A tale of a fabled city

BAGUIO'S origin as a colonial hill

station has an interesting story to

reveal.

While history tells us that what attracted the first colonizers to

the Cordillera was the lure of gold, it appears from the unfolding

story of Baguio that the American colonial government was not

attracted by gold but driven by the quest for a hill station as a

convalescence center--a sanitarium for recovery from tropical

diseases and for extended periods of rest.

During the early centuries of

colonial government in

monsoonal Asia, Westerners

believed that long residence

in hot humid land around the

equator tended to increase

their vulnerability to

life-threatening tropical

diseases and incapacitating

psychological disorders.

At the same time, many settlers were convinced that certain

diseases, together with enervating heat stroke, transitory

emotional fatigue and crippling depression, could be remedied

and combated through extended furloughs or early retirement in

the higher altitude areas of their colonies.

In attempting to justify the establishment of a sanitarium and

recreational center in Baguio, the members of the US Philippine

Commission capitalized on this widespread belief.

First published in 1976 by the University of California at

Berkeley, the ''City of Pines'' represents an exploratory study of

the historical geography of Baguio during its formative period.

The geographer, Robert R. Reed, begins his book by examining

the genesis of upland sanitariums in tropical Asia. He noted

Spain's creation of an embryonic sanitarium in La Trinidad,

emphasized the contributions of successive American officers

in constructing a proper colonial hill station, and provided an

introductory narrative on the transformation of a small Benguet

rancheria into a multifunctional provincial city.

Classic hill station

Established at the dawn of the 20th century, Baguio became a

classic hill station. In contrast to the majority of lowland towns

and cities, the model for the capital of Benguet did not originate

in Hispanic America where the poblacion and ciudad had

served as key elements in Spain's integrated system of political,

religious and cultural colonization.

Instead, it derived from the US in terms of physical forms and

from the highlands of South and Southeast Asia in terms of an

institutional complex.

Baguio's founders compared their new summer capital in

Benguet with the more renowned highland centers such as

Simla in British India, Darjeeling in Bengal, Dalat and Tam Dao

in French Indochina, Bogor in the Netherlands-East Indies, and

Maymyo in British Burma which became the functional seats of

Western imperium, with the imperial officialdoms retreating to

these summer capitals at the beginning of the hot and

oppressive dry periods.

Unlike the Spanish conquistadores who viewed their

reducciones throughout the Philippines essentially as

instruments of hispanization and Christianization, the American

proconsuls planned and originally developed Baguio as a center

for convalescence and recreation.

The US Philippine Commission Act No. 636 set aside an area of

14,000 acres as administrative territory of Baguio. The town of

Baguio in the province of Benguet was made the summer capital

of the Philippines on June 1, 1903.

In 1904, because of the growing opposition to the establishment

of a major hill station in the Mt. Province, and the excessive cost

of constructing the Benguet Road (Kennon Road), the

government refused to commit more funds for the development

of Baguio.

Thus, the commissioners shifted attention in 1904 from road

construction to city planning.

Burnham

Daniel H. Burnham, one of America's most renowned architects

and city planners at the turn of the century, made provisions for

Baguio's anticipated functions as summer capital, major health

resort, large market center, and hub of recreational activities.

While providing expansive spaces for the construction of

private residencies, churches, libraries, schools and other public

buildings, the American planner strongly opposed dense

settlement in the Baguio hills and advocated strict laws

designed to preserve the high quality of the Benguet

environment.

Burnham was also one of the first to call for the controlled

expansion of Baguio and for vigilance in the preservation of

pine forests within or near the urban reservation.

Governor General Cameron Forbes is still remembered as the

''Father of Baguio.'' During his nine years of residence in the

Philippines, he constantly urged Americans, Filipinos and

Europeans to visit the summer capital.

He supported programs--sponsored by the Teachers Camp, the

government and Camp John Hay--meant to expose lowlanders

of all social classes to the salubrious environment of Benguet.

He opened his Topside residential mansion to no less than 450

visitors for lengthy or abbreviated stays. His guest book read

like a ''Who's Who'' of Philippine society during the first decade

of the 29th century. His guests included the likes of Gen. Emilio

Aguinaldo, Sergio Osmeqa and Gregorio Araneta.

Under the supervision of Forbes and other proconsuls, the

infrastructural needs of the new city were given attention.

In 1908, a permanent hospital (Baguio General Hospital) was

inaugurated as a highland convalescent center. In the same

year, the government also inaugurated a permanent marketplace,

began the construction of a constabulary post, worked on an

urban water system, and opened new schools.

The Bureau of Education began to hold sessions in Teachers

Camp. Teachers from all over the Philippines came during each

summer to live, eat, and attend lectures in tents. By 1913,

Teachers Camp had permanent buildings, fine athletic fields,

mess halls and social halls.

Because of the controversial expense incurred in the

construction and maintenance of the Benguet Road, it seemed

as though the commission was ready to abandon the whole

matter regarding additional appropriations for the road or the

town.

However, the resulting discord within the commission was

partly neutralized as an increasing number of Filipinos,

Americans and Spaniards began to purchase residential and

commercial properties within the urban reservation.

The government obtained badly needed funds for street

construction and gradually built a substantial tax base to

provide permanent revenues for further urban improvement.