Mahabangbaybay, San Agustin, Romblon

Mahabangbaybay is an urban barangay in the municipality of San Agustin, island of Tablas, province of Romblon, Philippines. According to the 2000 census, it has a population of 1,744 people in 335 households. Its land area is 261.61 hectares. Mahabangbaybay is also popularly called Long Beach.

History of Barangay Mahabangbaybay

Historical Data:

Source of Information: The History of Carmen including Historical and Cultural Background of North-eastern Barangays of the Municipality of San Agustin, Romblon – Year 2006 – 2007. By: FRMP

The name of this barangay is Mahabangbaybay (officially), but its local residents prefer to call it Long Beach, its popular and 'un-official' name. The name could have been derived from an old story about a certain stranger who came to this place long time ago who was looking for a place to settle down. Legend has it, that upon reaching this place, he was amazed to see its natural beauty that he exclaimed to himself, 'Wow! this place is truly beautiful!' It was told that he liked the place so much that he vowed to return and to stay there for good.

When he went back home, he told his neighbors about the beautiful place he found. He was so infatuated by the new place he just discovered that sooner, he decided to move there-in. Before he left his old hometown, he gave instructions that whosoever would look for him and ask for his whereabouts, they should reply them that he had moved already and settled down to a new place facing the four islands of Romblon. These were the islands of Naguso (Cobrador), Ayad (Alad), Logbon and Romblon islands and it was adjacent to another small uninhabited island which he simply called "Puyo" meaning 'a small island' in his native dialect. Today this island is what we call Isla Biaringan. According to this stranger, the place was extremely beautiful, only it was uninhabited and has no name. He described the place to have a 'long stretch of coastline' or beach or "Mahaba ang Baybay" since he has no idea about the name of the place that he decided to call it "Mahabangbaybay". From that time on, whenever someone would ask for his whereabouts, his old friends would reply them that he moved to ‘Mahabangbaybay’.

Another theory for its name was derived from the local term for long finger corals that abounds the beaches of this barangay, hence "Mahaba ang Baybay", though the "baybay" referred to herewith is not really "baybay" but fragmented finger corals locally called "guso" in the native tongue. Most often, the first thing visitors call their attention is its scattered long white finger corals as long as cigarettes that abound its coastline. Perhaps it is the only place where one could find finger coral beaches of great concentration instead of the normal sand and pebble beaches most common elsewhere. For this reason, visitor’s often would exclaim "Wow, Long Beach!", hence it became Long Beach or perhaps as mentioned earlier that it was derived due to its long stretches of white coral beaches which extended from a point called Bailan to another point called Balinsasayao. It was also named Long Beach because in writing its official barangay name ‘Mahabangbaybay’, people find it to be a very long word so as to shorten and simplify it, the recent generation derived a popular name for this barangay by giving an English literal translation on its local name. Henceforth, people started using this name Long Beach sometime in early 1960’s as popularized by another place named Long Beach in California State, USA. Although the name was neither official nor enacted into a law, it became the popular name of this barangay even to date. Other writing forms or shorten name of this barrio were M.baybay and Ma.baybay respectively as noted in many of its official church and civil records found in the barangay, and often used even in the entire municipality. Previously during Spanish time, it was spelled as ‘Majabangbaybay’. The spelling was corrected in 1919 when it was restored back to its former independent status as a separate barrio of San Agustin taken from its mother barangay of Carmen.

This place was established barrio in early 19th century or during Spanish period but documents available on-hand was beginning only in year 1882 when it was recorded that Sr. Tomas Mindoro was its first barangay executive with the title of "Cabeza de" "Barangay" belonging to pueblo de Romblon. Earlier this barangay according to available rare documents and records was part of pueblo de Guinpuc-an (Carmen), a barrio Poblado some 7 kilometers south of this barangay and together with barrio Sogod (present day Sugod) and visita de Cabolutan became part of pueblo de Guinpuc-an (Carmen) when it was organized into a pueblo or parish in February 21, 1861, taken from pueblo de Guintiguian (renamed Badajoz in August 28, 1868, and into San Agustin its present name in June 20, 1957). When Romblon was organized into a regular province from its previous 'Distrito' status in January 11, 1868, Romblon’s Commandante de Infanteria y Governador then, Don Joaquin Corillo reorganized the province’s local government. As a consequence of these reorganizations, Guinpuc-an was one among those abolished pueblos or municipios. Thus, pueblo de Guinpuc-an was annexed back into pueblo de Guintiguian in 1868 together with visita de Cabolutan. However, Guinpuc-an’s northern barrios or barangays of Sogod and Majabangbaybay did not join Guintiguian but instead were annexed to pueblo de Romblon, the province’s provincial capital or Cabezera as attested by census records of 1894 and 1896 and also from church and civil records of pueblo de Romblon until the end of Spanish regime in year 1898 and further into 1901 which marks the start of American administration when these two barrios were finally returned back into the municipality of Badajoz, no longer as independent barrios but as mere sitios attached to its former mother barrio Carmen formerly Guinpuc-an (renamed Carmen in July 16, 1906). Majabangbaybay's abolition as independent barrio in 1901 was a mystery that perhaps nobody can give a credible answer by now. It was not explained on records why?

Barrio Majabangbaybay was reorganized and restored back into a separate barrio in 1919 with a corrected spelling as 'Mahabangbaybay' while Sogod regained back its barrio status in 1924 as barrio Sugod, both taken from its mother barrio of Carmen.

