Bocaue, Bulacan

Bocaue Bokawe
Municipality
Municipality of Bocaue
Bocaue Municipal Hall
Seal
Nickname(s): Fireworks Capital of the Philippines
Map of Bulacan with Bocaue highlighted
Bocaue Location within the Philippines
Coordinates: 14°48′N 120°56′E / 14.8°N 120.93°E / 14.8; 120.93Coordinates: 14°48′N 120°56′E / 14.8°N 120.93°E / 14.8; 120.93
Country	Philippines
Region	Central Luzon (Region III)
Province	Bulacan
District	2nd District
Founded	1582 (as a barrio of Meycauayan)
Chartered	April 11, 1606 (as an independent town) [1]
Founded by	Dayang Panginuan Fray Juan de Plasencia, OFM
Barangays	19 (see Barangays)
Government [2]
• Type	Sangguniang Bayan
• Mayor	Eleanor J. Villanueva-Tugna
• Vice Mayor	Aldrin B. Sta. Ana
• Electorate	58,181 voters (2016)
Area [3]
• Total	31.87 km2 (12.31 sq mi)
Elevation	9 m (30 ft)
Highest elevation	30 m (100 ft)
Population (2015 census)[4]
• Total	119,675
• Density	3,800/km2 (9,700/sq mi)
Demonym(s)	Bocaueño (male) Bocaueña (female)
Time zone	UTC+8 (PST)
ZIP code	3018
PSGC	031404000
IDD : area code	+63 (0)44
Climate type	Tropical monsoon climate
Income class	1st municipal income class
Poverty rate	4.2%
• Revenue (2017)	PHP 336.32 million [5]
• Expenses (2017)	PHP 300.85 million
• Total Assets (2017)	PHP 386.21 million
Electricity	Manila Electric Company
• Consumption	109.20 million kWh (2003)
Native languages	Tagalog
Website	www.bocaue.gov.ph

Bocaue, officially the Municipality of Bocaue, (Tagalog: Bayan ng Bocaue), is a 1st class municipality in the province of Bulacan, Philippines. According to the 2015 census, it has a population of 119,675 people.^[4]

With the continuous expansion of Metro Manila, the town is now part of the metropolis' built-up area, which reaches San Ildefonso municipality at Bulacan's northernmost part and continues on into Nueva Ecija province. The Bocaue River runs through most of the town.

Among its tourist attractions are a town museum located near the municipality's center and the town's river festival celebrated on the first Sunday of every July. The river festival is in commemoration of the Holy Cross of Wawa, believed to be miraculous by the town's predominating Roman Catholic populace.

Etymology

The town's name comes from the Old Tagalog word "Bokawe", which refers to a type of long bamboo (Schyzostachyum lima).

History

Bocaue was first established by Franciscan missionaries as a barrio and visita of Meycauayan in 1582 and as a town in April 11, 1606 under the advocacy of San Martin de Tours. It was the first town to be granted independence from the old Meycauayan, which was then a very large town comprising the present territories of Meycauayan City, Marilao, Santa Maria, San Jose del Monte City, Obando, and Valenzuela City.

After the Philippine–American War, the Philippine Commission was established, part of whose functions was the reorganization of Philippine municipalities and provinces. In 1903, Bulacan province was reduced from having 26 to 19 towns. The town of Balagtas was annexed to Bocaue, which regained its independence and was reestablished as a town in 1911.

During the Bocaue River Festival of July 2, 1993, around 500 people rode the "floating pagoda" for the Holy Cross of Wawa way beyond the boat's capacity and caused the boat to sink, killing more than two hundred people. Despite the lives lost, no one has been made accountable for the tragedy. This incident became known as the Bocaue Pagoda Tragedy.

Then, on the morning of 31 December 2007, ten fireworks stores burned in Barangay Turo, causing a series of explosions within the area and injuring 7 persons.

Geography

Bocaue is 27 kilometres (17 mi) north-east of Manila if reached via the Gen. Douglas MacArthur Highway and is 18 kilometres (11 mi) from Malolos City. It is at the mid-southwestern portion of Bulacan.

The town is bounded on the north by the municipality of Balagtas and a portion of the municipality of Santa Maria; by the municipalities of Marilao and Obando on the south; a larger portion of Santa Maria on the east; a portion of the municipality of Bulakan on the extreme southwestern side; and a portion of Balagtas on the western side.

Bocaue is traversed by the Bocaue River, a tributary of the Santa Maria River that is in turn a tributary of Angat River. The main source of Angat River and its tributaries is the Sierra Madre mountain range. Along these rivers are many man-made fish ponds used for raising and farming fish like bangus and tilapia.

Demographics

In the 2015 census, the population of Bocaue, Bulacan, was 119,675 people,^[4] with a density of 3,800 inhabitants per square kilometre or 9,800 inhabitants per square mile.

