Lemery, officially the Municipality of Lemery (), is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

in the

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

Batangas Batangas, officially the Province of Batangas ( ), is a first class province of the Philippines located in the southwestern part of Luzon in the Calabarzon region. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 2,908,494 people, making ...

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

. 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, settlers from Taal, northern

Mindoro Mindoro is the seventh largest and eighth-most populous island in the Philippines. With a total land area of 10,571 km2 ( 4,082 sq.mi ), it has a population of 1,408,454, as of the 2020 census. It is located off the southwestern coast of ...

and southern

Cavite Cavite, officially the Province of Cavite (; Chavacano: ''Provincia de Cavite''), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province of the Philippines located in the Calabarzon region. On the southern shores of Manila Bay and southwest of Manila, i ...

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,

, Laguna and

. 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 Philippine Island - Luzon Island - NARA - 68156863

Philippine Island - Luzon Island - NARA - 68156863

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 A gendarmerie () is a paramilitary or military force with law enforcement duties among the civilian population. The term ''gendarme'' () is derived from the medieval French expression ', which translates to " men-at-arms" (). In France and so ...

tasked with law enforcement in the Philippines. It operated under the

Spanish Army The Spanish Army () is the terrestrial army of the Spanish Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is one of the oldest Standing army, active armies – dating back to the late 15th century. The Spanish Army has existed ...

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 1903, alongside San Luis. Finally, by virtue of Act No. 1549 of the

Philippine Commission The Philippine Commission was the name of two bodies, both appointed by the president of the United States, to assist with governing the Philippines. The First Philippine Commission, also known as the Schurman Commission, was appointed by Pre ...

, it became an independent municipality once again in October 25, 1906. Through ''Presidential Proclamation 685'', October 25, 2024 was declared a special non-working day to commemorate its founding anniversary as an independent municipality.

Geography

According to the

Philippine Statistics Authority The Philippine Statistics Authority (; PSA) is the central statistical authority of the Philippine government that collects, compiles, analyzes, and publishes statistical information on economic, social, demographic, political affairs, and gene ...

, the municipality has a land area of constituting of the total area of Batangas. Lemery is from Batangas City, from

Manila Manila, officially the City of Manila, is the Capital of the Philippines, capital and second-most populous city of the Philippines after Quezon City, with a population of 1,846,513 people in 2020. Located on the eastern shore of Manila Bay on ...

, and from Tagaytay.

Barangays

Lemery is politically subdivided into 46

barangay The barangay (; abbreviated as Brgy. or Bgy.), historically referred to as ''barrio'', is the smallest Administrative divisions of the Philippines, administrative division in the Philippines. Named after the Precolonial barangay, precolonial po ...

s, as shown in the matrix below. Each barangay consists of

purok A ''purok'' () is an informal division within a barangay in the Philippines. While not officially considered a local government unit (LGU), a ''purok'' often serves as a unit for delivering services and administration within a barangay. ''Pur ...

s and some have

sitios A ''sitio'' (Spanish language, Spanish for "site") in the Philippines is a territorial enclave that forms part of a barangay. Typically rural, a ''sitios location is usually far from the center of the barangay itself and could be its own bar ...

. 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 Tagalogs. In recent years, there has been a noticeable increase of

Visayans Visayans ( Cebuano: ''mga Bisayà'' ) are a Philippine ethnolinguistic family group or metaethnicity native to the Visayas, to the southernmost islands south of Luzon, and to a significant portion of Mindanao. They are composed of numerous d ...

in some barrios or barangays. The main language spoken is Tagalog, and a significant number now speaks Cebuano and Hiligaynon. Most of the residents can also understand and speak English.

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, The National Engineering University (; BatStateU The NEU) is a State university and college (Philippines), state university in the province of Batangas, Philippines. Established in 1903 as a training school, Batangas S ...

)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 Lucena (, American Spanish: , European Spanish: ), officially known as the City of Lucena (), is a highly urbanized city situated in the Calabarzon region (Region IV-A) of the Philippines. The city is the largest urban center and capital of ...

. 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 (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

Local 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 John 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

*Ayao - Iyao Elementary School * Payapa Elementary School * Payapa Ibaba Elementary School * Masalisi Elementary School * Niogan Elementary School * Mayasang Elementary School * Talaga Elementary School * Doña Matilde Memorial Elementary School * Lemery Pilot Elementary School * R. Venturanza Central School * V. Ornales Memorial Elementary School * Arumahan Elementary School * Marcos Catibug Memorial Elementary School * Dita Elementary School * Gulod Elementary School

Private schools

* R.Concepcion Montessori School-Lemery, Inc. * 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 * Payapa Senior High School - est. 2023 * Lemery Senior High School - since 2016

Colleges

* Batangas State University-Lemery campus * Lemery Colleges

Notable personalities

* Maloi Ricalde - member of

Pinoy pop Pinoy pop (also known as Philippine pop; an abbreviated form of "Pinoy popular music" or "Philippine popular music"; or P-Pop) refers to popular music in the Philippines originating from the Original Pilipino music, OPM genre. With its beginni ...

group Bini * Eric Camson - PBA player

References

External links

* Philippine Standard Geographic Code {{DEFAULTSORT:Lemery, Batangas Municipalities of Batangas 1862 establishments in the Philippines