San Juan River Bridge

The San Juan River Bridge (Filipino: Tulay ng Ilog San Juan), also known as San Juan del Monte Bridge, San Juan Bridge and the Old Santa Mesa Bridge, is a bridge that connects San Juan and Manila, spanning the San Juan River. The 40-meter (130 ft) bridge connects the N. Domingo Street in San Juan and Old Santa Mesa Street in Manila. The location of the bridge served as a battlefield during the 1896 Philippine Revolution against the Spaniards and the 1899 Philippine–American War.

San Juan River Bridge

Tulay ng Ilog San Juan
Bridge of San Juan del Monte, 1899
Coordinates14.601660°N 121.020302°E / 14.601660; 121.020302
Carries2 lanes of vehicular traffic; pedestrian sidewalks
CrossesSan Juan River
LocaleSan Juan and Manila
Other name(s)San Juan River Bridge
San Juan del Monte Bridge
Old Santa Mesa Bridge
Characteristics
Total length40 m (130 ft)
Load limit10 metric tons (9.8 long tons; 11 short tons)
No. of lanes2-lane single carriageway (1 per direction)
Location
Tulay ng San Juan NHI Marker
San Juan Bridge prior to the 2018 reconstruction

On, January 29, 1899, Colonel Luciano San Miguel, Filipino Commander had his first meeting with Colonel John M. Stotsenburg, Commander of the First Nebraska Volunteers on this bridge to discuss the boundaries of their respective forces. On February 4, 1899, an encounter between the Filipino and American forces led to a shooting incident and sparked the Battle of Manila.[1]

On February 5, 2009, the National Historical Commission of the Philippines installed a historical marker on San Juan River Bridge commemorating its role to the start of the Battle of Manila.

History

After Emilio Aguinaldo issued the Philippine Declaration of Independence on June 12, 1898, at Kawit, Cavite, there still was uneasy peace around Manila.[2] Filipinos revolutionaries felt that Spain simply ceded the Philippines to the United States who were determined to take over from where the Spaniards left off. American forces started to come between June and July 1898 where 8,000 were deployed around Manila and 11,000 more deployed along the Zapote Line.

On December 5, 1898, the First Nebraska Volunteer Infantry under Colonel John M. Stotsenburg, started to camp in Santa Mesa, Manila just near the San Juan River Bridge. Their camp was surrounded on three side by Philippine forces led by Colonel Luciano San Miguel. The Nebraskans were outnumbered so they had to build their defense consisting of a series of outposts. They had regular patrol around the area since they felt restless on their location.[3]

On the evening of February 4, 1899, Private William Walter Grayson, Private Orville Miller and another soldier were patrolling the area when they encountered insurgents. Grayson and Miller asked them to "Halt!" but the armed men continued to advance. This prompted Grayson to fire the first shots and retreated back to their line. This spread to the other parts of the line and sparked an exchange of shots between the Filipinos and the Americans.

The following day, February 5, 1899, General Elwell Stephen Otis deployed his troops to Santa Mesa and later on sparked the Battle of Manila [4]

The Battle of Manila started just two days before the US Senate ratified the Treaty of Paris on February 6, 1899. The war that lasted till 1902 resulted in the death of more than 4,200 Americans and over 20,000 Filipino nationalists.[5]

On September 15, 2018, the bridge was demolished to give way for the construction of Metro Manila Skyway Stage 3 Section 2B, which passes over San Juan River. The barges needed to lay the foundations of the pillar sections of Skyway required the bridge's demolition to gain access to the construction area.[6] The bridge was reconstructed and it reopened on March 11, 2020.[7]

References
  1. "City of San Juan". www.sanjuancity.gov.ph. Retrieved 2 June 2014.
  2. Churchill, Bernardita. "The Philippine-American War (1899-1902)". www.ncca.gov.ph.
  3. Silbey, David. "Command Posts: A focus on military history, policy and fiction". www.commandposts.com. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  4. Silbey, David. "FEBRUARY 4, 1899: THE START OF THE PHILIPPINE-AMERICAN WAR AND PATRON-CLIENT FIGHTING". www.commandposts.com. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  5. "The Philippine-American War, 1899–1902". history.state.gov. Retrieved 3 June 2014.
  6. "Expect to 'grrr' in 'Ber' months: 2 bridges closing". Inquirer.net. 7 September 2018.
  7. "New San Juan Bridge opened to the public". Rappler. 11 March 2020. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
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