Originally, the former territory of barrio Mahabangbaybay included the whole northern extent of Tablas Island's frontier, but in 1952, its northern sitio of Cawayan separted from it to became a regular barrio of the municipality of San Agustin. For this reason, Cawayan’s history is also included to this barrio prior to its creation. Cawayan’s first Teniente del Barrio was Mr. Margarito Bastillador on acting capacity, since he was also the Teniente del Barrio of Mahabangbaybay in that year of 1952 and continued to served both on acting capacity as barrio-head cum Teniente del Barrio until 1954 when Mr. Dionesio Mores became Cawayan’s first elected Teniente del Barrio.

The names of the original families of this barrio were: Juan Morante, Vicente Motin, Teodoro Miñon, Geronimo Mores and Gabriel Catajay.

Churches Located in Barangay Mahabangbaybay

Source: Parish of Mount Carmel Records, Carmen, San Agustin, Romblon

Santo Niño (Holy Infant Jesus) Chapel - Mahabangbaybay Roman Catholic Chapel
* Feast Days – December 28th
* Barangay Apostolic Council Chairman - Bro. Raymundo L. MoresSaint Roch (San Roque) Chapel - Sitio Baha Roman Catholic Chapel
* Feast Day – August 3rd Saturday
* Barangay Apostolic Council Chairman - Sis. Zenaida Miñon

Getsemane Foursquare Gospel Church
* Pastor - Ptr. Froilan Formelos

Higher Ground Baptist Church
* Pastor - Ptra. Rose Motin

Seventh-day Adventist church
* Pastor – Ptr. Fernando Narciso

Jehova’s Witness Church
* Minister – Min. Rudy Rala

Iglesia ni Cristo Church
* Minister – Min. Robert Fortus

itios of Mahabangbaybay

Data from Year 2000 Census

List of Teniente del Barrio/Barangay Captains from earliest to the present:

Majabangbaybay Cabeza de Barangay(Barrio Majabangbaybay part of Romblon, Romblon)

# Tomas Mindoro # Santiago Miñon # Juan Macato # Juan Maneha # Sergio Montesa # Nemisio Molino # Felix Majaque # Juan Morante

* 1882 – 1886 * 1886 – 1890 * 1890 – 1891 * 1891 – 1893 * 1893 – 1895 * 1895 – 1896 * 1896 – 1898 * 1898 – 1901

Note: Majabangbaybay was annexed as sitio to Guinpuc-an (Carmen) from 1901-1919

Mahabangbaybay Teniente del Barrio

# Pedro Motin # Gabriel Catajay # Placedo Morgado # Geronimo Mores # Martin Mores # Teodoro Miñon # Blas Motin

* 1919 – 1922 * 1922 – 1925 * 1925 – 1928 * 1928 – 1931 * 1931 – 1933 * 1933 – 1937 * 1937 – 1940

Teniente del Barrio (During the War)

# Blas Motin

* 1940 – 1945

Teniente del Barrio (After the War)

# Macario Mallorca # Victor Fernandez # Margarito Bastillador # Cresencio Mores # Privaldo Lachica # Cresencio Mores # Victor Fernandez

* 1946 – 1948 * 1948 – 1950 * 1950 – 1954 * 1954 – 1958 * 1958 – 1960 * 1960 – 1964 * 1964 - 1965

Mahabangbaybay Capitan del Barrio

# Victor Fernandez

* 1965 – 1982

Mahabangbaybay Brgy. Captain (Punong Brgy.)

# Victor Fernandez # Danilo Maestro # Wilma Motin # Carlos P. Catajay # Wilma Motin

* 1982 – 1989 * 1989 – 1994 * 1994 - 1998 * 1998 – 2007 * 2007 – Present

Note: Barrio/Barangay executives from 1882 to 1945 are still under research to ascertain accurately inclusive date of their tenure as barrio/barangay leaders of Mahabangbaybay. Source: Bautismos, Defunctiones and Matremonios Church records, Parish of San Agustin, Romblon from the Family Heritage Library (Microfilm files), Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Quezon City.

Unknown Soldiers from Mahabangbabay Recruits

Source of Information: Surviving World War II Guerillas and veterans led by
* Pvt. Anselmo Miñon – Civilian Inductee, assigned in “Mango” Area. He survived the war in Mindoro and later retired in Long Beach where he decided to raise his family.
* Pvt. Teodulo Miñon - Civilian Inductee, assigned in “Mango” Area. He survived the war in Mindoro and later retired in Carmen where he decided to raise his family.
* Pvt. Benjamin Miñon, “F” Company, 65th Infantry Regiment, 61st Division, USAFFE assigned at Romblon – Marinduque area. He was able to survive the war and returned safely to his family in Long Beach.
* Pvt. Eliseo Mutia, “F” Company, 65th Infantry Regiment, 61st Division, USAFFE assigned in Panay Island. He was able to survive the war and returned safely to his family in sitio Baha, Long Beach.
* Pvt. Constancio Fajiculay, “F” Company, 65th Infantry Regiment, 61st Division, USAFFE assigned in Panay Island. He was able to survive the war and returned safely to his family in Long Beach.
* Pvt. Salvador Prieto, “F” Company, 65th Infantry Regiment, 61st Division, USAFFE. He became a Prisoner of War (POW’s) and joined the infamous Death March from Bataan to Capas, Tarlac. He survived the war to tell his ordeal. He was lucky enough to return to his family in Long Beach.
* Pvt. Alejandro Fetalco - “F” Company, 65th Infantry Regiment, 61st Division, USAFFE. He too like Salvador Prieto became Prisoner of War (POW’s) and joined the infamous Death March from Bataan to Capas, Tarlac. He survived the war and Lucky enough to return back to his family in Long Beach.

Related Barangays

* Poblacion, San Agustin, Romblon
* Carmen, San Agustin, Romblon
* Cabolutan, San Agustin, Romblon
* Cawayan, San Agustin, Romblon
* Mahabangbaybay, San Agustin, Romblon
* Sugod, San Agustin, Romblon