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Hagonoy Bayan ng Hagonoy
—  Municipality  —
National Shrine of St. Anne in the Philippines
Seal
Nickname(s): The Aquaculture Capital of Bulacan Leviticus Town
Motto: Ahon Hagonoy (Ascend Hagonoy)
Map of Bulacan showing the location of Hagonoy
Hagonoy Location within the Philippines
Coordinates: 14°50′N 120°44′E / 14.833°N 120.733°E / 14.833; 120.733Coordinates: 14°50′N 120°44′E / 14.833°N 120.733°E / 14.833; 120.733
Country	Philippines
Region	Central Luzon (Region III)
Province	Bulacan
District	1st District
Founded	1581
Barangays	26
Government
• Representative, 1st Congressional District	Ma. Victoria R. Sy-Alvarado (Lakas-Kampi-CMD)
• Governor	Wilhelmino M. Sy-Alvarado (Lakas-Kampi-CMD)
• Mayor	Angel L. Cruz, Jr. (Lapiang K)
Area
• Municipality	103.10 km2 (39.81 sq mi)
Population (2010)
• Municipality	125,689
• Density	Bad rounding here1,200/km2 (Bad rounding here3,200/sq mi)
• Metro	Greater Manila Area
Demonym	Hagoeño
Time zone	PST (UTC+8)
ZIP code	3002
Dialing code	044
Languages	Tagalog and English
Income class	1st Class; Urban[1]
Website	www.hagonoybulacan.gov.ph

Hagonoy (Filipino: Bayan ng Hagonoy) is a first class urban^[1] municipality in the province of Bulacan, Philippines. According to the 2010 NSO census, it has a population of 125,689 inhabitants.^[2][3] It is the birthplace of Former Senator Blas F. Ople, a famous journalist and politician who had served several high-ranking positions in the executive and legislative branch of the Philippine government including Senate President, Secretary of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Labor.

History [edit]

Hagonoy was already a thriving community before the "blood compact" between Spain's Miguel Lopez de Legazpi and the Philippines' Sikatuna in 1571.

Hagonoy first appeared in Philippine history when they formed part of the fleet of Rajah Suliman of Macabebe, Pampanga that met Martin de Goiti at the Battle of Bankusay in the initial defense of the Lusong Empire against the Spaniards in 1571.^[4] In the beginning, Hagonoy was just a part of Calumpit. Founded in 1771, although according to records and old folks, there were already inhabitants in some places of this town prior to 1771. These places were Tibaguin and Pugad, coastal barrios sharing the coastline with the city of Manila and Tampok.

Magat Salamat, a revolutionary hero, once headed this town.^[5] He was the ancestor of the Salamat families now living in different barrios of this town.

Origin of name [edit]

The town was named after the "hagunoy" (Chromolaena odorata), a medicinal plant that used to be abundant in its river banks and along the seashores. The original populace used its leaves as their herbal remedy of choice for common illnesses and as food ingredients. Because of the medicinal value of the plant, the news of its effectiveness spread leading the people to call the place "Hagonoy".

Geography [edit]

With a total land area of 103.10 square kilometers, Hagonoy is situated at the southwest corner of the province of Bulacan. It is bounded by the municipality of Calumpit on the north, municipality of Paombong on the east, municipality of Masantol, Pampanga on the west and Manila Bay on the south. The municipality is approximately 54 kilometers from Metro Manila or about an hour and a half drive. It can be accessed via North Luzon Expressway and MacArthur Highway.

Hagonoy is a long ridge with a lake on its edge by the Manila Bay called "Wawa", which is now part of Barangays San Sebastian and San Nicolas. It is basically a fishing town with the Manila Bay as its proximate fishing ground, which extends up to the provinces of Pampanga, Bataan, and Cavite. Its more adventurous fisherfolk brave the waves of the South China Sea northward and cross into the Philippine Sea in the Pacific Ocean on the eastern seaboard where they cast their nets and haul their catch to the fishing ports of Quezon province.

