The Jesuits first came to this valley in 1630. In 1687 this pueblo became a parish and was then known
as Mariquina and later on Marikina with the coming of the Americans. The natives had lived
long the river and the fertile farms around it. With the industry of the natives and the know-how of
the early Chinese settlers (Sangleys), and the money provided by the Mestizos, the farms began to
produce rice and vegetables in great quantities until the valley became the country's most prized
hacienda.
Just like Pasig River whose fertile soil attracted the natives who converted the area into rich farmlands
prior the arrival of the Spaniards, the Marikina riverbanks had also long been settled by river-dwellers or
taga-ilog. They were the natives whom the Augustinian friars referred to when they explored he are as
along the Marikina riverbanks in 1570s and discovered a cluster of huts around a manantial (later called
Chorillo and today as Barangka). In its immediate vicinity, the priests built a visita which served as their
center for taking care of the spiritual needs of the settlers.
On April 16, 1630, Fray Pedro de Arce, apostolic ruler of the Archbishop of Manila, approved the transfer
of ecclesiastical control and supervision of Marikina area to the Jesuits. The Jesuits established a mission
in a place they called Jesus dela Peņa (Jesus of the Rocks) on the west bank of the river. They also invited
several Chinese traders and agriculturists to join hands with the natives in launching an hacienda. Two of
the first Chinese mestizo families who settled in the poblacion were surnamed "dela Paz" and "de los Santos."
The place was beautifully developed and, after a century, the entire hacienda was officially named by the
Jesuits in honor of San Isidro Labrador, the patron of the families.
The story of how the town got its name "Marikina" is largely based on legends. According to one source,
it was Trinidad H. Pardo de Tavera who said the town was named after Captain Berenguer de Marquina who
was once a chief executive of the town before Marikina was declared a pueblo in 1787.
Another legend has it that the town was named after a priest who was given the instruction to baptize
the natives following the establishment of the Jesuit mission. Another source said that the Jesuits named
the town after their hometown in Spain, a town along the Charmaga River called Mariquina.
Still another story tells of a rich, beautiful and kind woman, Maria Quina, whose fame had spread to a wide
area. Then there is the story of a worker telling a priest that the church that was being built at the center of
the town was "Marikit-na" (beautiful now.)
The name "mariquina" lasted for decades until Pardo de Tavera, early in the years under the
US- Philippines Commission, suggested that name be changed to its present name of Marikina.
Marianna's history cannot be complete without considering the Tuason clan. A daughter of one of the
influential families of Marikina named Doņa Teresa de la Paz y de los Santos was married to Don Jose Severo
Tuason, the fourth lord of the Hacienda de Mariquina considered to be the biggest private hacienda in the
country.
The Tuasons had emerged as the leading Chinese mestizo family not only in their original place. Binondo,
but in the entire colony. The patriarch of the clan, Don Antonio Tuason, made his fortune in the Galleon
Trade and was possibly the richest man in the Philippines by the second half of the 18th century. His family
ascended the Spanish nobility by a royal decree in 1782 and was exempted from paying tributes for two
generations in 1775 as a reward for his loyalty and boundless generosity. To express his gratitude to the
King of Spain, Carlos IV, Don Antonio founded a mayorazgo (noble estate) on Feb. 25, 1794, which was
approved in the King's decree of August 20, 1795.
The Mayorazgo Tuason appeared to be the only noble estate in the Philippines. The successors to the
mayorazgo was based on male primogeniture (first born or eldest son). This was not only a Spanish policy
but also a Chinese custom. In fact, Son-tua, the original surname of the Tuasons, means "eldest son." The
first holder of the mayorazgo was Don Vicente Dolores Tuason.
The Society of Jesus was expelled from the Philippines in 1768 and all its properties were seized by the
crown. Don Vicente acquired the Jesuits' Hacienda de San Isidro de Mariquina at a public auction in 1794.
He paid a total of 33,750 pesos for the said property.
Don Vicente's grandson, Jose Severo, first-born son of the third lord of Mariquina, Don Jose Maria
Tuason and Doņa Maria Josefa Patino y Tuason, married in defiance of familial expectations, Teresa
de la Paz. This lady who was called by Jose Severo as "Mariquit na Teresa" when she was being wooed
by him, and later on, "marqueza" when she took possession of the Hacienda Mariquina, as well as that
of Sta. Mesa (part of the huge property of the Tuasons) in October 1, 1878.
Marikina officially became a town in 1787. That same year, it elected its first gobernadorcillo, Don Benito
Mendoza. Thirty-four other men succeeded him in that post until 1821. Another long line of 75 town
executives called alcalde or capitan were elected until the outbreak of the revolution in 1896.
During the revolution, the local government system was disrupted. But after the proclamation of the
Philippine Independence on June 12, 1898 in Kawit, Cavite, President Emilio Aguinaldo attempted to
reorganized the local government.
Marikina and other towns comprising the Province of Morong and Manila has signed the act of
Independence. Aguinaldo proceeded to appoint provincial officials. Don Ambrosio Flores, appointed
governor of Manila province, chose Marikina as capital.
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