Old Houses of Poblacion, Marikina City

Last year, as a practice for heritage mapping for the Philippine Heritage Map, we went to C. Cruz and J.P. Rizal Streets in Sta Elena (part of Poblacion), Marikina. It was a half-day mapping activity and our starting point is at the Cafe Kapitan (house of Kapitan Moy, a 200-year old structure) opposite the Our Lady of the Abandoned Parish Church.

I’ve been to Marikina numerous times but it was my first time at C. Cruz and J.P. Rizal Streets – and Marikina’s old houses can be found here. The most famous one is the Café Kapitan (a restaurant) which used to be the house of Kapitan Moy – the nickname of Don Laureano Guevarra (4 July 1851 – 30 December 1891). He is known as the founder of the Marikina shoe industry.

This is one is a great example of heritage preservation, restoration and re-purpose with adaptive reuse (from residential house to restaurant). I hope more of our existing heritage structures (50 years and older) can be restore, preserve or re-purpose.

The marker on Café Kapitan reads:

Unang Pagawaan ng Sapatos sa Marikina

Sa bahay na ito, na naging paaralan, ipinanganak si Laureano Guevara (Kapitan Moy), pangunahing manggagawa ng sapatos sa Marikina. Anak nina Jose Emiterio Guevara at Matea Mariquita Andres, nagsimulang gumawa ng sapatos nang mga huling araw ng taong 1887 sa tulong nina Tiburcio Eustaquio, Ambrosio Santa Ines, Gervasio Carlos, at iba pa. Nakatuklas sila ng mga wastong pamamaraan sa paggawa ng sapatos ang kanilang patuloy na pananagumpay sa gawaing ito ang nagbunsod sa kapulungang-bayan na magpatibay ng isang resolusyon noong Hulyo 2, 1988, upang gawing isang museo ang bahay na ito.

My rough translation:

First Shoe Factory in Marikina

On this house, which became a school, Laureano Guevara (Captain Moy) -- a chief shoemaker in Marikina -- was born. He was the son of Jose Emiterio Guevara and Matea Mariquita Andres, and with the help of Tiburcio Eustaquio, Ambrosio Santa Ines, Gervasio Carlos and others, started making shoes on the last days of 1887. They discovered correct ways of making shoes and their continued success prompted the Municipal Council to adopt a resolution on July 2, 1988 to make this house a museum.