Towns come and go; such is the changing fortunes of humans, so that first landfall and mission of the Jesuits in Samar, is now an obscure barangay on Samar’s west coast.

Tinagon

In 1595, The Jesuit missions in Samar began when Frs. Francisco de Otazo, Bartolomé Martes, and Bro. Alonso founded the Tinagon mission. Chirino writes of this first mission: “They [the Jesuits] arrived at the western side of the island of Ybabao, which was eastward of the archipelago, at a village called Tinagon, and arrived there very opportunely for their purpose since at that time a plague prevailed in that part of the island, causing the death of many people.” This first Jesuit landfall in Samar is identified by Huerta with present-day Dapdap. Dapdap, a barrio of Taragnan is on the western coast of Samar island, facing Maqueda Bay. Dapdap, is some 30 km. north of Catbalogan, and 15 km. south of Calbayog, the capital of western Samar. Dapdap is inaccessible because the Maharlika highway that links Samar and Leyte bypasses this ancient settlement.

At first, the Jesuits were not too successful in coaxing the natives to the faith, the inhabitants’ only contact with Spaniards being with cruel tax collectors. The natives at the sight of the fathers fled to the hills.

In 1596, a heavy locust infestation destroyed the crops of Samar. Seizing the opportunity to prove they were men of goodwill, the fathers distributed rice and medicine to the victims. By 1597, they had their Christian community.

In 1597, from Tinago the Jesuits established a residence in Palapag on the northern coast.

In 1600, because of Fr. Diego García’s visitation, the Jesuits of Carigara, Alang-alang, and Ormoc were asked to consolidate themselves into one residence at Alang-alang. Dulag and Palo were to merge as one residence at Dulag.

In 1613, Gregorio López, reporting on the status of the Philippine mission, wrote that the residence of Tinagon on the island of Ybabao included the villages and churches of Tinagon, Bangaun, Paranas, Malulubug, Caluigan, Libunao, Cotay, Cayayan, Ubatan, Boloneto, Sucar, Savan. The village of Tinagon had 330 tributes.

In 1627, For some unknown reason, the Jesuits transferred the Western Samar residence to Catbalogan and abandoned Tinagon which remained a visita which Jesuits visited occasionally.

In 1768, Tinagon was ceded to the Franciscans who in 1769 refounded a town on the old site abandoned by the Jesuits.

In 1595, The Catbalogan mission was founded by the Jesuit Francisco Otazo. Catbalogan was subject to frequent Moro attacks in one of which the village was burnt and its Jesuit pastor killed. Three known martyrs were Gabriel Coronel who died 27 May 1627; Ignacio Zapata, died 8 Jan. 1666; and Francisco Angel, died 24 Feb. 1674 on Maripipi island (Redondo y Sendino, 94; HC [608] gives the year as 1676).

In 1627, Catbalogan was raised to the status of residence and among its dependencies was Paranas where in 1629 Fr. Pedro Estrada is reported as actively evangelizing the area.

The Annual Letters of 1631–32 report that because a fort was constructed in Catbalogan, the townspeople could now live in peace near the fort. Annual Letters were periodic reports which Jesuits superiors sent to Europe, to acquaint administrators in Rome and Spain of the status of the missions.

Aside from the fort, a stone house was constructed after three years of labor. In this house the altar of Our Lady was kept to protect it from typhoons. Obviously the church at this time was of light material as it could not protect so precious and expensive a thing as an altar.

In 1768, 17 Oct., Catbalogan was ceded to the Franciscans who received it from the Jesuits. The first Franciscan parish priest was Fray José Fayo. When the Franciscans arrived they found the Jesuits ministering to the spiritual needs of the people in a camarin (shack) of nipa, while the shell of the church, apparently saved from the conflagration, needed repair.

In 1769, Fray José de Jesús Marín established an infirmary, probably this building was also of nipa and bamboo.

In 1814, Fray Félix Carreón set out to repair the church. Fray Martín de Yepes constructed the altars of Catbalogan. He also had a colonnade of wooden posts raised, thus dividing the nave into three. The façade used Ionic columns for its articulation.

In 1835, The church burnt a second time but was rebuilt by the Franciscans. (Between 1814 and 1835 the church seems to have been burnt too [Redondo 1886, 216].)

Church—Records are unclear about the extent of damage on the church. Huerta implies that the stone fabric withstood the fire of 1760 that consumed all that was combustible. But the fire of 1835 must have left little of the Jesuit church. Add to that the devastation of World War II and we have little left from Jesuit times. If anything remains from Jesuit times, it might be the meter-high image of the patronal saint, St. Bartholomew, presently kept in the rectory.

Fort—Certainly parts of the fort behind the church trace to Jesuit times, Delgado’s description corresponds closely with what is left of the fort. Delgado’s words: “Catbalogan possesses a large fort, capacious and quadrilateral, and at the corners facing the sea two bulwarks with mounted artillery. The church and residence of the Fathers of the Society are built in thye fortification. Two blockhouses were built at the landward corners of the fort. The fort is always well-provided with gunpowder, bullets and other weapons because of the present need. We are constantly under attack from all sides by Moro ships” (1754,239-40). But whether this is the same fort described by the Annual Letters of 1631–32 or a later fort cannot be ascertained.

The Franciscans were responsible for other architectural initiatives. They built the cemetery and its chapel dedicated to the Blessed Virgin, possibly the casa real of stone and wood near the church. The lower story of the casa is now the Philippine Constabulary barracks. Dates of construction are uncertain.

This is a town whose name has been changing, a recent municipal decision has restored the traditional name Paranas, after the town had been known as Wright. However, the townspeople still call it Paranas though in the early 20th century the town was renamed after the American governor general Wright.