Economy

The Bocaue Public Market

Bocaue's town center is 27 kilometers north of Manila if reached via the North Luzon Expressway and the Bocaue Exit (in Barangay Turo). The town is the middle route for this highway that provides fast transport to Metro Manila from where it begins at Mabalacat, Pampanga.

The town's major industry is fireworks-making, which has earned it the tag "Fireworks Capital of the Philippines". Among the prominent firecracker stores located in Bocaue is Eat Bulaga Fireworks, owned by fireworks maker Rommel Eustaquio and named after the longest-running noontime variety program in the country.^[9]

Culture and Arts

Locally-made food products in a Bocaue store

Nationally-known Bocaueños in the arts include choreographer Francisca Reyes Aquino, TV actress Jewel Mische, contemporary painter Noli Principe Manalang, diskurso.com art magazine editor and painter-curator Jojo Soria de Veyra. Lauro Delgado, a former veteran character actor of Premiere Productions from the early 1950s to the late 1970s, is also a Bocaue native born in Barangay Bunducan.

Bocaue is also famous for its Bocaue liempo, crispy pata, sinuso (pork breast), chicharon (deep fried pork chips), rellenong bangus (stuffed milkfish) and various sorts of rice cakes, as well as embroidered barong Tagalog and Filipiniana outfits.

The Francisca Reyes Aquino Shrine, under the management of the Philippines' National Historical Institute, is a shrine erected in honor of Francisca Reyes Aquino. Aquino was a recipient of a National Artist Award for her significant contributions to the development of Philippine dance. The shrine was erected on the compound of Lolomboy Elementary School in Barangay Lolomboy.

Religion

The Saint Martin of Tours Parish Church 

The new church building complex at the Shrine of Saint Andrew Kim in Barangay Lolomboy 

The St. Martin of Tours Church of Bocaue, otherwise known as The Diocesan Shrine of Bocaue, is one of the oldest churches in the province of Bulacan. The reputed Mahal na Krus ng Wawa (Beloved Holy Cross of Wawa) is kept here.

The Feast of the Holy Cross of Wawa is a festival held on the first Sunday of July, observed in honor of the Holy Cross of Wawa (Mahal na Krus sa Wawa), a relic believed to have saved the life of an old woman drowning in the Bocaue River. The main feature of this fiesta is what is called The Pagoda, a gaily-decorated structure riding on a huge bangka, which glides along the town river carrying people from all walks of life who would enjoy the ride while religious music is played and while feasting on sumptuous food.

Other religious populations in the town include those belonging to the Iglesia ni Cristo, Jehovah's Witness, Methodist, Aglipayan, Adventist, Baptist, and Mormons Christian sects. There are also a number of Evangelical, Pentecostal, Members Church of God International and Charismatic churches, ministries, fellowships, and groups in the municipality. The practice of Islam could also be found in the municipality.

Sports and Recreation

The Philippine Stadium, also known as the New Era University Stadium, is a sports stadium located inside the Ciudad de Victoria, a 75-hectare tourism enterprise zone located in the towns of Bocaue and Santa Maria, Bulacan. With a capacity of up to 25,000, it became the biggest stadium in the Philippines upon its completion.

The Philippine Arena, an indoor multi-purpose arena and the centerpiece of Ciudad de Victoria, is located just adjacent to the Philippine Stadium. With a seating capacity of 55,000 it became the largest indoor arena in the world upon its completion in 2014.

Education

The Bocaue Extension building of the St. Paul University of Quezon City

Bocaue is also an education center for the Meycauayan, Marilao, Sta. Maria, and Balagtas municipalities area. The State-owned Bulacan Polytechnic College has a campus in Bocaue. Private Colleges and universities, such as St. Paul University-Bocaue Campus, Dr. Yanga's Colleges, and New Era University-Bocaue, can be found in the municipality. Several secondary schools, both public and private, can also be found in the Municipality.

Municipal Government

Bocaue Municipal Hall

Gallery

• 
  The Bocaue Toll Barrier of the NLEX.
• 
  A part of the Gen. Douglas MacArthur Highway cutting across Barangay Lolomboy, Bocaue.
• 
  View from the MacArthur Highway's Bocaue flyover.
• 
  The Meralco Duhat Substation at Duhat, Bocaue.
• 
  A passenger tricycle crosses the Bocaue River Bridge.
• 
  The now-unused Bocaue municipal water tower.
• 
  From the town's poblacion, Halili Road leads to Barangay Turo and the Bocaue exit to the NLEX.
• 
  Saint Peter of Alcantara Parish Church, Barangay Taal.
• 
  A view from the Bocaue flyover of the McDonald's restaurant in the town's poblacion.
• 
  The Philippine Arena
• 
  The Philippine Sports Stadium in Ciudad de Victoria, Bocaue.

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bocaue, Bulacan.

• Philippine Standard Geographic Code
• Philippine Census Information
• Bocaue Bulacan