Lemery, officially the Municipality of Lemery ( tgl, Bayan ng Lemery), is a 1st class
municipality
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality'' may also mean the ...
in the
province of
Batangas
Batangas, officially the Province of Batangas ( tl, Lalawigan ng Batangas ), is a province in the Philippines located in the Calabarzon region on Luzon. Its capital is the city of Batangas, and is bordered by the provinces of Cavite and L ...
,
Philippines
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 93,186 people.
Lemery is a growing urban center in western Batangas. The municipality was named after Captain Roberto Lemery, a commanding officer of the local garrison. He took command of the local military outpost until his death in 1856.
History
During the early part of the 18th century, adventurous settlers from
Taal, northern
Mindoro and southern
Cavite were attracted to the vast plain near the shores of
Balayan Bay because of its abundance in fish and other marine life. Salting and drying fish became their major occupation due to the great demand of salted and dried fish by the people of Cavite,
Mindoro,
Laguna and
Batangas
Batangas, officially the Province of Batangas ( tl, Lalawigan ng Batangas ), is a province in the Philippines located in the Calabarzon region on Luzon. Its capital is the city of Batangas, and is bordered by the provinces of Cavite and L ...
. People came in great numbers to join the settlers, and the village became populous. The place was first called ''Punta'', meaning "point". In 1818, the village of Punta was converted into one of the barrios of the Municipality of Taal. It was later renamed ''San Geronimo''.
In 1858, the barrio of San Geronimo became officially known as Lemery, after Captain Roberto Lemery, a commanding officer of the local military garrison. Captain Lemery was known for his deep ties with the community. Although he was tasked with instructing the military personnel assigned to the garrison, he went out of his way to immerse himself with the locals. He formed relationships with heads of the local church to learn the local language and cultivate harmony among the populace. When he died in 1856, the locals wished for the town to be renamed in honor of Captain Lemery.
In 1862, Lemery and its surrounding barrios were separated from the Municipality of Taal. It became a district municipality through the efforts of Candida Cesario Valenzuela, Manuel Cabrera, Policarpio Mariño and Domingo Agoncillo. Jose Cabrera became the First ''Gobernadorcillo'' of the newly created town.
The local military garrison was officially incorporated into the
''Guardia Civil'' upon the latter's creation in 1868. This newly formed organization was a
gendarmerie tasked with law enforcement in the Philippines. It operated under the
Spanish Army and Spanish colonial government and remained the ''de facto'' police force in the entire Philippines until its independence from Spain in 1898.
For economic considerations, Lemery was again annexed to Taal in 1904. Finally by virtue of ''Executive Order 1549'' of the Philippine Civil Commission, it became an independent municipality in 1907.
Geography
According to the
Philippine Statistics Authority
The Philippine Statistics Authority ( Filipino: ''Pangasiwaan ng Estadistika ng Pilipinas''), abbreviated as PSA, is the central statistical authority of the Philippine government that ''collects, compiles, analyzes and publishes statistical in ...
, the municipality has a land area of constituting of the total area of Batangas.
Lemery is from
Batangas City and from
Manila
Manila ( , ; fil, Maynila, ), officially the City of Manila ( fil, Lungsod ng Maynila, ), is the capital of the Philippines, and its second-most populous city. It is highly urbanized and, as of 2019, was the world's most densely populated ...
.
Barangays
Lemery is politically subdivided into 46
barangay
A barangay (; abbreviated as Brgy. or Bgy.), historically referred to as barrio (abbreviated as Bo.), is the smallest administrative division in the Philippines and is the native Filipino term for a village, district, or ward. In metropolita ...
s. In 1957, the sitio of Bagong Pook was separated from the barrio of Arumahan and constituted into an independent barrio, while sitio of Masalisi was separated from Payapa.
Climate
Demographics
In the 2020 census, Lemery had a population of 93,186. The population density was .
