Santa Rita, officially the Municipality of Santa Rita (; ), 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 ...

Samar Samar ( ) is the third-largest and seventh-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total population of 1,909,537 as of the 2020 census. It is located in the eastern Visayas, which are in the central Philippines. The island is divided in ...

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 42,384 people. Santa Rita is connected to

Tacloban Tacloban ( ; ), officially the City of Tacloban (; ), is a Cities of the Philippines#Legal classification, highly urbanized city on Leyte island in the Eastern Visayas region of the Philippines. According to the 2020 census, Tacloban has a popu ...

and

Leyte Island Leyte ( ) is an island in the Visayas group of islands in the Philippines. It is eighth-largest and sixth-most populous island in the Philippines, with a total population of 2,626,970 as of 2020 census. Since the accessibility of land has been ...

by the

San Juanico Bridge The San Juanico Bridge (; ) is part of the Pan-Philippine Highway and stretches from Samar to Leyte across the San Juanico Strait in the Philippines. It is located by the municipality of Santa Rita, Samar, and The City of Tacloban, Leyte. ...

History

The town guarding the northern entrance of the beautiful strait in the Region, the

San Juanico Strait San Juanico Strait () is a narrow strait in the Eastern Visayan region in the Philippines. It separates the islands of Samar and Leyte and connects Carigara Bay ( Samar Sea) with the San Pedro Bay (Leyte Gulf). It is about long. At its narrowest ...

, is the calm and serene town of Santa Rita, Samar. It is in this place where the longest single span bridge in Asia, the

also known as the “Bridge of Love” is located. Its length is and in width. The bridge traverses the picturesque water strip that connects the island of Samar and Leyte as vital link of the

Pan-Philippine Highway The Pan-Philippine Highway, also known as the Maharlika Highway (; ), is a network of roads, expressways, bridges, and ferry services that connect the islands of Luzon, Samar, Leyte, and Mindanao in the Philippines, serving as the country's p ...

. The town of Santa Rita straddles an area of with a population of 41,591 as of 2015 census. Bounded by the Province of Eastern Samar in the east; Talalora in the west; Villareal and Pinabacdao in the north; and Municipality of Basey in the south. The town is located along the seacoast. Verdant hills and mountains surround the hinterland that is somewhat two triangular in shape with irregular borderlines that face the seaway. The climate is favorable to agriculture, which is typical in the region. Local tradition dates the founding of this town in late 18th century. According to some aged inhabitants, the original settlers were the tribes of the Amistoso, Lacambra, and Agoy. Joaquin Amistoso rose to be their leader. The San Juanico Strait was supposed to have been named in his honor. These people made their living by fishing and small-scale farming. Captain Bartolome Sanchez, the head of a Spanish expedition in 1800, was captivated by the friendliness and hospitality of the people in the island so he decided to stay and help them. He called the neighboring tribes to unite with them and appointed Joaquin Amistoso to be the Cabeza de Barangay. In years between 1810 and 1898, several attempts of fleet of Moro vintas or “pancos” who tried to rob the puro's golden bell, which was given by the Spaniards. Aged inhabitants believed that this bell had a melodious sound, which echoed up to Mindanao. This attracted the Moros who kept on attempting to raid the place. The tribes who guarded the bell to keep it safe in the “puro” fought against the moros. The ruins of the fortress locally known as “barawalte” still stands today and are mute evidence of Moro raids in the past. Today, the question of the whereabouts of the bell is still on the minds of the people because it is nowhere to be found. The first site of the town was a small island between Samar and Leyte originally known as “Puro”. Later, it was called Tabucan because the natives from the mainland had to cross the strait before reaching the island community. Now, it is officially called Santa Rita. Originally, the patron saint of the town was

Saint Roch Roch (lived c. 1348 – 15/16 August 1376/79; traditionally c. 1295 – 16 August 1327), also called Rock in English, was a Majorcan Catholic confessor whose death is commemorated on 16 August and 9 September in Italy; he was especially invo ...

