History of BARANGAY during American Regime

     During the American Regime, local governments were first set up by General Order No. 43, series of 1899 and later superseded by General Order No. 40, series of 1900. The foundations for an adequate local administration were laid in President William McKinley's Instructions of April 7, 1900 to the Second Philippines Commission, which was directed "to devote their attention in the first instance to the establishment of municipal governments in which natives of the Islands, both in the cities and rural communities, shall be afforded the opportunity to manage their own local affairs to the fullest extent of which they are capable, and subject to the least degree of supervision and control which a careful study of their capacities and observation of the working of native control show to be consistent with the maintenance of law, order, and loyalty".

     Pursuant to this directive, the Second Philippine commission took up the matter of establishing local governments and saw to it that the inhabitants of each barrio were properly represented. In its report to President McKinley, the commission stated: "In order that the interests of the inhabitants of each ward may be represented in the council, on the one hand, and that body may not become so numerous as to be unwiedly, on the other, it is provided that the councilors shall be few in number (18 to 8, according to the number of inhabitants) and shall be elected at large; that where the wards are more numerous than are the councilors, the wards shall be grouped into districts, with power to appoint a representative from among the inhabitants of every ward thus assigned to him, so that he may rapidly keep in touch with conditions in that portion of the township which is his duty to supervise and represent". This report was formalized and enacted into law on January 31, 1901 by virtue of Act. No. 82, otherwise known as the Municipal code. Soon after, on September 1, 1901, Governor General Howard Taft organized the Department of Interior to oversee the affairs of the local government units.