Most of the people in Lemery are
Tagalog
Tagalog may refer to:
Language
* Tagalog language, a language spoken in the Philippines
** Old Tagalog, an archaic form of the language
** Batangas Tagalog, a dialect of the language
* Tagalog script, the writing system historically used for Taga ...
s. In recent years, there has been a noticeable increase of
Visayans in some barrios or barangays. The main language spoken is
Tagalog
Tagalog may refer to:
Language
* Tagalog language, a language spoken in the Philippines
** Old Tagalog, an archaic form of the language
** Batangas Tagalog, a dialect of the language
* Tagalog script, the writing system historically used for Taga ...
, and a significant number now speaks
Cebuano. Most of the residents can also understand and speak
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ...
.
Economy
In the Rankings of Cities and Municipalities that are based on the sum of their scores on 3 Pillars: Economic Dynamism, Government Efficiency, and Infrastructure. In 2016, Lemery ranked 75th out of 479 municipalities, with total score of 28.252921.
Lemery is a first class municipality by income classification. The primary source of income is agricultural activities, including crop production, livestock and poultry, with 30 out of 46 barangays involved in it. As a coastal municipality with 13 barangays located along the shore, fishing activities are also significant contributor to the local economy.
The municipality also serves as a provincial urban center for its surrounding rural municipalities including
Taal,
San Nicolas,
Agoncillo and
San Luis. It hosts the largest public high school in the first legislative district of Batangas, a private college (Lemery Colleges), a campus of a public university (
Batangas State University
Batangas State University (BatState or BatStateU; Filipino: ''Pambansang Pamantasan ng Batangas'') is a state university in the province of Batangas, Philippines. Established as a manual training school in 1903, Batangas State University is the ...
)and the Batangas Provincial Hospital. Furthermore, bus lines from Manila serving the Southern Tagalog Region reach Central Batangas by way of Lemery. Vans also connect the town to and from other urban centers in the region such as
Dasmariñas,
Calamba and
Lucena.
In February 2014, Xentro Mall Lemery, a community mall, opened in the Diversion Road, further cementing Lemery's position as a growing commercial center. In December 2017, SM Center Lemery opened.
Transportation
Lemery is accessible by bus from Manila via the
South Luzon Expressway
The South Luzon Expressway (SLEX), signed as E2 of the Philippine expressway network and R-3 of the Metro Manila arterial road network, is a limited-access toll expressway that connects Metro Manila to the provinces in the Calabarzon region ...
(SLEX). The Lipa-Lemery Road connects the
STAR Tollway in Lipa to Lemery, passing a number of municipalities along the southern shores of Taal Lake. Lemery can also be reached from
Tagaytay via the Diokno Highway. Furthermore, there are vans connecting Manila to Lemery.
Government
Elected officials:
* Mayor: Ian Kenneth M. Alilio
* Vice Mayor: Geraldine C. Ornales
* Councilors:
* Maria Hanalee V. Bustos
* Hannah Beatriz C. Cabral
* Aris Kenneth C. Punzalan
* Christopher Jones M. Bello
* Rosendo R. Eguia
* Rodolfo De Castro
* Napoleon M. Piol
* Susan B. Vidal
Health
Some of the health institutions in Lemery include:
* Batangas Provincial Hospital
* Metro Lemery Medical Center
* Our Lady of Caysasay Medical Center
* Lemery Doctors Medical Center
* Little Angels Medical Hospital
Education
Schools in Lemery include:
Elementary schools
* Lemery Pilot Elementary School
* R. Venturanza Central School
* V. Ornales Memorial Elementary School
Private schools
* Christian Knights Academy
* Escuela De Shalom
* Glorious Faith Christian School
* Maranatha Shekinah Christian School
* Philadelphia Montessorian Academy
* Saint Mary's Educational Institute
* Swiss Montessori School
* Universal Scholastica Academe
National high schools
* Ananias Hernandez Memorial National High School
* Dionisio P. Vito National High School
* Gov. Feliciano Leviste Memorial National High School (formerly ''Batangas West High School'')
* Payapa National High School
* Lemery Senior High School - since 2016
Colleges
* Batangas State University-Lemery campus
* Lemery Colleges
References
External links
*
Philippine Standard Geographic Code
The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no),
* bik, Republika kan Filipinas
* ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas
* cbk, República de Filipinas
* hil, Republ ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lemery, Batangas
Municipalities of Batangas
1862 establishments in the Philippines