Comprehensive Land Use Plan for the Municipality of Bacoor, Cavite
Chapter I
INTRODUCTION
1.1 HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
Bacoor became a town in 1671, two years after the influx of the first settlers from the
bustling public of Parañaque or Palañag, the ancient Tagalog name. In fact, Bacoor used
to be a part of Parañaque, separating the latter from the two big neighboring towns of
Cavite el Viejo (now Kawit) and Silang.
The name Bacood (derived from the Tagalog word bakod, meaning fence) is suggestive of
its role as a suburb of Parañaque, constituting the boundary between the mother town and
Cavite el Viejo. In early Spanish times, Bacood was thickly covered with bamboo groves
running from Sitio Zapote to Sitio Talaba. The first settlers of Bacoor (modernized
spelling of the original name) bore such family names as Cuenca, Bauan, Farolan,
Pagtakhan, de Ocampo, Gregorio, Guevarra and Garcia. The first Municipal President of
Bacoor, Felix Cuenca, was a direct descendant of one of the original settlers.
The town of Bacoor is famous in Philippine history as the scene of two fierce battles,
popularly known as the “Battle of Zapote Bridge.” One of these took place on February
1897 when the Filipino Revolutionary Army repulsed the advance of Spanish invaders. In
this battle, Gen. Edilberto Evangelista, who was also a brilliant engineer, fought and
heroically died holding at bay the advance of enemy forces. The second encounter by the
revolutionary forces occurred in 1899 during the Filipino-American war.
It is also noteworthy to remember that one of the triple victims in the so-called
GOMBURZA martyrdom was Father Mariano Gomez who was the incumbent parish
priest of Bacoor when he was arrested and executed in Bagumbayan Field on February 17,
1872.
The town is also noted in history as the first capital of the revolutionary government under
General Emilio Aguinaldo. Sensing that the Americans under the Admiral Expeditionary
Force had something up their sleeves because they would not commit themselves on the
question of U.S. recognition of Philippine Independence already proclaimed on June 12,
1898, Gen.Aguinaldo on July 4 decided to transfer his headquarters from the mansion of
Maximo Inocencio in Cavite to the house of Juan Cuenca and Candida Chavez in Bacoor.
However, Aguinaldo’s government did not remain long in Bacoor because on September
9, three weeks after the perfidious capture of Manila by the American forces in
connivance with Spanish Governor and Captain General Jaudines, the revolutionary
capital was again transferred to Malolos, Bulacan beyond the cannon range of Dewey’s
American Naval Squadron moored in Manila Bay.
On September 2, 1896, it was in Bacoor where Aguinaldo met his first defeat during the
Revolution against Spain. But due to a miscalculation by Spanish General Aguirre whose
troops rested one day in Bacoor plaza while awaiting reinforcements from Manila,
Aguinaldo was able to prepare the defense of Imus that night. A battle ensued at a bridge
just a stone throw from the Recollect Estate House (now the Philippine Constabulary
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Comprehensive Land Use Plan for the Municipality of Bacoor, Cavite
headquarters). Aguinaldo’s spectacular victory in this historic battle of Imus on
September 3, 1896 started the Aguinaldo legend in his military career.
“Gargano” was the revolutionary name given to Bacoor in line with the victory of the
Magdalo government based in Imus to abolish every vestige of the country’s colonial past.
Gil Ignacio was the Katipunan leader in Bacoor. In the battle of Zapote on February 17,
1897, General Edilberto Evangelista, the European-educated Filipino engineer and chief
of the revolutionary army, was killed by an enemy sniper. Bacoor was recaptured by the
Spaniards during the counter-offensive launched by Spanish General Jose Achambre on
March 26, one day after the fall of the Magdalo capital of Imus.
Like other famous towns in Cavite province, Bacoor has also produced great names,
among whom are the late Governor Pedro Espiritu and the late Julian Cruz Balmaceda,
noted Filipino writer and Director of the Institute on National Language. The original
families/settlers had the following names: Cuenca, Payao, Farolan, Pagtakhan, de
Ocampo, Gregorio, Guevarra and Garcia. Belonging to the principalia class as early as
the first decades of the nineteenth century were the Cuencas, the Espirirtus, the Cuevas,
the Mirandas, the Pagtakhan and the Narvaezes. Most of them were Chinese mestizos.
