Home and History

The Yeppoyodel
Jan 27, 2017
5 min read

Home is where one starts from.- T. S. Eliot

One of the most beautiful and exciting places in the world are the ones which are in need of extreme effort and love to travel to. In a small town, some 47 kilometers from Sorsogon City in the Bicol Region, lies both infamous and an unknown testimony of history that likely demands an avid viewer. Each and every place has a story to tell, this is Magallanes.

To some parts of the Philippines, Magallanes shares a name with many things and places such as a Metro Rail Transit System located in Manila, another municipality in Cavite and Agusan del Norte, it also shares a name overseas which is a region in Chile named Magallanes y la Antártica Chilena, Magallanes is also a a Peruvian drama film directed by Salvador de Solar. But the subject we are talking about is Magallanes, a province of Sorsogon in the Philipppines.

In the year 1852, Magallanes was a small village in the town of Casiguran. A man of business named Don Manuel de Castro came to establish his own enterprise which is a small construction of large boats where carpenters and workers gather. When a time came that Moros were engaging revolt affecting the town, Don Manuel Castro together with the townspeople prepared mounting cannons as precaution to the raiding Muslims and these canons can be found at the constabulary headquarters of Sorsogon. In 1860 when the town of Parina was now independent- they coined Don Manuel as its Gobernadorcillo to which he made a petition to separate Parina from Casiguran , it took effect easily and the vista (village) which separated was now called Magallanes, in honor of Fernando Magallanes an explorer credited with the introduction of the islands in western Europe. Today Magallanes is now a third class municipality in the first district of Sorsogon, has about 35,000 and counting population, with 34 barangays which 24 are situated along the shorelines making Magallanes a coastal town and mostly a fishing community.

But what makes Magallanes thought-provoking? Every place in this planet has something unique to offer.

GIBALON: A place of History or Mystery? 6 kilometers from Magallanes

Years ago, the early Filipino or so we call them "ninuno” has showed great devotion to beliefs such as gods and goddesses, patrons and even spirits. It was in the year 1521, when the Spaniards entered an island they acclaimed to be “Islas de san Lazaro” to search for new spices which in turn became a piece of history for a country, the introduction of Christianity.

It has been over history books that the Spaniards, specifically Ferdinand Magellan’s crew, came in the shores of Cebu and there started a friendship with its people which reciprocates certain enemies, leading to the famous Magellan vs Lapu-lapu fight. But before all what’s happened to the Moro wars, about Three days, after Ferdinand Magellan’s arrival the Philippines (Islas De Filipinas), based on ancient expeditions ,the country had been blessed by its first ever mass, held in Limasawa.

Christianity has then changed the phase of each Filipino’s belief. Though the distinct place of the First Mass in the Philippines is still a controversy, yet another claim to a first mass in Luzon has been going around for decades; if you hadn’t heard about this sentiment it is in “Gibalon”, a place professed to be the first mass in Luzon.

Gibalon is a sitio located in Siuton one of the barangay’s of Magallanes, it has been said to be the venue where the first mass in Luzon was held. By the 21st of October the annual Gibalon celebration will commence which makes most of the towns people from the “banwa” gather around Gibalon to pay tribute to the alleged historical site.

According to Rogerio H. Escobal a Historian, the De-Guzman-Jimenez expedition made landfall to the shore of Ibalon (now Gibalon), which was situated at the mouth of a big river, located at the western coast of Sorsogon province now known as “Ginangra River”. His research says that Captain De Guzman and Fray. Alonso Jimenez built a small chapel made of bamboo and nipa where they held the first mass in Luzon in 1569, but according to some references of San Agustin Museum in Cebu, the “Ibalon” that was stated was in the province of Camarines (now we have Camarines Norte and Camarines sur). But the claim for the first mass in Gibalon still counts for it is a fishing town/village making it more appropriate for landfall (daungan).

The Galleons of Bagato – 15 minutes on boat

Bagatao is an island not far from Magallanes mainland, but must be reached by boat for 15 minutes , here another historic landmark has been sitting around. For over 543 hectares and with a graphical location, the island is a means of protection from large waves and the “Habagat” , if not for this mighty patch of land some part of Magallanes may have been washed off by typhoons. Based on history, during the Spanish period, Governor Juan de Silva established a shipyard where several galleons have rest for the Manila –Acapulco trade and to drive out the Dutch and British intruders, as well as fight Moros in their revolts. This shipyard happened to be Bagatao.

In some researchers conducted about Bagatao as a shipyard during the colonial times, it was proven that the place was a strategical location due to its resources it was considered then as a good site for an “Astillero” or a place where ships are built.

There were more than 15 galleons and ships built in Bagatao namely; Santisima Trinidad, a 2,000 ton galleon and largest that crossed the pacific, Nuestra Señora del Buen Socorro, 1667 best galleon built in the Philippines, San Felipe and Santiago both were war ships against invaders but Santiago was the first galleon built in Bagatao and several others that were mentioned in the “Archivo General de Indias” in Sevilla, Spain.

Something more in the modern world

Magallanes is surrounded by a huge marine and sea bounty which makes fishing one of the primary livelihoods in the locale in fact, Magallanes is surrounded by island such as Tinacos, Bagatao, Parola and Bihiya all have the nice view of the sunset. Magallanes also has one of the most active moments of the residents, the night life.

In the morning, Fresh fish and fruits come, up until the night as industrious men and women kept on working in the town’s public market. Speaking of people, it occurs to Magallanes an annual festival which happens by the month of July. On its founding anniversary a colorful festival mesmerizes the whole town and when we speak of festivities it’s more than just parades because it really is a feast. People here are most active when events like this are commencing.

The shores and bylines of the sea from Sorsogon bay is also a mark of beauty that Mother Nature can offer, so as the sudden appearance of Mayon Volcano when the sky is clearer by the pier.

On the contrary, it would be a feat if the Local Government Unit’s and citizens will have to engage an extra hand upon the maintenance of Magallanes’ natural resources and heritage. In order for development upon it’s tourism sector to prosper even more, because the reflection of what is significant in the past will forever matter and count today.

Each and every place has something to tell, something left to be discovered someday, Magallanes is one of those, with more development and maintenance in its tourism sector, who knows how many people it can bring about to say “Home”. It may be a small silent site but deep within its body comes a slice of national history and special kind of atmosphere. A day might not be enough- a day might even just start the adventure.

To watch a video of Magallanes, heres a video created by KSB productions (link)

Sources:

Escobal, Rogerio H. Magallanes (Gibalon) Revisited . 2nd ed. N.p.: n.p., 2002. Print.

Municipality of Magallanes