Victorias
City rose out of
a settlement known
as Malihaw at the
mouth of a river
of the same name
(taken from the abundance
of Malihaw trees
on the riverbanks).
Scarcity of records
preclude accurate
dating but the settlement
probably dates back
to the 1850s. Malihao
became a barrio of
Saravia (now E.B.
Magalona) before
1880 with a certain
Tomas as Teniente
del Barrio; then
it became a pueblo
(town) with Gregorio
Conlu as the first
Gobernadorcillo,
married to Faustina
Gosiaco (Capitana
Tutang). It is alleged
that Capitana Tutang
and her maid, Micay
were taken as hostages
by bandits who escaped
by banca and dumped
them in the river.
The Capitana had
to help her maid
swim to safety while
a mysterious and
beautiful lady appeared
out of nowhere to
guide them to shore.
Falling on her knees
upon reaching safety,
Capitana Tutang prayed
and vowed to buy
a statue of a lady
from Barcelona in
thanksgiving for
their salvation.
When it arrived,
she noticed the statue's
remarkable resemblance
to the lady who saved them and marvelled
at the coincidence.
The statue of the
Lady was placed beside
that of Saint Casimiro,
then Patron Saint
of the Pueblo. In
1880, two Moro vintas
raided Malihaw but
were repulsed at
the mouth of the
river by a sword-bearing
beautiful Lady and a huge
Man wielding a spear onboard
a banca. The sight proved
too much for the pirates
and they fled. Months
later, four boatloads
of pirates were again
driven away at the river
by the Lady and the Man.
The apparitions were attributed
to the Nuestra Señora
de las Victorias and Saint
Casimiro and as the stories
spread, Fr. Casimiro Hinolan
suggested to the Capitan
and the Council to push
for the renaming of Malihaw
to Nuestra Señora
de las Victorias. With
the groundswell of people's
support, the Governor
gave his consent but
retained only VICTORIAS
as the official name.
In
the early 1900s, Alejandro
Acuña Yap Quiña,
a Philanthropist of
Chinese ancestry, donated
20 hectares of his
landholdings to the
Municipality of Victorias
which eventually became
the present town site.
The official transfer
of the seat of government
from the old poblacion
(now called) Daan Banwa
(formerly Malihaw),
was made on October
31, 1907 whenthe municipal
building was blessed
and inaugurated.
Republic
Act 8488 Converted
the Municipality of
Victorias into a Component
City of Negros Occidental
and renamed it the
City of Victorias.
It was signed into
law by President Fidel
V. Ramos on February
11, 1998 at Malacañan
Palace, witnessed
by Hon. Mayor Severo
Acuña
Palanca, key officials
and
members of the Senate
and the House of Congress.
March 21 of the same
year saw the ratification
of R.A. 8488 with a resounding
YES vote (15,985). Every
year henceafter, the
City celebrates the Kadalag-an
Festival on March 21
while the City Fiesta,
Halaran Festival is celebrated
on April 26th, the Feast
Day of Nuestra Señora
de las Victorias. |