People [edit]

The Hagoeños are known to be very hospitable. Visitors during festivals or fiestas are usually overwhelmed with the degustation that includes the traditional Spanish menu, the popular native recipes, the seafood (assorted fish, shrimps, crabs, prawns, clams, oysters), the very popular "atchara", and the desserts (leche flan, haleya, beans of several varieties, salads, pastries including the pastillas puro, and tropical fruits).

They are profoundly attached to their religious heritage and devoted to their pious Christian life. Before, all of the barangays in this town are known on its old names, but because of their religious predilection, each barangay is overtly shown by the names of its patron: 17 of the 26 barangays of this town were named after saints.

Municipal government [edit]

Just as the national government, the municipal government is divided into three branches: executive, legislative and judiciary. The judicial branch is administered solely by the Supreme Court of the Philippines. The LGUs have control of the executive and legislative branch.

The executive branch is composed of the governor for the provinces, mayor for the cities and municipalities, and the barangay captain for the barangays.^[6] The legislative branch is composed of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan (provincial assembly) for the provinces, Sangguniang Panlungsod (city assembly) for the cities, Sangguniang Bayan (town assembly) for the municipalities, Sangguniang Barangay (barangay council), and the Sangguniang Kabataan for the youth sector.

The seat of Government is vested upon the Mayor and other elected officers who hold office at the Town hall. The Sanguniang Bayan is the center of legislation.

Municipal officials [edit]

The following officials were elected in the National and Local Elections on May 10, 2010 to serve a three-year term.^[7]

• Mayor: Angel Lontok Cruz, Jr. – Lapiang K
• Vice-Mayor: Reynaldo Ondra Santos – Del Pilar

Councilors

• Lamberto Tayson Villanueva – Lapiang K
• Domingo Magbitang Reyes III – Independent
• Christopher Romulo Baluyot – Independent
• Rosemarie Santos Magat – Lapiang K
• Basilio Rosas Cruz, Jr. – NPC
• Jeffrey Catajan Reyes – Lapiang K
• Francis Dianne Tolentino Cervantes – Lakas-Kampi
• Kim Santos Laderas, Jr. – Lakas-Kampi

• 

  Facade

• 

  Town hall

• 

  Park

Barangays [edit]

Barangay clusters of Hagonoy, Bulacan.

Hagonoy is politically subdivided into 26 barangays which are grouped into 5 clusters or "kumpol" for statistical purposes. All barangays are urban according to National Statistical Coordination Board,^[8] with San Agustin as the most populated barangay and Carillo as the least.

Points of interest [edit]

• Municipal Hall of Hagonoy and its new buildings.

• Bulacan Garden – located in Barangay San Agustin.
• Ina ng Laging Saklolo Parish is the first Parish of Ina ng Laging Saklolo in the Province of Bulacan headed by their first parish priest, Rev. Fr. Paul Samuel "Sammy" Sunga. It is located in Hangga, Barangay San Pedro, and known to be the 'Baclaran of Bulacan.'
• New cherubim of heaven memorial Park on the right side of Ina ng lagi saklolo church
• Parong-Parong Chapel is home of the Miraculous Black Nazarene in Bulacan. Dubbed as the 'Quiapo of Hagonoy,' it is one of the most popular festivity in town flocked by the devotees of the Black Nazarene.

• Various antique houses and barangays of the great heroes and statesmen of the Philippines.

• National Shrine of St. Anne in the Philippines is a 16th-century church established by the Augustinian Friars in Hagonoy and the only "National Shrine" built for the Mother of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the Philippines.

National Shrine of St. Anne in the Philippines [edit]

Hagonoy is deeply religious, in the town centre is the native's principal Church.[2][3] The National Shrine of St. Anne was originally a chapel under the parish of Calumpit, it became a church in 1731 with Fr. Juan Albarran, an Augustinian as the first curate. It was rebuilt in 1871 by Fr. Ignacio Manzanares. The church was taken over by the Filipino clergy in 1896 with Fr. Clemente Garcia as the first Filipino curate. He was succeeded by Fr. Dr. Mariono Sevilla from 1902-1922, Fr. Exequiel Morales, 1922-1936. Fr. Celestino Rodriguez, curate since 1936 improved the church. It was made into a national shrine to honor St. Anne, the mother of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This church holds the relics of St. Anne from the Basilica of Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré, the international shrine in Quebec, Canada and also the relics of St. Joaquim.[4]

• 

  Facade of National Shrine of St. Anne

• 

  Interior

• 

  Procession Icons of St. Anne and Child Mary

• 

  Giant Icon of Our Lady of Lourdes (Grotto)

• 

  Icons of St. Anne and the child Mary in the Altar (under renovation, 2012)

• 

  Relics of St. Anne (National Shrine of St. Anne (from the Basilica of Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré).

