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HISTORY OF LUCENA



ANCIENT HISTORY OF THE LUCENA SITE

A long time ago, the site that became Lucena was under water. During the Pleistoncene Age(age of fire and water) most of what became the Philippine archipelago was 200 meters below the sea. When the ice was formed in both the Artic and Antartic continents, a long process of glaciation(ice formation) gradually occured and the water level dropped.

Sea shells and limestones found in Tayabas, Padre Burgos, Atimonan, and all coastal towns in Quezon Province are proofs of their being under sea water for hundreds of thousand years.

When the water subsided to almost the present level the topography changed enabling flora and fauna to grow

Before the Spaniards came, the Lucena site was inhabited by the Aetas who called the place Marico in honor of their tribal chief by the same name. When the brown skinned settlers came they bought the site with a gold necklace from the chief Marico who led his Aeta tribe to higher ground.

When the Spaniards came in 1595 they were impressed by the beauty of the site they named it Buenavista. During the governorship of Governor Oroquita the place was named Oroquita. Because of the periodic raids of the Moros, the Spanish government fotified the place and called it Cotta.

Villariba C.(2000) A DEFINITIVE HISTORY OF LUCENA CITY(1878-2000)

The Story of Lucena City

In 1580 conquistador Captain Juan de Salcedo sought the help of two Franciscan priests, Fr.Juan de Plasencia and Fr. Diego Oropesa to explore more Unchartered terrritories south of Manila. Towards the end of 1583, the two Francisan friars were able to established the parishes of Lucban and Tayabas.
Standing at the foot of Mt.Banahaw they saw a most beautiful virgin terrain and called it 'buena vista' which literally means 'beautiful view' in Spanish From thereon, a settlement was established in that area and was named Buenavista.

In 1591, Spanish Governor-General Gomez Perez Dasmariñas created the eastern coast of Luzon into one extensive province called Kalilayan and made the town of Unisan its capital.
Around 1749, the provincial capital was transferred from Unisan to the town of Tayabas. The entire province then took on the name of Tayabas as well, with Buenavista as one of its barrios. This Barrio has attracted many settlers and soon became a sprawling village inhabited by industrious men and women.

Due to its location near the sea. the barrio of Buenavista was incessantly attacked by the Moros(sea pirates) that led the villagers to erect fortresses around the settlement to protect the inhabitants. The barrio subsequently became known as Cota, meaning "fort".

Fr. Mariano Granja did not think only of the town's spiritual needs but also of its material prosperity. Realizing Lucena's commercial possibilities he supported the improvement of the port as a doorway for commercial exchage.
The priest encouraged the people's including those from the barrios, to supply the ships with all available merchandise and helped the emerging businessmen ake contact with commercial houses in Manila
Due to Fr. Mariano Granja's works, the town prospered and became a center of economic activity. The copra industry was given a great boost bringing tremendous wealth to the province

On January 15,1879, the Principalia and the inhabitants of Cota petitioned the Director General of the Civil administration for the creation of a new town citing improvements in its infrastruture and economic status. The new town would include the barrios of Mayao, Dupay, Iyam Talim, Bocohan, Isabang and Domoit.
On November 3, 1879, an Orden Real Superior Civil was issued creating the town of Lucena.
In March of 1881, Franciscan priest, Fr. Mariano Granja became the first Parish Priest of Lucena. He improved the town's design and ordered that streets be drawn at right angles to each other and that residential houses be constructed along the streets of the town.

By the mid-1890s, the Philippine Revolution had broken out. General Miguel Malvar found himself leading an army he personally put revolution, General Emilio Aguinaldo.
With his Batangas Brigade, and with the help of local rebel soldiers, Malvar succesfully liberated Tayabas including the town of Lucena from the Spaniards on June 15, 1898 after two month battle.

On February 4, 1899, the Filipino-American War broke out. Soon the Malolos Republic fell and the Americans occupied the Philippines. The American Regime saw the improvement of Lucena as a social and political unit and realized its potential as a center of commerce due to its strategic location.
On March 12, 1901, Col. Cornelius Gardener signed the order making Lucena the new seat of government of the province of Tayabas.

With the American came the establishment of many public schools in the Philippines and the importation of American teachers from the United States.
In October. 1902, the Tayabas High School began in a convent in Lucena
By January,1903 the school had 59 students. After it was destroyed by a typhoon in 1905, it was transferred to its present location on June 6, 1906.
Formerly known as Quezo Provincal High School, it is now called the Quezon National High School.

During the outbreak of World War II in the Philippines, the Japanese Army came to Lucena in the evening of December 26, 1941 and bombed Camp wilhelm(now Camp Gen. Nakar) and the railways of the Manila Railroad. The soldiers occupied the plush residence of many prominent residents of Lucena with many of the citizens fleeing to the nearby barrios. For three years, Lucena was under Japanese rule.

On April 4, 1945 came the final assault to liberate Lucena from the Japanese forces. More than 300 armed men from the 46th Regiment assisted by the Batangas and Cavite Hunters landed in Cotta. They were joined later by the Sixth Army Alamo Scouts and the 11th Airborne Division Units. By May of 1945, almost all of Quezon province had been liberated.

The first local elections after the Second World War were held on November 8,1947. And as early as December of the same year, the municipal council passed Resolution No.133 recommending the conversion of the municipality of Lucena into a city.
Due to the devasting typhoon of December 26,1947, many private and public properties sustained considerable damage and the local economy disrupted.
With severe economic problems plaguing the town, the municipal council recommended to the Congress of the Philippines to withold any action on the proposed Creation of Lucena into a city.

After several years of contained growth the municipal council believed that Lucena was ready to become city
During the Forth session of the Congress of the Philippines in 1961, Congressmen Manuel S. Enverga and Pascual Espinosa sponsored the bill creating the city of Lucena. Both Houses enacted the bill on March 7,1961.
By Republic Act No.3271, Lucena became a city. August 20, 1961 marked its inauguration



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