San Bartolome Church

The San Bartolome Church
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San Bartolome:
A history in
stone
By Patricia Azore
s

Malabon, formerly Tambobong
and previously Tonsuya, lies
among several esteros zigzagging
around manglares or islets which
wind up in the large
Dagatdagatan Lake. Located
about five kilometers north of
Tondo, it is bound by Obando and
Polo (Bulacan), Malinta, Caloocan,
Tinajeros, Tondo, Manila and
Navotas.
Malabon was founded as avisitaof
Tondo on May 21, 1599. The town
was composed of two small islands,
Navotas and Maysilo, bothvisitasof
Tondo. On October 23, 1600, the
fathers reconfirmed its status as a
visita, and ordered the prior of Tondo
to assign religious there if
convenient. It was later raised to
vicariate and placed, together with
its estates, under the father
provincial
Fr. Juan Bautista de Montoya
was named its administrator
and first prior. It continued as
avisitaof Tondo until 1611.
Malabon became an
independent parish in 1614
under the advocation of San
Bartolome Apostol. It was in
this year that Fr. Luis Gutierrez
was named vicar prior.
The convent was relieved from
paying any taxes to San Agustin
Monastery in 1614 because it
was very poor and the stipend
given by the King was almost
nothing.
In due time, the prior was ordered
to help the convent of Binangonan
with P15 annually, and given the
category of priory with voting
In 1704, the father provincial prohibited
the prior from collecting the so-
calledpacain, leaving it to the discretion
of the natives.
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Aside from Binangonan, the house in
Malabon helped the convent of Pasig. In
1732, it had under its jurisdiction some
5,715 souls; in 1760 it had 9,700, of
which 12 were Spaniards.
In 1896, its population increased
to 25,226 and in 1990, it reached
278,380.
Malabon was famous not only for
its skillful knife makers, whose
patron is San Bartolome, but also
for its big tobacco factory,
located in the barrio of La
Concepcion, known as Princesa.
In 1875, there were about 10,000 women
working in the factory.
La Cigarrera de Malabon, dressed in
colorful attire, a wicker basket on her arm
and a smile on her face, became a well-
known character.
It was worth wondering how some 5,000
women fit in 101,136 square feet!
During office hours, only the monotonous
metallic sound of the scissors could be
heard
Fr. Diego de Robles was named
Malabons first stone church
prior of Malabon in 1621, and in
the following year, he started
building the first stone church.
Captain de Rivera donated
P1,000 for the project, asking him
in return for the right to a
perpetual tomb in the main
chapel of the church.
In 1835, Fr. Francisco Valencia added
the transept. Fr. Raimundo Cueto,
minister of Malabon in 1854, added the
two lateral aisles andmedia
naranjadome under the direction of
the architects Vina and Urquiza.
Luciano Oliver directed the
construction of the Parthenon-like
faade and of the twin towers in 1861.
The construction was undertaken
under the supervision of the parish
priest, Fr. Martin Ruiz.
The church, damaged heavily
during the Japanese
occupation, remained
untouched for almost 20 years.
Fr. Trinidad, a secular priest,
restored the faade in 1951. Fr.
Reyes repaired the dome,
transept, main altar and belfry
in 1958.
At present, there are seven bells. Two
are dedicated to Santa Rita, one of the
patrons of the town, and one to San
Bartolome; one bears the name of Fr.
Guillermo Diaz, OSA, and minister of
Tambobong from 1881 to 1885.
Among its ministers was the author of
theConquistas de las Islas Filipinas, Fr.
Gaspar de San Agustin (1702-1707).
The books of baptism are signed
by Fr. Lorenzo Cueto, a native of
Paraaque, and Fr. Jose
Corugedo, who served the town
from 1885 to 1889. Corugedo is
best remembered for his
exemplary life as a model parish
priest and a highly qualified
superior. He died in Malabon on
April 22, 1889.
The church measures 70.14m long and
25.05m wide. It has a central nave and
two aisles, transept and a dome in the
media narenja or barrel vault style,
cupped by a campanile. The porch is
supported by imposing ionic columns
which resemble a Greco-Roman
temple.
The church, according to I.V. Mallari,
dominated not only the street but also
the surrounding area.
The colonnade of the faade
supports the protruding triangular
pediment. The eight Ionic columns
of the outer side are echoed by the
corresponding sets attached to the
front recessed faade wall flanked
by the tree-storey twin bell towers.
The squat columns and semi-
circular arched windows make for
dramatic contrast.
Light and shadow play a
lively part and give life to
a simple but impressive
faade. The Augustinian
symbol is inscribed on the
wall above the main
entrance.
Light and shadow play a
lively part and give life to
a simple but impressive
faade. The Augustinian
symbol is inscribed on the
wall above the main
entrance.

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