Fiestas and Local Holidays [edit]

Annual fiestas are held to honor the town's and each barangay's patron saints. The town's patron saint is St. Anne (the mother of the Blessed Virgin Mary) or fondly called Apo Ana in the vernacular by the natives. She is enshrined at the church named after her in the poblacion. This church is a National Shrine. There are also small fiestas among the different puroks of the barangays, there are feasts for the: Sacred Heart of Jesus, Our Lady of the Rosary, and other commemorative feasts of the Catholic Church. The Holy Week observance include flagellants on the road, zarzuelas, the "pabasa" (the passion sang as a psalm), the Good Friday and Easter dawn processions, in all the parishes. The Good Friday processions of the Parishes like the Poblacion and the Sto. Rosario parishes are attended by at least 15 to 30 Lenten icons. The fiestas and Holy Week rituals are deemed as a sacred tradition. Some barangays hold their feasts with extraordinary roadside decorations and buntings so elaborate that the road is almost covered with overhead decor sufficient to screen-off the sunlight at noontime. Major Fiestas in Hagonoy such as the Sto. Niño Fiesta, Sta. Elena Fiesta, & the Town’s Fiesta & Foundation Day are some of the major festivities in town.

Economy [edit]

Hagonoy is mainly a fishing municipality with 7,837.65 hectares devoted to fish farming or about three-fourths of its total land area. It is home to about 1,423 fishpond operators and 55 registered consignacions – a venue for trading aquaculture products. The town offers a variety of harvest which includes prawns, shrimps, milkfish, tilapia, crabs, mussels and oysters.

With its abundant water resources and the coastal nature of the town, majority of the population is dependent on fishing industry. Even the municipal government has its own fishpond locally known as "Propyus", situated in Pugad and Tibaguin, two coastal barangays of Hagonoy along the coast of Manila Bay. It is subdivided to 7 lots with a combined lot area of 412 hectares of municipal waters.

Two local fish ports called "pundohan" – one in barrio San Nicolas and the other at the Poblacion, are the busiest commercial areas in the town. Fish traders from Lucena City, Quezon and Dagupan City, Pangasinan among other merchants of other provinces are regular bulk buyers the local ports or at the private "consignacions" (brokerage) of the large milkfish growers.

The coastal barrios are virtually 24/7 as fishermen go out to the sea at night for hours or even days while their loving families and relatives await them. Upon their return, their catch is immediately sorted out and sold at the local public markets and "talipapa" of the barangays. Their catch are also transported to the public markets in nearby towns and up to the public/private markets and supermarkets in Metro Manila.

Barangay Sto. Niño adjacent to the Poblacion is host to the numerous brokers of prawns for the domestic and export markets. The boats that sell their prawn catch at these brokers at times come from as far as the province of Capiz. A processing plant very near the brokers prepares and packages the prawns to export quality and global standards.

There are 2 “talipapa” (flea markets) in Hagonoy that also played minor central business districts – Sto. Rosario and San Agustin. Business activities include wet and dry market, grocery stores, carinderia and computer shops.

According to the Commission on Audit (COA) 2010 Annual Financial Report, Hagonoy ranked as the 8th^[9] richest municipality in Bulacan, surpassing the annual income of other 1st class municipalities like Bocaue, Calumpit, Plaridel, San Ildefonso and Balagtas.

