Did you know that...?
Santa Barbara has a rich
cultural past that its people can be proud of. One can behold in awe the
town’s natural beauties for she is like a tourist paradise,
dotted with scenic landmarks and replete with historic places.
Known far and wide, Santa Barbara has contributed colorful and
meaningful pages in our national history. She is famous not only
for being a historic municipality but also as a sport-oriented
community. Santa Barbara, the town “where football is”. Located
in the central plains of the province, approximately 16
kilometers away from the city, Santa Barbara boasts of her
friendly, educated and hospitable people. And perhaps, this is
the only town in the province which has a record of so many
“first” and “bests”…
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Manhayang, a humble barangay in
Santa Barbara was the setting poignantly described in the novel
entitled “Without Seeing the Dawn”. This story which tells about
the life during World War II was written by Stevan
Javellana, the only Ilonggo and Filipino novelist of
international standing. Javellana, through this novel, was
accepted as a member of the Eugene Field Society, an exclusive
literary club. A novel translated into 21 languages and was made into a TV series entitled "Malayo Pa Ang
Umaga" in the early 1980s, it was also written in
that small yet widely known barrio called Manhayang.
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Javellana's book |
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As a sports-oriented community,
Santa Barbara had produced the fastest woman in Asia
during the 50s in the person of Inocencia Solis. She was named
“Athlete of the Year” when she won the 100-meter dash category
during the Third Asian Games in Tokyo, Japan on May 1958. In
Philippine sports, Solis was already considered a national
figure having set a national record in 200-meter dash. This
Santa Barbaranhon sprinter was also a PRISAA national champion
in Pampanga and earned the same in the national open in 1953. Inocencia Solis had also participated in the
2nd Asian Games
in Manila last 1954 and 4th Asian Games in Jakarta, Indonesia
in 1958, garnering golds in her event. |
Inocencia Solis |
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Known as the “Grand Old Man” of
Santa Barbara, the late Cornelio S. Quidato witnessed three
historic flag raising rites in this town. When he was seven
years old, he saw the Philippines flag the first time it rose to
the skies of Western Visayas on November 17, 1898 at the town’s
plaza raised by Gen. Martin T. Delgado. While on October 13,
1943, Quidato himself as a Municipal Mayor raised the Philippine
flag on the occasion of granting by Japan of Independence to the
Philippine during the war. And for the third time, he raised the
Philippine flag himself as the head of the municipality during the
proclamation of the Philippine Independence from the United
States on July 4, 1946. |
Cornelio
Quidato |
The first West Visayas Police
General is Brig. Gen. Arcadio Lozada of Santa Barbara. He is the son
of the late Felipe Lozada. Gen. Lozada is married to Lilia
Sumaylo with whom he has six children, all are professionals
now. Before he became a police general, he studied at the Santa
Barbara Central School after which he enrolled at the Iloilo
School of Arts and Trade where he was a senior student when the
war broke out. For his military services, he had received many
awards and decorations topped by a Presidential Award, Civil
Service Award and INP Distinguished Service Medal.
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The composer
of the mass song “A La Virgen” which is usually sang during the
town fiesta was Don Posidio Delgado. Born on May 17, 1865, Posidio was the third child of Don Jacinto Delgado and Doña
Gabriela Merlo Bermejo and the brother of Gen. Martin Delgado
and Placida Delgado Solinap. Aside from being a good musician,
he was also a very religious man. In fact, most of the
compositions were religious offerings. Concert on the plaza by
the world renowned Maestro Delgado was held during pre-war era. |
Posidio
Delgado |
Santa Barbara became the site of
the First Area Marketing Cooperative, Inc. located at Brgy.
Bolong. It was established in 1975 by the Samahang Nayon
members of eleven neighboring towns including Iloilo City. One
of the most viable among the 43 AMCs in the country, this
cooperative is concerned with the marketing of palay, rice, corn
and other farm products. It also extends warehousing of farm
products, trucking services and milling. It also sells chemicals
and fertilizers to the farmers.