(''San Roque''). Later, it was changed to Santa

Rita of Cascia Rita of Cascia, OSA (born Margherita Ferri Lotti; 1381 – 22 May 1457), was an Italian widow and Augustinian nun. After Rita's husband died, she joined a small community of nuns, who later became Augustinians, where she was known both for pr ...

. Some aged residents said that a fisherman while promenading along the shore saw a woman walking by the sea at a distance. When he came nearer where he saw the woman, he found out that it was just a log. This phenomenon occurred three times. The fisherman became curios, so he turned the log and saw the face of a nun. He brought this statue to the priest at “Puro”. The priest identified the statue as Saint Rita of Cascia. From then on, the people of the place changed their patron saint from Saint Roque to Saint Rita of Cascia. As the days went on, the residents renamed the place from “Puro” or Tabucan to Santa Rita. From that time on, it was said that the saint performed many miracles to protect the people in the island most especially against the moro raids. Years passed and Santa Rita was rapidly populated. The inhabitants transferred across the mainland of Samar to a place called Lalawiton, the present site of the municipality. On January 2, 1864, the Spanish authorities officially recognized the municipality of Santa Rita. Before that time, Santa Rita belonged to the municipality of Basey. This is the statement of declaration of the Spaniards when they fully acknowledged the municipality, “La fundacion de este pueblo se debe á los RR. PP. agustinos, hallándose como vista del de Basey cuando recibimos de dichos RR. PP. su administracion el año de 1804. Por decreto del Superior Gobierno de 2 de Enero de 1864 fué separado de Basey, formando parroquia con la vista de Catongaan”. Santa Rita was separated from Basey because Santa Rita has established its own parish.

Geography

Barangays

Santa Rita is politically subdivided into 38

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. 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, sitio Dampigan was converted into a barrio. * Alegria * Anibongon * Aslum * Bagolibas * Binanalan * Cabacungan * Cabunga-an * Camayse * Cansadong * Caticugan * Dampigan * Guinbalot-an * Hinangudtan * Igang-igang * La Paz * Lupig * Magsaysay * Maligaya * New Manunca * Old Manunca * Pagsulhogon * Salvacion * San Eduardo * San Isidro * San Juan * San Pascual (Crossing) * San Pedro * San Roque * Santa Elena * Tagacay * Tominamos * Tulay * Union * Santan Pob. (Zone I) * Bougainvilla Pob. (Zone II) * Rosal Pob. (Zone III) * Gumamela Pob. (Zone IV) * Bokinggan Pob. (Zone V)

Climate

Demographics

Economy

Government

List of former chief executives

In 1908, the first local elections were held and Pedro Amistoso was elected municipal president. Succeeding him were: * Mamerto Ilagan (1910) * Alipio Regaret (1912) * Inocencio Hilvano (1916) * Florentino Nerviol (1928-1932), (1942-1946) * Margarito Caberic (1932-1940), (1946-1947) * Conrado Adolfo (1940-1941) * Isidro Zeta (1947) * Simplicio Lacaba (1947-1954) * Gaudencio Espino Sr. (1960-1968) * Pedro Hilvano (1954-1960), (1968-1982) * Densaldo Alvarez (1982-1986) * Silverio Macariola (1986-1998) * Leticia Macariola (1998-2000) * Beatriz Tiopes (2000-2007) * Lisandro Kim Adolfo (2007-2013) * Joven Tiu (2013–present)

References

External links

Santa Rita Profile at PhilAtlas.com
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Philippine Standard Geographic Code The Philippine Standard Geographic Code (PSGC) is a systematic classification and coding for geographic areas in the Philippines. It classifies areas based on the country's four levels of administrative divisions: regions, provinces, municipalities ...

Philippine Census Information

Local Governance Performance Management System
{{Authority control Municipalities of Samar (province)