# Santa Mesa

Santa Mesa is a district in Manila, Philippines. It is surrounded by the Pasig River on the southwestern side, and by the San Juan River on its southern and eastern side. Land borders include the districts of San Miguel to the west and Sampaloc to the north; and to the northeast is Quezon City.
Santa Mesa was formerly a part of the Sampaloc district, from which it was partitioned and separated after it had its own parish in 1911. The parish is now known as Old Sta. Mesa (Poblacion), which extends from Victorino Mapa Street (Calle Santa Mesa) to Magsaysay Boulevard (Santa Mesa Boulevard).

## Etymology

The district's name comes from the Jesuits, who christened the area Hermandad de Santa Mesa de la Misericordia (Spanish for "Brotherhood of the Holy Table of Mercy"). The local parish church had for its titular Sacred Heart of Jesus, which formed part of the phrase the "Center of the Table is the Sacred Heart which all Graces and Mercy flowed down." The Tuason family are the landlords of Santa Mesa during the Spanish colonial period offered an obra pía ("pious work"), and provided social services to the people Doña Albina Tuason also donated the Land where the Church is located even right at this modern days.
A more popular folk etymology is that the name is a corruption of the Spanish term Santa Misa ("Holy Mass").

## History

Santa Mesa was situated in the alluvial deposits at the confluence of Pasig and San Juan Rivers. It was owned by a Jesuits religious order during the Spanish era, and it is in this period that Santa Mesa got its name. Santa Mesa is better known for its role in the Philippine–American War, in which the area became a battlefield during the Philippine–American War. The conflict started when Pvt. William W. Grayson shot a Filipino soldier in San Juan Bridge between Santa Mesa and San Juan. In late 2003, the National Historical Commission of the Philippines had determined that the conflict did not happen on San Juan Bridge, but at the juncture of Sociego and Silencio Streets.
Up until the early American period, Santa Mesa was one of the barrios that comprised Sampaloc, which was a town of the defunct province of Manila before it was absorbed by the city of Manila upon its chartering in 1901. In 1911, Santa Mesa became a separate religious district out of Sampaloc when the first and oldest parish in the Philippines in honor of its titular patron, the Sacred Heart of Jesus, was established. The created parish is now known as the Old Santa Mesa, which extended from V. Mapa to Santa Mesa Boulevard. The neighborhood was composed of wealthy and aristocratic Spanish and Filipino families who built summer houses, examples of which are the Sociego Mansion, formerly home of the Tuason family, and the Carriedo Mansion (currently known as the Antique House in Pureza), formerly home of Governor General Francisco Carriedo y Peredo who spearheaded the clean water system of the City of Manila. Affluent families where attracted to Santa Mesa's cooler climate and the picturesque streets that were lined with ylang-ylang trees along Santa Mesa Boulevard. The abundance of these trees started a perfume industry in Santa Mesa—flowers were harvested, pressed and the oil were exported in great quantities to perfumeries in France. However, for political purposes, Santa Mesa remained part of Sampaloc.
The small community became the location of the hospital to treat the wounded during World War II. The town experienced its growth after the war. Santa Mesa was the site of a 1950s suburban development because of its proximity to central Manila. The Santa Mesa Market was constructed around this period. It was a big shopping complex, and became popular for the selling of Post eXchange or PX Goods from U.S. bases in the Philippines, which is why it was called Stop & Shop.
When the congressional districts of Manila were created, Santa Mesa was effectively separated from Sampaloc, falling to the jurisdiction of the 6th District. The national census still considers Santa Mesa as a part of Sampaloc for statistical purposes.

## Geography

Santa Mesa is located in the eastern section of the City of Manila. It is bounded to the west by Lacson Avenue separating it from San Miguel; by Ramon Magsaysay Boulevard to the north bordering it from Sampaloc. The northeast boundary of Santa Mesa is west of SM City Sta. MesaShopping Mall originally the Santa Mesa Map goes all the way upto the Santa Mesa Heights and Barrio Matatalaib which is now known as Barangay Santo Domingo. Although the mall has "Santa Mesa" on its name, it is located in Quezon City very near the city limits of Manila.
The southwestern side of Santa Mesa is along the Pasig River while the southern and eastern sides are along the San Juan River. Across the San Juan River are the cities of San Juan to the east and a small portion of Mandaluyong to the southeast. Across the Pasig River, are the Manila areas of Santa Ana to the south and Pandacan to the southeast.
The topography of the area is relatively flat as some of the natural variations in elevations have been evened out due to urbanization.