Trade and Commerce [edit]

Trade and commerce in Hagonoy is concentrated at the town center where the public market, municipal hall, church, schools, hospital, clinics, and commercial spaces are situated. Major business activities include drugstores, banks, financial institutions, private consignacions, restaurants/food shops, groceries, and construction supplies.^[10]

Puregold Hagonoy

A hypermart operated by Puregold Price Club, Inc., established the Hagonoy branch on October 24, 2012. It is located at Brgy. Santo Niño (Poblacion).

Communication [edit]

Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT) and Digital Telecommunications Philippines, Inc. (DIGITEL) are the main landline telephone service provider in Hagonoy with 2,134 and 1,700 subscriber respectively.

Many residents have subscribed to wireless phone services such as Globe, Smart, Talk 'N Text, TM (Touch Mobile), Sun Cellular and Red Mobile. As per Municipal Engineers Office record, there are 10 cell sites installed in strategic locations in Hagonoy to improve the signal coverage and reception.

On the other hand, telegraph and express mail services are being provided by the local post office and private companies such as LBC and RCPI-Western Union.

Social Services [edit]

Protective Services [edit]

Hagonoy is generally a peaceful community. Peace and order is being maintained by the Philippine National Police – Hagonoy Station manned by 29 PNP personnel. The Hagonoy PNP is equipped by 24 long firearms and 17 short firearms, with 2 patrol cars and 4 motorcycles as service vehicles.

In 2009, there were 113 reported crime incidence in the municipality. The crime solution efficiency rate is registered at 97.26%.^[11]

Health and Nutrition [edit]

There are 3 hospitals operating in Hagonoy – 2 private hospitals and a government-controlled district hospital. The Emilio Perez Memorial District Hospital, situated at Barangay Sto. Nino, is a 50-bed capacity hospital that offers secondary healthcare services. It is one of the district hospitals owned and controlled by the Provincial Government of Bulacan. Immediately beside it is the Mateo-Mabborang General Hospital, a private hospital which was opened on October 9, 2010. The Divine Word Hospital is a private hospital situated at Barangay San Pedro also offers secondary healthcare services.

These hospitals are being complemented by the Amado Aldaba Memorial Health Center, the main rural health unit (RHU) being operated by the municipal government. It offers primary healthcare services which also includes laboratory and dental services. Aside of this, 3 other rural health units in barangays San Juan, San Nicolas and Sto. Rosario are also under the local government, headed by the municipal officer in RHU-Aldaba, and 3 other physicians are servicing the other RHUs.

The municipality also operates two (2) physical therapy and rehabilitation centers. The first is located at the municipal compound while the other is situated at Barangay Sta. Monica.

The medical personnel of the municipal government is composed of 5 Rural Health Physicians, 4 public nurses, 23 midwives, 2 sanitary inspector, 1 medical technologist and 2 dentists. These are aided by the 172 Barangay Health Workers at the barangay level.

On the other hand, nutrition program is being implemented by the Municipal Nutrition Office. At the barangay, they are assisted by the 29 Lingkod Lingap sa Nayon (LLNs) supported by 189 Mother Leaders. As of 2008, there were 35 identified very low and 565 low nutritional status in Hagonoy.

Power and water supply [edit]

The power requirement of the entire municipality is supplied by the Manila Electric Company (MERALCO) including the coastal barangays of Pugad and Tibaguin. While the Hagonoy Water District provides the water requirement of Hagonoy. It supplies the daily water use of all 26 barangays using their 24 barangay pump stations.

Transportation [edit]

In Hagonoy, the primary and most dominant mode of transportation is tricycle because of its narrow roads. As of the latest count, there are around 4,671 members of Tricycle Operators and Drivers Association (TODA) in Hagonoy servicing all barangays except Pugad and Tibaguin. Both of those barangays are being served by boats for hire.

Other modes of transportation are jeepneys and buses. There are about 565 registered jeepneys in Hagonoy divided into 3 routes – Malolos Bayan, BSU-Malolos Crossing, and Hagonoy-Calumpit. Passenger buses transport passengers in Hagonoy to and from Divisoria, Monumento, Cubao and Pasay City in Metro Manila via the 2 bus companies that are presently operating in Hagonoy. The Baliwag Transit having 32 buses leaving Hagonoy every 30 minutes and the First North Luzon Transit with 11 buses leaving every 45 minutes.

