Afternoon Stroll in Santo Tomas, Batangas: The Houses and Mansions in Santo Tomas (Part 2)

* a house designed after the ‘old-school’ style but obviously

using recently acquired wood materials and capiz

* designs found on the post of a gate of what must have been an elegant mansion in Sto. Tomas, Batangas

Our walkathon through the streets of the town proper of Santo Tomas, Batangas was cut short by a sudden downpour of rain. What started out as a drizzle of rain now turned into full-fledged downpour. But before we got semi-stranded, I was able to take a few shots of some interesting houses and sites on the same street as the church. These houses definitely trace their origins to the American and post-American period and from the general lay out of the place (they were in essence built around the town church), I daresay that they are (or were once owned) by wealthy people of Santo Tomas.

Although this entry is partly speculated, I think I can obtain basis on a book about Malvar (I will mention the title and authors in a future Malvar-related blog entry) describing the town of Santo Tomas in 1800. It was indeed a prosperous town already. The vast fields and plantations near Mount Maquiling must have been a blessing to the town dwellers. Even the family of Miguel Malvar benefited with those lands for planting.

* one would wonder what house once stood beyond that old and rusty gate

* another gate leading towards a ground where a big house must have once stood

* obviously a recent construction but still has that ‘old’ feeling to it

* Gabaldon type of building found at
Paaralang Sentral ng Santo Tomas (Primary Annex)

* this one is definitely old albeit a neglected one

And because those lands are still there, economic activity still continued after the Philippine-American War and well into what we would term here as the American period (of occupation of the Philippines). With the wealth amassed through various businesses, the townsfolk naturally turned their money into building of such houses.

* the front area of General Miguel Malvar Memorial School;

a closer inspection of the second photo, we could see a bust of the General

* the gate of Villa Monte Oliva

* a small, wooden house found in town

* glimpses of what could be big houses or mansions

I am yet to find concrete sources about the houses in the town of Santo Tomas, Batangas. To see houses named as villas is definitely worth studying. They must have that high regards of their social statues during their time.