Photo of the Balayan Public Market [July 1914, BPW Quarterly Bulletin]

This photograph is part of a series showing construction projects undertaken by the Bureau of Public Works during the American colonial era. All photographs have been digitally extracted from the Quarterly Bulletins of the bureau and processed using graphics editing software to improve quality. It goes without saying that the eventual output of each extract was always going to be dependent on the quality of the original scan.

Among the projects undertaken by the American colonial government through the Bureau of Public Works was the construction of modern municipal market buildings. The Bureau of Public Works report noted that “there have been remarkable increases in municipal revenues from this source and in every instance, the towns have taken on a more lively appearance.”

Among the modern markets constructed was the on in the western Batangas town of Balayan. In 1914, this market had a new building 21 by 43.5 meters wide. It boasted of a concrete floor and columns, which supported a wooden roof system and galvanized iron roof. The building cost ₱19,578.00, but its construction had an almost immediate effect in increasing monthly revenues by 248%.

Below is a photo of the Balayan Public Market in 1914:

¹ “Bureau of Public Works Quarterly Bulletin, Volume 2 No. 4,” compiiled by C.A. Tansill, published July 1914 in Manila by the Bureau of Public Works.