History of Lower Quirino Hill Barangay
The First settlers of Lower Quirino Hill were recorded as early as 1920’s. They were the Umuzeki Family. A Japanese Family headed by their patriarch Takeo Umuzeki and his wife Kiyo. They had six children namely Yukie, Kazuko, Hidehiko, Yahiko, Mieko and Otsuhiko[i]. The family settled at the base of the mountain and built their house near the river facing south. The drawings of Hideya Takanami (an alumnus of the Baguio Japanese School 1935) in his journal (1935) accurately describes that the Umuzeki Family actually lived in the portion where Lower Quirino Hill is presently situated. In his drawings, Takanami mentioned “the Umuzeki family lives here (just at the base of the mountain above the river, their house facing south) they devised a water way system so they can easily fetch water from the river” (illustrated in the drawings). The area which is now currently occupied by the Lucban Elementary School (now part of Camdas Barangay) was the family’s former ranch. It is here where they created a pool for their cows and carabaos and a ground for the sport Sumo Wrestling, a famous sport during that time.[ii] However in the late 1930’s, the entire family moved to Takeo’s birthplace in Fukushima, Japan, leaving behind their land and properties to the Camdas Clan.
In the early 1950’s, the area was an undisturbed rocky mountain which was completely covered with pine trees and other woods species bearded with moss and vines which served as sanctuary for birds and bees and other forest wildlife. The small brook which cuts it away from the Buyog watershed down Camdas was also teeming with tadpoles, mudfish (jojo), crabs and frogs which children from nearby Lucban and Camdas area love catching while taking a dip in the clear and cool water.
Formerly, the entire Quirino Hill area was known as the ‘Carabao Mountain’ as the place was used a pasture land by the Camdas Clan. The portion where Barangay Lower Quirino Hill is situated was formerly claimed by Dr. Jose dela Rosa, the owner and operator of the PLAZA Theatre in the city from 1940’s to 1960’s[iii]. However, due to acute housing space in the city, a group of certain Nieves Wallac and 83 other started to speculate and built their dwellings along the northern portion of the creek along the dela Rosa claim. This eventually led to the growth of people escaping the ever crowding city environment to move along Lower Quirino Hill and constructed their perspective houses. On July 14, 1967, it was named Quirino Hill by virtue of Proclamation No. 232 of then President Ferdinand E. Marcos in honor of the late President Elpidio Quirino. The people who occupied Barangay Lower Quirino Hill eventually formed a neighborhood association to stake their claim over the lands they had occupied and voted Mr. Manuel Castro as its president[iv]. On May 13, 1970, the city council enacted Resolution No. 204, recognizing Lower Quirino Hill as a duly-constituted Barangay with Mr. Manuel Castro as its first barrio captain[v].
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[i] Patricia O. Afable, 2004, Japanese Pioneers in Northern Philippine Islands
[ii] Hideya Takanami, 1935, Drawings of Hideya Takanami, Philippine Northern Luzon Japanese Pioneers Foundation
[iii]Supreme Court Reports Annotated, Medina, Et. Al. vs. City of Baguio, GR No. L-4060, August 29, 1952.
[iv] Peter O. Wasing, 2010, Barangay Development Plan 2010-2013
[v] Au Alhambra, 1998, Baguio City on its 89th Year “A Brief History of Baguio Barangays”.
-Research conducted on September - October 2011 by Kagawad Van Dicang, Committee on Rules, Laws, Education & Research.
In the early 1950’s, the area was an undisturbed rocky mountain which was completely covered with pine trees and other woods species bearded with moss and vines which served as sanctuary for birds and bees and other forest wildlife. The small brook which cuts it away from the Buyog watershed down Camdas was also teeming with tadpoles, mudfish (jojo), crabs and frogs which children from nearby Lucban and Camdas area love catching while taking a dip in the clear and cool water.
Formerly, the entire Quirino Hill area was known as the ‘Carabao Mountain’ as the place was used a pasture land by the Camdas Clan. The portion where Barangay Lower Quirino Hill is situated was formerly claimed by Dr. Jose dela Rosa, the owner and operator of the PLAZA Theatre in the city from 1940’s to 1960’s[iii]. However, due to acute housing space in the city, a group of certain Nieves Wallac and 83 other started to speculate and built their dwellings along the northern portion of the creek along the dela Rosa claim. This eventually led to the growth of people escaping the ever crowding city environment to move along Lower Quirino Hill and constructed their perspective houses. On July 14, 1967, it was named Quirino Hill by virtue of Proclamation No. 232 of then President Ferdinand E. Marcos in honor of the late President Elpidio Quirino. The people who occupied Barangay Lower Quirino Hill eventually formed a neighborhood association to stake their claim over the lands they had occupied and voted Mr. Manuel Castro as its president[iv]. On May 13, 1970, the city council enacted Resolution No. 204, recognizing Lower Quirino Hill as a duly-constituted Barangay with Mr. Manuel Castro as its first barrio captain[v].
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[i] Patricia O. Afable, 2004, Japanese Pioneers in Northern Philippine Islands
[ii] Hideya Takanami, 1935, Drawings of Hideya Takanami, Philippine Northern Luzon Japanese Pioneers Foundation
[iii]Supreme Court Reports Annotated, Medina, Et. Al. vs. City of Baguio, GR No. L-4060, August 29, 1952.
[iv] Peter O. Wasing, 2010, Barangay Development Plan 2010-2013
[v] Au Alhambra, 1998, Baguio City on its 89th Year “A Brief History of Baguio Barangays”.
-Research conducted on September - October 2011 by Kagawad Van Dicang, Committee on Rules, Laws, Education & Research.