Friday, August 31, 2007
CARRIEDO PEDESTRIAN MALL
Although not officially named as such, the street of Carriedo is now being enjoyed by Manilenyos as a pedestrianized shopping mall of sort ever since Mayor Lim evicted the street vendors and revoked their agreement with the former mayor Lito Atienza, which allowed them to build stalls right in the middle of the street.
Mayor Lim may have reopened the pedestrianized Rizal Avenue to vehicular traffic -- much to my disappointment at that time -- but he had since began cleaning up heavily-traversed downtown city streets clogged by street vendor stalls. Villabos Street by Plaza Miranda in Quiapo is another in which such stalls were recently demolished. It is now being enjoyed by pedestrians as well. Indeed, it seems that walking and driving in and around downtown Manila is becoming comfortable and pleasurable.
Incidentally, despite my having previously blogged about it (General Carriedo and Fr. Huerta), for the sake of new readers, I'd like to once again highlight the man behind the name of the popular street (where the original ShoeMart Store once stood) and the water fountain that adorns Plaza de Sta. Cruz.
He was General Francisco Carriedo y Peredo — the Spaniard who bequeathed P10,000 in 1743 as an initial endowment for the creation of the first water system in Manila to provide free water for the poor in perpetuity. Entrusted to the Obras Pias, this sum of money was to accumulate in the Galleon Trade until it should grow by way of profits and interest into a sufficient fund to build a water system.
Unfortunately, in 1762, an iron chest with P250,000 and labeled Fondo de Carriedo was among the spoils carted off by the invading British forces when it looted the city. Consequently, buried under tons of governmental archival documents, General Carriedo’s will was forgotten until a Franciscan friar, Fr. Felix Huerta began the search, found the documents and calculated that by 1878, the sum had grown to P177,853.44.
Fr. Huerta then spearheaded the efforts in actualizing the wish of General Carriedo, and within four years the water system was completed at a total cost of P742,509. With 153 hydrants, the system was inaugurated on August 23, 1882.
The Carriedo Water Fountain (photo below) was built in May 1882 as part of the Carriedo Waterworks System headed by the Governor-General Domingo Moriones in 1878. It was named in honor of General Francisco Carriedo y Peredo by Governor-General Primo de Rivera on July 24, 1882.
Originally installed in Sampaloc, it was moved in 1976 by the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System to Balara, Quezon City to commemorate its hundredth year of existence. It was later moved again to its present location in front of the Santa Cruz Church in Plaza de Santa Cruz, Manila.
posted by Señor Enrique at 9:36 AM
31 Comments:
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said... I like the fountain's architecture, really nice.
;)-
carlotta1924 said... mas maluwag ngang tignan ngayon ang carriedo. i'm not exactly sure if it's the same on a regular day though, coz the last time i went there was on a holiday. =)
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NOYPETES said...
My best memories of Carriedo when I was a kid are the shoe stores and the aroma of leather and rubber when a shoe box is opened for the ritual of fitting a new pair on the watchfull eyes of my dad making sure I get a pair that is at least a size bigger..."para umabot ng isang taon!"...The fountain looks exactly like the one on the Sampaloc / Santa Mesa RoTunda right infront of the Del Rosario Brothers dept. store in Aurora Blvd...The rotunda will also direct you to the old and squeaky Nagtahan Bridge.
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ladybug said...
Thank you eric! Very informative post. This structure has such a rich history pala. Now, when I pass by this fountain, I'll know the history behind it. ;-D
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Urbano dela Cruz said...
I like the top photo, myself. Very William H. Whyte.
"The street is the river of life of the city, the place where we come together, the pathway to the center.”-
Señor Enrique said...
It is indeed a very nice fountain, Kyels. Too bad, no name was mentioned in regards to its designer.
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Señor Enrique said...
Yes, Noypetes, this is the very same water fountain that was installed in Sampaloc Rotunda, which I don't know where it is exactly, though I'm quite familiar with Nagtahan Bridge.
Again, impressive description of the sight an smell of childhood memories :)-
Señor Enrique said...
Ah, you're welcome, Ladybug! With most of the streets in Downtown Manila now open, it is quite easy to drive by Santa Cruz Plaza and gat a glimpse of this beautiful old fountain.
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Señor Enrique said...
I just checked out the market images of William H. Whyte, Urbano -- very interesting! Thanks for sharing :)
I like that quote, by the way. Very true, especially here in Manila.-
fionski said...
Carriedo looks strange without the stalls in the middle of the street. Lumuwag sya! Hehehe.
I enjoy going to that side of Manila even if it's dirty and magulo. I buy my mom's perfume there: Polar bear, essential embrocation. :D-
said...