The following shows the heads of the town in its early years:
Andres Javier Bonifacio Antonio
Florentino Cuevas Epifanio Gomez
Domingo dela Cuenca Benigno de Guia
Francisco Magtibay Benito Marquez
Adriano de Cuenca Justo Narvaez
Gregorio de Guia - 1903; 1913 - 1915
Mariano Noriel - 1906
Luis Landas - 1906 – 1908; 1910 – 1912
Hilarion Guzman - 1916 – 1918
Simon Reyes - 1919 – 1921
Marcela Cuenca - 1922 – 1924
Francisco Gaudier - 1925 – 1927
Marcelo Miranda - 1928 – 1930
The following are the Municipal Presidents of what is now Cavite City, then consisting of
three separate municipalities:
For Caridad : Jose R. Bautista
For San Roque : Jose Basa
For Cavite Puerto : Zacarias Fortich
Municipal Presidents after the three municipios were merged into one and became the
Municipality of Cavite are the following:
Andel de Leon
Catalino Nicolas
Gregorio Median
Hugo Adorable
Gervacio Pangilinan
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Comprehensive Land Use Plan for the Municipality of Bacoor, Cavite
Ramon Samonte
Francisco Advincula
Rosendo E. Santos
The following served as City Mayors after the enactment of Republic Act 547 which
created the City of Cavite and provided for its charter:
Col. Arsenio Natividad
Justiniano Montano
Col. Ricardo Poblete
Dominador Mangubat
Manuel S. Rojas
Horacio H. Rodriguez
Ricardo Rosal
Vicente Perin
Fidel D. Dones
Manuel S. Rojas
Eduardo S. De Guzman
Julian C. Medina, Jr.
The following shows the Mayors and Vice Mayors from 1980 to date:
Term Mayor Vice Mayor
1980 – 1985 Pablo C. Sarino Benedicto Antonio
Feb. 1986 Benjamin Enriquez Leopoldo Tolentino
1987 Evelyn S. Maniquis Marion Ignacio
1987 Angelito J. Miranda Buencamino M. Cruz
1988- 1991 Buencamino M. Cruz Villamor G. Espiritu
1992- 1994 Victor R. Miranda Cecilia R. Buhain
1995- 1996 Victor R. Miranda Jose M. Francisco
1997 Jose M. Francisco
1998 Jessie B. Castillo Edwin Malvar
1.2 ORGANIZATION OF THE REPORT
The Comprehensive Land Use Plan (CLUP) is intended to guide the utilization of
Bacoor’s land resources. It forms part of the efforts intended to achieve the vision for the
municipality as formulated by its constituents in a series of consultative meetings. The
CLUP provides the spatial framework for the overall development of the municipality.
The Bacoor CLUP has four parts:
Existing Conditions and Trends: The first is a description and an analysis of
existing conditions and trends. This part covers the various social and physical
sectors of development planning – population, land use, economy, transportation,
utilities, and social services.
Physical Development Goals, Objectives, and Strategies: The second considers
various sectoral concerns, plans, programs, projects, and recommendations, and
defines the municipality’s physical development goals, objectives, and strategies.
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Comprehensive Land Use Plan for the Municipality of Bacoor, Cavite
These set the directions by which the preferred physical framework of the
municipality is derived.
Physical Framework/Conceptual Plans: The third translates and integrates the
various sectoral plans and recommendations into a set of conceptual plans that
serves as a framework for the town’s physical development. This framework
defines Bacoor’s spatial strategy towards the attainment of the development goals
and objectives.
Land Use Plan: The fourth is a further translation of the physical
framework/conceptual plans, involving more detailed physical dimensions, into
the Land Use Plan. This Plan is the basis for the formulation of a Zoning
Ordinance that serves as the legal instrument for the implementation of the Land
Use Plan.
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