Parish Church of Saint John the Baptist of Camalig | Simbahan ng Camalig MarkerParish Church of Saint John the Baptist of Camalig | Simbahan ng Camalig Marker is a Important Cultural Property, National Museum; Marked Structure, NHCP; Registered Property, Municipality of Camalig, Albay located at Camalig, Albay, Region V.
Marker Text:
Simbahan ng Camalig
Itinayo ng mga Fransiskano ang unang simbahan yari sa kahoy at nipa sa patronato ni San Juan Bautista, 1579–1580. Itinayo ng mga bilanggo ang pangalawang simbahan yari sa bato, 1605. Nasira nang pumutok ang Bulkang Mayon, 1766 at 1814. Muling ipinatayo nina Padre Francisco Latoba at Padre Manuel Brihuega, 1837. Ipinagawa ang harapan ng simbahan, kampanaryo at Escuela Catolica ni Padre Miguel Barcela, 1845. Pinamunuan ng mga Fransiskano sa mahigit na apat na dantaon, 1579–1983.
Date Unveiled: December 15, 2014
_____
The first mission church building made of wood and light materials built by the Franciscan Missionaries in Barangay Binanuahan was formally inaugurated in 1579. The church became the cabecera or mission outpost of the Franciscan Missions and the first infirmary in the Bicol Region. The stone church was believed to be constructed in 1599. The 1814 Mayon eruption prompted town officials to evacuate the church and town government to the mountains of Camalig, where they settled for a while. But in 1837, town officials returned to the old town devastated by the volcanic eruption. In 1842, the construction of a new massive church made of purely volcanic rocks began and the entire structure was completed in 1848.
Made of purely volcanic stones, this massive stone church is a monument of the numerous people who worked for its construction. Camalig can boast of having one of the most massive, strongest and most beautiful churches in the region. This church served as look out for the American troops during World War II in searching for enemies. Having withstood over the different periods of the country the Spanish, American and Japanese eras.
This church was constructed with a convent made of stone. There was an infirmary for the Spaniards and other people in the community, a boys school and a dungeon where vagabonds, troublemakers and sentenced criminals were kept. The church as it now stands exhibits a hybrid of Renaissance and Gothic design with a little touch of Romanesque.