Carriedo for some reason reminds me of shoes :) It is a short but incredibly busy corridor between between the Quiapo church and Avenida. With the vendors now allowed to set up their stalls it becomes even more colorful :) I hope the city controls the kind of things vendors are allowed in the streets.
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pusa said...
wow such history! thanks for sharing it with us. btw, i love fountains and i doubly love this fountain because its sooo old, i love anything old )
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Sidney said...
I agree with you Eric. I was in Quiapo last Friday to take some additional pictures for my next series and I was happily surprised.
Maybe Mr. Lim knows what he is doing!
Not bad at all.
I also notice a lot of city hall personal monitoring the different streets and enforcing the new rules.
I guess street vendors are here to stay. All those people are not able to pay rent.
Everywhere there was "more space" for the pedestrians.
I hope Mayor Lim will keep surprising me with good initiatives.-
Señor Enrique said...
Hi Carla! This picture was taken on a weekday so it gives you an idea how much foot traffic Carriedo generates. I'd say that without the vendor stall in the middle of the street, walking and shopping in the area becomes more tolerable and plesurable :)
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Señor Enrique said...
Despite how some people may conceive of Quiapo, Fionski, it still has a certain character that charms people into visiting it. Perhaps, for the most part, the Quiapo Church is the main draw, but I'd like to think that Quiapo also offers the same interesting bargains as Divisoria does.
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Señor Enrique said...
Cariedo used to be the place to go for shoes, BW. SM's very first store was located here after all :)
Yes, hopefully, the new mayor has a better grip in controlling the number of street vendors allowed to occupy our already cluttered sidewalks and streets.-
Señor Enrique said...
My pleasure, Pusa. That is really a beautiful and photogenic water fountain though without the jazzy evening lights.
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Señor Enrique said...
Yes, Sidney! I am also pleasantly surprised at what I've been seeing in the city that we love. Mayor Lim may after all have wonderful ideas in store for all Manilenyos :)
I heard that he also has plans to reinvigorate the Baywalk with a much better organized and presentable group of establishments. I can't wait to see that.-
dodong flores 도동 플로오리스 said...
Hi, Eric.
That sure looks different as seen from the present photo.
I also had a photo of this place taken some two years back.
I might as well visit this place again to see for myself which one is better - then or now...-
Señor Enrique said...
I bet you'll like the current version, Dodong :)
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-= dave =- said...
The design of the fountain is truly a reminder of a proud past. Naga City has similarly-designed monuments, but it's only recently that I realize their beauty.
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mitch said...
hi nice pics, i actually lived in binondo before i came here in france. i got ur blog from ate amy
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Señor Enrique said...
This is really a nice piece of design, Dave. Lucky are those folks in Naga to have some in their midst. Perhaps, someone ought to take pics of them' sort of documentation project.
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Señor Enrique said...
Hi Mitch!
How I'd love to someday get an airy live/work loft somewhere in Binondo. Escolta has some grand buildings that they should convert into such.-
said...
In fact, Ivan actually took a photo of the monument for the Fifteen Martyrs of Bicol here. That was the entry that made me realize its beauty. Come to think of it, when I was a child, I just ran around that monument and took a passing interest to its fancy figures.
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said...
Have you tried ,in my opinion,the best siopao in Manila?It's in Carriedo.Amis restaurant!It's been there for what?40 years?Sarap!!!
IndioBravo-
Señor Enrique said...
That is really some monument, Dave. Simply beautiful! I would say even better looking than the Carriedo fountain :)
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Señor Enrique said...
Amis Restaurant? Now you got me hoping for this eatery to be still open so I could try their siopao :)
Thanks, IndioBravo!-
Aura said...
Wow, what a big diference from my last years shopping experience in Carriedo!!
I´ve never apreciated our downtown Manila as i see it now in your post,I guess we pinoys always look beyond what is not ours & no time to apreciate what we have in our own backyard.To apreciate more our own downtown Manila! ( at least,I speak for myself)
Thanks for the photos & information about Phil. history.
Absent or tinulugan ko siguro ang subject na yan.-
Señor Enrique said...
Hi Aura,
Actually, most of the historical features here are those I've forgotten about or had not been taught while I was in school here in Manila. So basically, I'm sharing through my entries, things that I am re-learning or just learning for the first time :)
The appreciative tone of my perspective may be attributed to the beautiful Manila that I had experienced as a kid while growing up here. And perhaps, I couldn't help but reflect that beauty of an era past that is deeply etched in my heart.
I know that it would be impossible to regain that old glory or beauty, but if we speak of it enough, perhaps, we could influence those in power to never allow Manila to fall into complete decay.
Thanks, Aura!-
said...
source? :)
