a dramatic incident hastened their desire to separate from the mother town (Lumban). One day Pagsanjan's cabeza de barangay (barrio head) named Francisco Umale flared in anger during a meeting of local officials in the town hall of Lumban because his protest against the arbitrary imposition of new taxes on his barrio was superciliously ignored by the presiding official, the gobernadorcillo (town executive) of Lumban. In flaming wrath, he hurled his anger on the conference table, saying in great indignation: "If my people cannot get justice from you, we will separate and establish our own pueblo. Goodbye to all of you!" After his fiery speech, he walked out of the meeting.
      The Pagsanjeños, unanimously supporting their brave cabeza, petitioned the Spanish alcalde mayor of Laguna (who was then residing in Bay, the first capital of Laguna Province) and the Spanish governor general in Manila to elevate their barrio to a pueblo. Fortunately their petition was approved.
      On December 12, 1668 Governor General Juan Manuel de la Peña Bonifaz (1668-1669) issued a gubernatorial decree creating Pagsanjan as a town. The first gobernadorcillo elected by the people was Francisco Umale, the courageous cabeza who had defied the Lumban authorities.
      Although the new town became politically independent, it still remained religiously dependent on Lumban. It was not until 1687 that it became a regular parish, by virtue of a Pastoral Letter of Msgr. Felipe Pardo (1677-89), Archbishop of Manila, dated November 12, 1687. The first parish priest of Pagsanjan was Fray Agustin de la Magdalena, former missionary in Mexico. It was he who chose Our Lady of Guadalupe as town's patron saint, whose image came from Mexico with love.

Two Centuries of Disunity (1697-1893)

      Not long after the rise of Pagsanjan as a town, the people were sent asunder by socio-racial differences, into two rival groups, namely the mestizos (descendants of Chinese-native parents) and the naturales (pure-blooded natives). The mestizos, because of their business acumen and high culture, became wealthy and socially prominent, while the naturales remained poor.
      The widening gap between the mestizos and the naturales climaxed in 1697 when the Spanish authorities created two local governments in Pagsanjan, namely, the Gremio de Mestizos and the Gremio de Naturales. This was in consonance with Spain's colonial policy of divide et impera (divide and rule). Each gremio had its own officials, town hall and jail.
      To aggravate the cleavage between the mestizos and naturales, there were also established two rival cofradias (confraternities) in town, such as the Archicofradia del Santisimo Sacramento for the mestizos and Archicofradia de Nuestro Padre Jesus for the naturales.