Apalit, Pampanga - History

History

Malayan immigrants that settled along the banks of Rio Grande de la Pampanga at the beginning of the 14th century were the ancestors of many Apaliteños. The art and culture of this early settlers' civilization reached the Zambales mountains and the rest of Central Luzon.

A the time Apalit was settled, there was a big sturdy tree Pterocarpus indicus or Apalit (also known as Narra) in Kapampangan at the present site of the Catholic Parish Church of Saint Peter. Apparently, the town got its name from that big legendary tree which is now the National tree of the Philippines.

Apalit was formally established as an independent municipality in 1582 during the term of office of Spanish Governor General Gonzalo Ronquillo de Penalosa. It was initially composed then of four encomiendas namely, Apali (Pale), La Castilla, Cabambangan and Capalangan. La Castilla was made the town proper (Poblacion) and was renamed later as San Juan Nepomuceno.

It was not until 1597 when the Apalit Parish of Saint Peter was created after its separation from the Parish of Calumpit. Fr. Pedro de Vergara was appointed as the first Parish Priest to attend to the spiritual needs of the Catholic community of Apalit. In conjunction with the annual town fiesta, the traditional fluvial parade of Saint Peter was initiated by Capitan del Pueblo Don Pedro Armayan-Espiritu y Macam on June 28, 1844.

The town of Apalit is located in the southern part of Pampanga bounded in the south by Calumpit, Bulacan, in the north by the town of San Simon and in the west by the municipality of Macabebe.

With about 72 square kilometers in land area, the town of Apalit has a population of about 78,295 people (per the year 2000 census) in its twelve barangays.

Barrio Capalangan which derived its name from the Kapampangan word "Palang" meaning machete or bolo is believed to have been founded by the son of a certain Gatbonton named Pangpalung who in his in youth was called Macapagal. This barangay was the home of Panday Pira, the first known Filipino maker of cannons. He manufactured cannons called "lantakas" for the troops of Rajah Soliman and after the Spanish conquest of Manila, he worked for Adelantado and Governor General Miguel Lopez de Legaspi.

Puerto Sulipan from the 1850s to the 1910s was once the haven of Philippine big business, politics, and "alta sociedad" during the time of Capitan del Pueblo Don Joaquin Arnedo de la Cruz y Tanjutco ( + 1897 )and his heiress wife, Dona Maria de la Paz Sioco y Carlos, viuda de Tanjutco ( + 1897 ). Their palatial residence, "La Sulipena" ( composed of two big "bahay na bato" --- one for the family and one for their guests ), along the Rio Grande de Pampanga was the venue of elegant gatherings attended by high government officials from Manila ( the Spanish Governors-General, the Archbishops of Manila, the American Commissioners, the American Governors-General, et al. ) and European royalty ( the Duke of Edinburgh of Great Britain in 1869, King Norodom I of Cambodia in 1872, the Duc d'Alençon of France, Grand Duke Alexis Alexandrovich Romanov of Russia in 1891, et al. ) during the Spanish and American regimes. Their son, Don Macario "Ariong" Arnedo y Sioco ( 1868 - 1941 ), a four-term elected governor of Pampanga during the early years of the 20th century continued with his wife, Dona Maria "Maruja" Espiritu y Dungo ( 1876 - 1934 ), the traditional, elegant banquets and balls at "La Sulipena" in barrio Sulipan and in their residence in adjacent barrio Capalangan. Postwar, the elegant tradition was continued by Don Macario's richest daughter, Dona Rosario "Charing" Arnedo y Espiritu at her residence in Manila ( she married her multimillionaire uncle, Don Augusto Diosdado "Bosto" Gonzalez y Sioco; Don Augusto and Dona Rosario were the parents of the legendary Brother Andrew Benjamin Gonzalez, F.S.C., the longtime President of the DLSU De La Salle University ). The people of Sulipan are famous for their exquisite, Spanish- and French-inflected Capampangan cuisine which they acquired from Spanish and European chefs while Spanish ships were anchored in Puerto Sulipan for repairs and maintenance from the 1600s-1800s. D. Emilio Gonzales, Capitan Juan Padilla, Anacleto Indiongco, Barrio Chieftain Simeon Torres-Simon and his four younger brothers, Lorenzo, Isaac, Miguel and Francisco Simon were among these Apalitenos who mastered the art of Spanish and European cooking and baking which have been carried by Kapampangans from generation to generation. In the 1840s-50s, Dona Margarita Roxas de Ayala, ancestress of the Zobel de Ayala clan, was a frequent visitor of the Arnedos in Sulipan to and from her inspection trips to her hacienda in Macabebe town ( her signature appeared several times in the Arnedo guest books ). In the 1910s, Dona Ysidra "Sidra" Cojuangco y Estrella --- a frequent guest of the Arnedos in Sulipan during her youth in the 1880s-90s --- recruited talented Sulipeno cooks and their families and brought them to the Cojuangco hacienda in Paniqui, Tarlac to assist in the big gatherings she hosted. It is the reason why traditional Cojuangco fare is very similar to the traditional, luxurious Spanish- and French-inflected Capampangan fare served in the Arnedo y Sioco, Escaler y Sioco, and Gonzalez y Sioco tables of old Sulipan.

Apalitenos are also noted for their cottage industries such as weaving of cloth, mats, hats, pottery and metal working in gold, iron and silver. Many Apalitenos work as tailors in Manila and some of them own and manage their own shops and mens stores such as the late Atty. Amado Carlos of Toppers of Manila, Lorenzo K. Guarin, married to an Apalitena, the founder of L. K. Guarin Tailoring and Mens Wear and Remigio Danganan of Remars Tailoring and Fashion Shop.

Apalit is also a farming and fishing town. However, during the last few years, commercial and manufacturing firms have been established in this town. Among these manufacturing corporations are two large alcohol refineries and a big depot of a multi-national oil corporation in sitio Alauli of barrio San Vicente. Some banking institutions, shopping malls, and restaurants are also flourishing in the business area of the town.