Santa Mesa

Santa Mesa
Country Philippines
Region National Capital Region
City Manila
Congressional District 5th District
Population (2015)[1]
 • Total 110,073
Time zone Philippine Standard Time (UTC+08:00)

Santa Mesa is a district in Manila, Philippines. It is surrounded by Pasig River on the southwestern side, and by the San Juan River on its southern and eastern side. Land borders include the districts of San Miguel to the west and Sampaloc to the north; and to the northeast is Quezon City.

Santa Mesa was formerly a part of the Sampaloc district, from which it was partitioned and separated after it had its own parish in 1911. The parish is now known as Old Sta. Mesa (Poblacion), a street which extends from Victorino Mapa Street to Magsaysay Boulevard.[2]

Etymology

The name given by the Jesuits was derived from the name Santa Mesa de la Misericordia meaning "Holy Table of Mercy", which came from the titular parish patron, the Sacred Heart of Jesus, known as the "Center of the table is the Sacred Heart which all Graces and Mercy flowed down." The Tuazon family which is the landowner of Santa Mesa during the Spanish colonial period offered an obra pía ("pious work"), and provided social services to the people. Another possible derivation is from the Spanish for "Holy Mass".

History

Wounded soldiers during the Philippine-American War.

The Town of Santa Mesa was situated in the alluvial deposits at the confluence of Pasig and San Juan Rivers. It was owned by a Jesuits religious order during the Spanish Era, and it is in this period that Santa Mesa got its name. Santa Mesa is better known for its role in the Philippine–American War, in which the area became a battlefield during the Philippine-American War. The conflict started when Pvt. William W. Grayson shot a Filipino soldier in San Juan Bridge between Santa Mesa and San Juan. (In late 2003, the National Historical Commission of the Philippines had determined that the conflict did not happen on San Juan Bridge, but at the juncture of Sociego and Silencio Streets.)

Up until the early American period, Sta. Mesa was just one of the barrios that comprised the Sampaloc area of Manila. In 1911, it became a separate religious community district, which divided Sampaloc into two parishes. The created parish is now known as the Old Santa Mesa, which extended from V. Mapa to Sta. Mesa Boulevard. The neighborhood was composed of wealthy Spanish and Filipino families who built summer houses which is Sociego Mansion former home of the Tuason Family and Carriedo Mansion home of the former Governor General is located attracted to Santa Mesa’s cooler climate and the picturesque streets that were lined with ylang-ylang trees. The abundance of these trees started a perfume industry — flowers were harvested, pressed and the oil were exported in great quantities to perfumeries in France.[2]

The small community became the location of the hospital to treat the wounded during World War II. The town experienced its growth after the war. Santa Mesa was the site of a 1950s suburban development because of its proximity to central Manila. The Santa Mesa Market was constructed around this period. It was a big shopping complex, and became popular for the selling of Post eXchange goods from U.S. bases in the Philippines.[2]

Sampaloc and Santa Mesa was absorbed by Manila in the 19th Century, along with other towns and settlements. When the Congressional Districts of Manila was created, Sta. Mesa was separated from Sampaloc, falling to the jurisdiction of District 6. The national census still considers Sta. Mesa as a part of Sampaloc.

Geography

Santa Mesa is located in the eastern section of the City of Manila. It is bounded to the west by Lacson Avenue separating it from San Miguel; by Ramon Magsaysay Boulevard to the north bordering it from Sampaloc. The northeast boundary of Santa Mesa is west of SM City Sta. Mesa shopping mall. Although the mall has "Santa Mesa" on its name, it is located in Quezon City very near the city limits of Manila.[3]

The southwestern side of Santa Mesa is along Pasig River while the southern and eastern sides are along San Juan River. Across San Juan River are the cities of San Juan to the east and a small portion of Mandaluyong City to the southeast. Across Pasig River, are the Manila areas of Santa Ana to the south and Pandacan to the southeast.

The topography of the area is relatively flat as some of the natural variations in elevations have been evened out due to urbanization.

Sites of interest

The main campus of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines, seen from the air.
Main sanctuary and altar of the Parish of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, Santa Mesa, Manila.

Barangays

Santa Mesa is made up of 51 Barangays. For statistical convenience for housing and population, the data for Santa Mesa is included in the data of Sampaloc.

Barangays of Santa Mesa
Barangay Population (2015)[1]
Barangay 587 1,699
Barangay 587-A 1,332
Barangay 588 1,359
Barangay 589 832
Barangay 590 3,368
Barangay 591 2,419
Barangay 592 2,132
Barangay 593 1,927
Barangay 594 1,099
Barangay 595 4,108
Barangay 596 2,106
Barangay 597 2,017
Barangay 598 12,130
Barangay 599 4,088
Barangay 600 5,021
Barangay 601 8,521
Barangay 602 2,434
Barangay 603 705
Barangay 604 1,785
Barangay 605 879
Barangay 606 482
Barangay 607 1,599
Barangay 608 737
Barangay 609 972
Barangay 610 1,190
Barangay 611 937
Barangay 612 648
Barangay 613 672
Barangay 614 568
Barangay 615 2,076
Barangay 616 1,014
Barangay 617 740
Barangay 618 865
Barangay 619 1,527
Barangay 620 753
Barangay 621 1,874
Barangay 622 1,264
Barangay 623 1,081
Barangay 624 1,144
Barangay 625 1,137
Barangay 626 1,404
Barangay 627 1,148
Barangay 628 11,922
Barangay 629 1,682
Barangay 630 2,138
Barangay 631 2,529
Barangay 632 1,426
Barangay 633 1,698
Barangay 634 1,707
Barangay 635 716
Barangay 636 2,562

References

  1. 1 2 "Highlights of the Philippine Population 2015 Census of Population". Philippine Statistics Authority. Retrieved July 11, 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 Alcazaren, Paulo (2012-06-13). "Sta. Mesa: Manila's northeastern edge" PhilStar.com. Retrieved on 2014-09-19.
  3. ↑ "Metro Manila Malls - SM City Sta. Mesa". SM Prime. Retrieved on 2014-11-23.

Coordinates: 14°36′N 121°01′E / 14.600°N 121.017°E / 14.600; 121.017

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