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The Visayas Seed Farm in Bangga
Dama, where eggplants are grown,
is the site of the Iloilo experiment station of the Bureau of
Plant Industry. It is the birthplace of the BPI 76 rice variety. |
White Eggplants |
Cabugao Norte, Santa Barbara was
chosen as a pilot barrio in 1970 for agriculture by the
Provincial Development Council and Atty. Alex G. Umadhay was
made the provincial program coordinator.
It is in agricultural revolution
where the town really sets the pace when 125 bonafide farmers
created Santa Barbara Facoma Inc. on February 27, 1956 in order
to strengthen their individual members on the aspects of farming
and marketing their product. A few years after the organization,
Facoma was adjudged the "Best Facoma" in the Philippines.
Jun Sumagaysay was named the "Best Facoma Manager". Until now,
it still stands stable and strong when most of its
contemporaries in the country failed.
Mainly because of the success of
the Cabugao Norte venture and the Facoma, other agricultural
programs have been attracted to the town. One of this is the
KABSAKA Project located in Brgy. Tigtig Canipayan and Calaboa
Este. Considered as the first KABSAKA in the country, it became
successful and has gained prominence all over the nation.
Santa Barbara is a place of
intellectuals and good leaders. It has produced a unique
elementary school alumni association -- the class 1938 of the
Santa Barbara Elementary School. Perhaps
their most remarkable contribution in the town was the
establishment of the Cry of Santa Barbara Marker at the junction
of Gen. Martin T. Delgado and Merlo Streets. This historical
marker was inaugurated on December 2, 1952. Under the leadership
of their president, Gen. Arcadio S. Lozada, the class of 1938 was
also responsible for the construction of Lanag Primary School
Building and the Children’s Playground complete with facilities.
They also set-up scholarship program and printed thousands of
copies of “The Angelus” leaflets.
Santa Barbara was the seat of the
community school movement in the Philippines which was
spearheaded by Supt. Jose V. Aguilar in 1948 and the education
center for Western Visayas is located at the Santa Barbara
Elementary School.
Being known as one of the oldest
institution in this town during the American time,
Santa Barbara Central Elementary School has been chosen as one
of the best schools in the province for it has contributed a lot
in the progress and development of the community.
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In order to meet the needs of the
faithful, the Santa Barbara Catholic Cemetery was constructed in
1845 at Sitio Anggasan, Barangay Duyanduyan. Its facade is one of
the strongest structures built during the Spanish time that has
survived the earthquakes. |
Santa Barbara Cemetery |
Because of its panoramic location
and rolling verdant hills, Cadagmayan Norte of Santa Barbara was
chosen as the ideal place for the 8th Boy Scout of
the Philippines National
Jamboree -- the first in Iloilo and in Western Visayas. Thousands
of boy scouts, guests, visitors and dignitaries mushroomed all
over the place for the whole week. It has also been the site of
the camel motorcross competition twice, and has drawn a large
number of crowds despite the distance and lack of regular
transportation.
The first subdivision in Santa
Barbara is the Villa Francisca Phase 1 and 2 located in Brgy.
Bolong Oeste. This is the project of Santa Barbara Agro-Industrial
Development Corporation headed by its president and general
manager, Herminio L. Maravilla. This makes a very prime
choice for people wishing to move away from the busy city of
Iloilo.
The site of the training ground of
the officers of the Armed Forces in Panay is Camp Sumagaysay at
San Sebastian, Santa Barbara. This is the former headquarters of
the Philippines Constabulary.