In 1655, Paranas appears in Miguel Solana’s 1655 report on the Jesuit mission and in Colin, a year later, 1656. Solana reports that there were 4 priests, Melchor de los Reyes, Baltasar de Porticela, Ignacio Alcina, and Matiás de Montemayor working in the 6 villages of Samar, Paranas among them. Colin reports that each village had its own church.

In 1768, Franciscan Miguel Rico took charge of the parish. Huerta reports that “the church, under the advocacy of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul, is of stone and constructed by the Jesuits, but it was burnt later.” Huerta does not say when.

In 1835, The church was burnt, apparently a second time, but was rebuilt by Fray León de Tambleque. He also constructed a convento of wood.

Church—In Paranas there stands a church so near the sea that without the retaining wall recently built before it the church would have fallen into the sea as did the plaza and the town hall that had been built in front of it. How much of Paranas traces back to Jesuit times is unclear but certainly the church shows signs of poor construction possibly pointing to a period when the art of stone architecture had not yet been mastered by the Samareños. Large blocks of sandstone have been loosely mortared in place. The fabric may been covered by a layer of paletada aplanada or stucco.

Convento—An old convento, though greatly renovated, stands behind the church. But oral tradition states that this was not the convento from Spanish times, as this stood on a lot parallel to the present church.

Fort—A ruined fort stands on a hill beside the church. No dates are available for these structures.

In 1700s, Calbayog appears as a visita of Capul Island in the documents of this century. The Jesuits did not build a stone church in Calbayog., Ceded to the Franciscans with the rest of western Samar in 1768, Calbayog was attended to by Franciscans who resided in the neighboring towns. In 1785, it was raised to parish status almost two decades after the Jesuits had left but still it had no resident priest until 1788 when Calbayog had its first Franciscan pastor, Fray Benito del Carmen.

The oldest canonical books, as of 1884, was dated to 1808. An irony of history: Calbayog once a lowly visita is now the seat of a diocese. By decree of Saint Pope Pius X the island provinces of Samar and Leyted were erected as the Diocese of Calbayog, separated from Cebu on April 10, 1910, Then in 1914 the Franciscans ceded parish administration to the secular clergy.

In 1649, Calbiga was an annex or visita of Catbalogan; later in 1768, Calbiga was transferred to the jurisdiction of Umauas. All through Jesuit times, Calbiga remained a visita until 1772, when it had its first residential pastor, the Franciscan Fray Manuel Rico de Jesús. Calbiga was constituted as a separate unit under the advocacy of the Anunciation.

In 1803, Fray Juan Caballero de Brozas built a wooden church but in 1808, a typhoon destroyed this church and was rebuilt by the same Fray Brozas. By 1840, Brozas’s second church was in bad state.

In 1853, Fray Francisco Moreno de Montalbañejo had gathered enough material for a stone church. However, Redondo (1884, 217) that the church was wood roofed with thatch.

Formerly called Umauas, in the 1700s, it was part of the town of Calbiga. The Jesuits had built a church there, which is reported to have been burnt around 1714. On 12 March 1863, Umauas became an independent town after being separated from Calbiga and given the name Villareal. There years later it was established as a parish in accordance with the directive of 12 March 1863, and separated from Calbiga.

Although it is located in southern Samar, Basey (pronounced Ba-sigh), even today the town is more accessible from Tacloban, Leyte, where it can be reached by land through the San Juanico Bridge. Famous for its colorfully decorated mats, Basey is a tourist destination, usually part of a trip to Tacloban. Jesuits who founded Basey administered it through Leyte first placing it under Dagami and later the Palo Residence.

Before 1603, The Jesuits were already active in Basey although according to Putong the mission was formally established in 1650.

In 1663, The church was burnt and looted of its treasures on Corpus Christi Day during a slave raid. Redondo claims that Cristóbal Miralles had built that church. The church may have been of wood and could not be the stone ermita in Basey, which according to Murillo the townspeople used as a shelter during a furious storm around this time

In 1768, Basey was ceded to the Augustinians but three decades later, in 1795, it was ceded to the Franciscans. The Franciscans took a decade in assuming their post for lack of personnel, finally they arrived in 1804 and Fray Juan Navarro was appointed first parish priest.

In 1845, The church was repaired by Fray Domingo de Madrid who also built a bell tower, a convento of stone, and a cemetery with a small chapel within. The following year, bell tower was added to the church.

In 1880, The church was damaged by a storm and in 1894, Fray Vicente Gutiérrez replaced the church roof with zinc.

Heritage sites: Huerta claims that the fabric of Basey church comes from the Jesuits. But how much of it remained after de Madrid’s renovations is uncertain. The rounded transept ends and six freestanding pillars near the sanctuary suggest that de Madrid renovated this area rather extensively. Rounded transepts are not typical of 18th-century architecture but appear in the Franciscan church of Tayabas, renovated in 1843. The façade is also atypical as there is no clear division between first and second story. A marker dated 1856 probably indicates that the façade was totally renovated. The lines of that façade are unfortunately obscured by a recently built cement porte cochere.

Basey stands on the top of a hill, and remnants of a long rectangular fort surround it. When the fort was constructed is unknown.

The present-day town Zumarraga in Buad Island was called Buad in earlier days. Before 1768, The Jesuits had established a visita on the island of Buad southwest of Catbalogan. In 1845, The Franciscan Fray Martín de Yepes built a church of wood planks.

On 13 March 1863, Buad was created as a new town and given a new name, Zumarraga, then on 12 October 1865, Buad parish was created by separating it from Catbalogan in accordance with a decree of 13 March 1863.

Heritage sites: The Jesuits built a fort in Buad but apparently did not leave any stone church in Buad. Status of this fort needs to be confirmed.