Tuba, Benguet

Tuba is a first classmunicipality in the province of Benguet, Philippines. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 42,874 people.

The town is known as the "Gateway to Baguio", as the three major highways that give access to the adjacent city of Baguio are largely traversed in the municipality.

History

Tuba was originally a barrio of the township of Baguio in the early 1900s under the American Occupation of the Philippines. It was separated from Baguio upon the latter's conversion into a chartered city on September 1, 1909, and became part of the township of Twin Peaks in Benguet.

Twin Peaks was abolished as a township on December 11, 1911 with the issuance of Executive Order No. 77 by American Governor General William Cameron Forbes, creating the township of Tuba.

On June 25, 1963, President Diosdado Macapagal issued Executive Order No. 42 and by operation of Section 2 of Republic Act No. 1515, the municipal District of Tuba was converted into a regular municipality.

Benguet

Benguet (Tagalog pronunciation: [beŋˈɡet]; Ibaloi: Probinsya ne Benguet; Ilocano: Probinsya ti Benguet; Filipino: Lalawigan ng Benguet; Pangasinan: Luyag na Benguet), is a landlocked province of the Philippines located in the southern tip of the Cordillera Administrative Region in the island of Luzon. Its capital is La Trinidad.

The highland province is known as the "Salad Bowl of the Philippines" because of its huge production of upland vegetables.

Located in the interior of Benguet is the highly urbanized city of Baguio, which is independent of the province.

History

The mountainous area now covered by Benguet has been settled for millennia by several peoples collectively known as the Igorots. Two of these groups, the Ibaloi and the Kankanaey, are dominant ethnolinguistic groups of the area. In the pre-conquest period, these tribes enjoyed flourishing trade with lowland groups immediately to their west and south, such as the Pangasinense.

Spanish period

At the beginning of the Spanish Era, colonisers heard of the rich gold mines in the mountains and attempted to colonize the highlands, but failed. In 1572, Juan de Salcedo led a small expedition into the southern part of Benguet, but the natives forced it to retreat. The first major expedition into the mountains occurred in 1620, when Spanish explorers went into the La Trinidad Valley and briefly controlled some Igorot gold mines, but abandoned them after a few years.