Looking back to the pages of
history, Santa Barbara is not only the cradle of revolution but
certainly the resting ground of the new ideas. She has produced
great leaders in the various fields of endeavor like
agricultural, medicine, military, law and others. At this time
of constant “memory lapses”, it is always refreshing to bring
back to one’s memory those who have selflessly risked to set
another pace, another trend in the town's history. Eventually,
they have succeeded in their profession and became Santa
Barbara’s first. However, she boasts not only of her outstanding
but landmarks too, which add color and charm to her alluring
beauty…
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The greatest military general of
Western Visayas was also the first civil governor of the
Province of Iloilo. He was Gen. Martin Teofilo Delgado, the
second child of Jacinto and Gabriela Bermejo of Santa
Barbara. When the civil government under the Americans was
established in Iloilo on April 11, 1901, tan Martin, as he was
fondly called was named the first provincial governor in the
first election held in 1903. |
Martin Delgado |
The famous Atanacio Ampig was the
first Santa Barbaranhon to become a full-fledged lawyer. He was
also a delegate to the 1935 Constitutional Convention.
He died during World War II.
Santa Barbara’s first
internationally acclaimed runner was Asia’s marathon king --
Jimmy de la Torre.
Manuel Umadhay, the eldest son of
Segundina Delgado Solinap and Procopio Umadhay, was the first
doctor from Santa Barbara. He also served as Provincial Health
Officer of Iloilo.
The first surveyor in Santa
Barbara was Geodetic Engineer Roman Sirilan.
Brig. Gen. Julio Umadhay Sr.
together with Brig. Gen. Luis Delgado were the first Santa
Barbaranhons to enter the Constabulary Academy in Baguio,
presently called the Philippine Military Academy.
Maria Solinap Sirilan, the most
beautiful woman during her time, was Santa Barbara’s first known Reina Elena.
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Known as the “Grand Old Man”, the
late Cornelio S. Quidato was the first supervising teacher and
dynamic PTA president of Santa Barbara High School, now the
Santa Barbara National Comprehensive High school. |
Cornelio Quidato |
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Active leader Juan Somocierra was
Santa Barbara’s first mayor. |
Juan
Somocierra |
Excellent writer Custodio
Sucaldito, the son of the late couple Jose and Maria Sucaldito,
was the first editor of The Lowland Breeze which is also the
first school paper of Santa Barbara High School. |
The late Winceslao Sison was the
first Santa Barbaranhon who became principal of Santa Barbara
Regional High school.
The first woman nurse of Santa
Barbara was Ms. Socorro Sirilan, dean of the Manila Central University's College of Nursing from 1951 to 1953.
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Santa
Barbara is known nationwide for it is the town where football
is. It has produced the first “Mr. Football” – the late Julio G. Umadhay Jr., of the Philippine Navy. |
Rufino Sobrevega is the very first
and famous "manugbibingka" Santa Barbara has ever produced. In
this town, he is well remembered as the "Bingka King".
Felino Espinosa was the first
municipal treasurer of Santa Barbara.
Santa Barbara's first postmaster was
Jose Sorsa.
Erected in 1926, the irrigation
dam located at Brgy. Tungay is the first gravity irrigation
dam in Iloilo. It serves as water supplier of rice fields in
Barangay Miraga, Agutayan-Lupa, Lanag, and Cabugao as well as
other barangays in Pavia and Leganes, Iloilo.
The Bliss Project situated at
Balibagan Este, Santa Barbara was the first Bagong Lipunan
Improvement on Sites
and Services in the whole Visayas.
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Santa Barbara is the site of the
oldest golf course in Asia. Known as the Iloilo Golf and Country
Club, it was founded in 1907 at Barangay San Sebastian by 13
Scots who worked at the Philippine Railways then. |
The original club house,
circa 1930 |
The Provincial Revolutionary
Government of the Visayas was organized and inaugurated at the
town plaza of Santa Barbara and on the same occasion, a
large crowd of people gathered to witness the most historic
occasion, the Filipino flag was raised to fly for the first time
in the whole Visayas and Mindanao led by Gen. Martin T. Delgado.
That annually remembered event is called "Cry of Santa Barbara".
Santa Barbara was the first to
revolt against an ancient stigma and belief when she accepted
her role to host the Western Visayas Sanitarium for Hansenites.
Kabuhi sang Banwa was the town’s
first religious community paper. It was published by the Parish
of Santa Barbara in 1920 and was edited by Msgr. Gabriel M.
Reyes. |