Calle Rizal |
Another reason for my visit with my family to Silay City, aside from visiting my mom’s hometown and attending the 8th Locsin Family Reunion, was to see for myself Silay’s ancestral houses. Silay, founded in 1760, became prosperous in 1846 with the cultivation of sugar cane and its new-found wealth translated into the construction of many opulent ancestral homes, located mostly along Calle Rizal.
Silay is the second city in the Philippines, after Vigan City (Ilocos Sur), to be named a museum city, making it one of the country’s top 25 tourist destinations.
Most ancestral houses in the city are named after their owners while other more famous houses are known for their unique characteristics or colors (Twin Houses, Green Hose, White House, Pink House, etc.).
A total of 31 (some well-preserved) have been identified by the National Historical Institute (NHI, now the National Historical Commission of the Philippines) as National Treasures. Nine of them are Level 1 (Declared):
- Carlos Arceo Ledesma Heritage House
- Antonio de la Rama Locsin Ancestral House
- Delfin Ledesma Heritage House – 28 Generoso Gamboa Street
- Juana Coloso Ledesma House
- Amelia Hilado Flores House (owned by Jison-Alano)
- Arsenio Lopez Jison Ancestral House – Rizal Street
- Antonio Novela Sian House – cor. of Rizal and Zamora Streets
- Manuel de la Rama Locsin Ancestral House – Rizal Street
- Josefita Tionko Lacson Ancestral House
Sadly, three Level 1 houses have already been demolished. They are the Augusto Hilado Severino House (bought by the Iglesia Ni Cristo), the Claudio Hilado Akol Heritage House (bought by the Locsin Genealogy Foundation – balcony has been retained) and the Modesto Ramirez Hojilla (Carlos Javelosa Jalandoni) Ancestral House.
Nineteen others are Level 2 (With Marker). My grandfather’s house, built in the 1930s and locally called Balay Daku or “Big House, is one of these. The others are:
- Victor Fernandez Gaston Heritage House (Balay Negrense) – Cinco de Noviembre Street, Brgy. III
- Alejandro Amechazura Heritage House – Plaridel Street, now the office of Celsoy Agro-Industrial Corporation
- Manuel Severino Hofileña Heritage House – Cinco de Noviembre Street
- Bernardino and Ysabel Lopez-Jalandoni Ancestral House – Rizal Street, Brgy. II, a lifestyle museum, commonly called The Pink House
- Jose “Pitong” Ledesma Heritage House – cor. Jose Ledesma and Teodoro Morada Streets
- Kapitan Marciano Montelibano Lacson Heritage House -Rizal cor. Zamora Streets, Brgy. II, home of New City Cafe (Kapehan Sang Silay)
- Vicente Conlu Montelibano Heritage House – Zamora Street
- Maria Ledesma Golez Heritage House – Rizal Street, now RCBC Silay branch
- El Ideal Bakery (Cesar Lacson Locsin Ancestral House) – 118 Rizal Street
- Jose Benedicto Gamboa Heritage House – Roque Hofilena Street, the Oro, Plata, Mata” (1982) house
- Angel Araneta Ledesma Heritage House (Culture and Arts Office of Silay) – Plaridel Street, commonly called The Green House
- Teodoro Morada Heritage House – cor. of Cinco de Noviembre and Zamora Streets
- Digna Locsin Consing Heritage House
- Generoso Reyes Gamboa Heritage House (Twin Houses) – 960 Zamora cor. Cinco de Noviembre Streets
- Soledad and Maria Montelibano Lacson Heritage House – Rizal Street
- German Locsin Unson Ancestral House – 5 Zamora Street
- Severino Building/Lino Lope Severino Ancestral House – cor. Rizal and Burgos Streets.
- Benita Jara Ancestral House (ancestor of Nicolas Armin Jalandoni- last owner) – Generoso Gamboa Street, now Silay City Sangguniang Panlungsod Building.
Check out “Jose C. Locsin Ancestral House,” “Balay Negrense,” Ramon Hofilena: The “Father of Heritage Conservation” in Silay City and the “Bernardino-Ysabel Jalandoni Museum”
There are also a number of ancestral houses that have not been declared as Heritage Houses. They are the Felix Tad-y Lacson Ancestral House (sadly, demolished 2014), the Antonia de la Rama Locsin Ancestral House, the Aguinaldo Gamboa House (house where Gen. Douglas MacArthur stayed), St. Theresita’s Academy and the Locsin House (Freedom Blvd, Brgy.Mambulac).
Silay City Tourism Office: Sen. Jose C. Locsin Cultural and Civic Center, 6116 Silay City. Tel: (034) 495-5553. Fax: (034) 495-0848. E-mail: silaycity_tourism@yahoo.com. Open Mondays to Fridays, 9 AM – 5 PM. Coordinates: 10.79907,122.97658.