The Featured Document Series presents records from the National Archives of the Philippines’ Spanish Documents Section, Section 1.  This collection of about 450 fonds totaling to about 9 million pages is made up of maps, plans, designs, sketches and more.  Items from this Section have been featured in past exhibits and publications produced by the NAP.

The eleventh feature of this series is from a File on the Proposal by the Mayor, Don Alonso Corrales to augment the number of tributes of four Towns in Abra in the Province of Ylocos by breaking up those Towns which have abundant number of tribute payers.

The file contains such documents as the Map of the Center of Abra in the Province of Ylocos, dated 1803; Letter of the Mayor, Don Alonso Corrales, dated, Vigan, on June 1, 1803; Communications in the vernacular, the first of which is dated February 12, 1774.  This first communication is the Testament of a Tinguian translated to Spanish by an Interpreter of the court.

Summary of the document: Letter of Don Alonso Corrales

Mayor Alonso Corrales in this proposal writes to his Very Illustrious Lordship that in the middle of January 1803, he traveled on horseback with Don Alonso Morgado from the center of Abra down to a river in a distance of an hour arriving in the two towns called Bangued and Tayum.  Very many ranches were owned by Tinguianes and Ygorrotes who pay the full amount of tributes and recognition, respectively.  Because of the beautiful and vast plains for sowing rice, they could pay two thousand tributes.  Looking out the window of the Town Hall, seven Towns can be seen: The Santa Catholica de Baba, San Visente, San Yldefonso, Santo Domingo, Bantay, Santa, and the Capital, Vigan.  These towns could pay a total of ten thousand tributes but cannot even give two thousand because there is not much land to till.  Due to this situation, the Mayor proposes that the seven Towns be formed into four which will be shown in the attached Map by a cross.

Map of the Center of Abra in the Province of Ylocos

Map # 223 D-I, Page 1067

45 X 66 CM

           Source:

          Erección de los Pueblos de Ylocos Norte Y Sur

          1807-1897

          ACAD, SDS 013996

          Exp. 24, Págs. 86-95.