Bridging the Gap
The coming of the Spaniards to Iloilo
One factor in Iloilo's development was the coming of the Spaniards. Iloilo's prominence continued under the Spanish rule because the latter realized the strategic and demographic importance of the province.
The first town founded by the Spaniards in Iloilo was Oton in 1570, where the seat of the government for the islands of Panay and Negros was established. The Augustinians, the first religious order that came to the archipelago, 'began their labors' also in Oton in 1572, or seven years after they had established their convent in Cebu in 1565.
Oton eventually became known as the place with the most flourishing shipyard in Iloilo. According to Antonio de Morga and Miguel de Loarca, early Spanish writers in the Philippines, it had a bar and port for galleys and ships, shipyards for building large ships and a great amount of timber for their construction. According to them, the natives were also 'masters of all kinds of shipbuilding'.
After the establishment of Oton, the Spaniards next declared the town of Arevalo as the capital of Panay and Negros. The transfer was brought about by the attacks of the Dutch and the Moros on Oton. In no time, Arevalo became the official residence of the alcalde mayor and of the overseer-general of Spanish garrisons in the Moluccas. It also became the residence of the encomenderos of Panay.
The nearby town of Molo, on the other hand, became the Chinese quarters, hence, its other name, 'Parian'. Some Chinese who married native girls made Molo their home. Mestizos, mostly of Filipino and Chinese origin, also lived in this town.
Jaro, on the other hand, prospered steadily in the course of time and became the home of many rich families. Its textile looms hummed busily and the produce of its wide fertile plains increased. By mid-19th century, Jaro was already the biggest town of the province of Iloilo.
As to Arevalo, it served as a Spanish naval station, a busy seaport, a textile emporium, a jumping off point for the Spanish expeditions against the Philippine Moros and the Dutch, and a supply base of Spanish garrisons in the Moluccas. However, from 1588 onward, it became the target of attacks by the British, Moros and the Dutch until finally, in 1614, it fell to the Dutch. The whole town was sacked and burned, including the Augustinian convent.
Arevalo was not rebuilt but the seat of the Spanish government shifted to another place. Writing in the decade following Arevalo's destruction, Juan de Medina noted that the center of political and economic activities has shifted a few kilometers east to the village of Iloilo.
The new town which later became the capital of the province, was 'Ilong-ilong' (noselike) then known only as 'Punta' (point) to the Spaniards, who later called it Iloilo. It was this town that eventually developed into a commercial and cultural center of the Visayas in the second half of the 19th century.
Originally built along the banks of the Iloilo River (Batiano River in some records), the town of Iloilo grew mainly on the southwestern bank, as swampy areas were filled in and reclaimed. However, large tracts of land were left unfilled to act as drainage and also utilized as fishponds and salt beds. For many years, malaria and other diseases plagued the town and during the rainy season swarms of mosquitoes and insects caused such discomfort, but in time these problems were solved. On the town's rich soil, countless varieties of trees and plants grew and many medicinal shrubs and plants were cultivated, providing the town with a cool atmosphere.