• Baliwag Transit
• First North Luzon Transit
• Jeepneys (going to Paombong, Malolos Bayan, BSU, Malolos Crossing and Calumpit)
• Tricycles (most common mean of tranpostation locally)

Hanging and wooden bridges [edit]

The four hanging bridges which are now in state of disrepair are located in barangays Iba, Abulalas, Carillo and San Agustin. Barangay Abulalas' hanging bridge links it to Barangay San Isidro II in Paombong town. The bridge is about 200 meters long as it crossed the downstream of the Labangan Channel. In Barangay Carillo, residents said the hanging bridge in their village linking Barangay Abulalas was totally damaged just before the 2007 elections. Its steel cable snapped while supporters of a mayoralty candidate were crossing in April 2007. In Barangay San Agustin, residents are trying to protect what remains of their hanging bridge that links with Barangay San Pablo.^[12][13][14]

• 

  View of the River from the bridge

• 

  Another view of Angat River

• 

  Wooden bridge

• 

  The bridge

• 

  Abulalas hanging bridge Panorama

• 

  The hanging bridge

• 

  Another view of the dangerous bridge

• 

  Panorama from the bridge

• 

  Panorama of the rice fields

Education [edit]

The educational institutions in Hagonoy is composed of 29 public elementary schools, 10 private elementary schools, 4 public secondary schools, 4 private schools, 26 Day Care Centers, 1 Technical/Vocational School and 1 satellite campus of the provincial university.

In School Year 2008-2009, the combined elementary school enrollment is 17,934, where 9 out of the 10 students are enrolled in public elementary school. On the other hand, secondary school enrolment is registered at 10,477 students, of which 78.45% are enrolled in public high school.^[15]

Every barangay has a Day Care Center with an assigned Day Care Worker. The total number of children enrolled is 1,315 in School Year 2008-2009, composed of 629 boys and 686 girls.

Tertiary/Technical Schools [edit]

The Hagonoy Institute of Technology, situated at the compound of Hagonoy Institute in Barangay San Sebastian, is the only technical/vocational school in Hagonoy. It offers short courses like Computer Technician, Computer Technician, Hotel and Restaurant Management, Food and Beverage Services, and Baking.

The Bulacan State University-Hagonoy Campus situated at Barangay Iba-Ibayo officially opened on June 7, 2011. The fourth satellite campus of BulSU offers Education, Engineering, Information Technology and Hotel and Restaurant Management as its initial courses.

Public Schools [edit]

High schools

• Iba National High School
• Mayor Ramona S. Trillana National High School
• Sta. Monica National High School
• San Pedro High School

Elementary schools

Private Schools [edit]

High schools

• Hagonoy Institute
• Godwin’s Montesorri School
• Saint Anne's Catholic School (formerly known as Saint Anne's Catholic High School)
• Saint Mary's Academy of Hagonoy or SMA (formerly known as Saint Anne's Academy)

• 

  Saint Mary's Academy of Hagonoy, Bulacan [1]

• 

  SMA Marker

• 

  Saint Annes Catholic School

Elementary schools

• Godwin’s Montesorri School
• Hagonoy Ecumenical School
• Holy Child School of hagonoy
• Jesus is Lord Christian School
• Saint Mary’s Academy of Hagonoy
• Santiago Trillana Academy
• School of Wisdom for Ideal Children
• St. Anne's Catholic School
• Mother of Perpetual Help School
• Victoria Vazquez Christian School
• Ramon Jetro Elementary School

References [edit]

External links [edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Hagonoy, Bulacan

• Philippine Standard Geographic Code
• Hagonoy Bulacan
• Hagonoy Bulacan Website
• 2000 Philippine Census Information
• 2007 Philippine Census Information
• 2010 Philippine Census Information
• Population of capital cities and cities of 100,000 and more inhabitants United Nations Statistics Division, accessed 24 August 2006

		Calumpit
	Masantol, Pampanga Macabebe, Pampanga		Paombong
		Hagonoy
		Manila Bay

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