## Sites of interest

* Bacood
* Banda Kawayan Pilipinas (Bamboo Band Philippines)
* United Church of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP - Bacood)
* Philippine Independent Church Bacood (Good Shepherd Parish)
* Mabini Shrine (Manila), former home of Apolinario Mabini, Philippines Revolution hero, located inside PUP.
* Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital
* Polytechnic University of the Philippines
* Recurso de Madriaga Pescado
* Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic School
* Carriedo Mansion ( former home of the Governor General Don Francisco Carriedo y' Peredo who made the water system project of Manila)

### Churches

Churches of Santa Mesa :
| Name | Location / GPS Coordinates | Denomination |
| Baptist Bible Church | Sociego Street | Baptists |
| Gloria Dei Lutheran Church | Old Santa Mesa Street | Lutheran |
| Jehovah's Witness Kingdom Hall | Old Santa Mesa Street | Jehovah's Witnesses |
| Nuestra Señora de Salvacion Parish Church | Anonas Street cor Hipodromo Street | Roman Catholic |
| Our Lady of Fatima Parish Church | Lubiran Street cor. Mag. Jose Abad Santos Street | Roman Catholic |
| Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish Church | Old Santa Mesa Street | Roman Catholic |
| Sambahan sa Banal na Hapag (IEMELIF Church) | Magsaysay Boulevard | Methodist |
| Seventh-day Adventist Church | Hippodromo Street | Adventist |
| SM Valenzuela (IEMELIF Church) | Old Santa Mesa Street | Methodist |
| Abundant Life Ministry Inc. | Teresa Street | Born Again |

### Parks and plazas

Parks and plazas in Santa Mesa :
| Name | Location / GPS Coordinates |
| Bacood Park | Valenzuela Street |
| Paraiso ng Batang Maynila | Bataan cor. Leyte Streets, Bacood |
| PUP Lagoon | PUP Mabini Campus, Anonas Street |
| PUP Linear Park | PUP Mabini Campus, Anonas Street |
| PUP Nemesio E. Prudente Freedom Park (Freedom Plaza) | PUP Mabini Campus, Anonas Street |

## Barangays

Santa Mesa is made up of 51 barangays, grouped into seven zones of the City of Manila. For statistical convenience for housing and population, the data for Santa Mesa is grouped with the data of Sampaloc.

### Zones

* Zone 58: Barangays 587 to 593
* Zone 59: Barangays 594 to 601
* Zone 60: Barangays 602 to 606 and 610 to 613
* Zone 61: Barangays 607 to 609 and 614 to 618
* Zone 62: Barangays 619 to 625
* Zone 63: Barangays 626 to 630
* Zone 64: Barangays 631 to 636

### Barangays

| Barangay | Land area (km$^2$) | Population (2020) |
| Zone 58 |||
| Barangay 587 | 0.07333 km$^2$ | 2,920 |
| Barangay 587-A | 0.02194 km$^2$ | 1,277 |
| Barangay 588 | 0.01947 km$^2$ | 989 |
| Barangay 589 | 0.03283 km$^2$ | 660 |
| Barangay 590 | 0.03619 km$^2$ | 3,209 |
| Barangay 591 | 0.06667 km$^2$ | 2,498 |
| Barangay 592 | 0.03228 km$^2$ | 2,371 |
| Barangay 593 | 0.04383 km$^2$ | 1,775 |
| Zone 59 |||
| Barangay 594 | 0.03035 km$^2$ | 636 |
| Barangay 595 | 0.04867 km$^2$ | 4,198 |
| Barangay 596 | 0.02226 km$^2$ | 2,375 |
| Barangay 597 | 0.03043 km$^2$ | 1,672 |
| Barangay 598 | 0.07679 km$^2$ | 12,027 |
| Barangay 599 | 0.03596 km$^2$ | 4,272 |
| Barangay 600 | 0.06367 km$^2$ | 5,892 |
| Barangay 601 | 0.1163 km$^2$ | 7,759 |
| Zone 60 |||
| Barangay 602 | 0.1353 km$^2$ | 2,000 |
| Barangay 603 | 0.04759 km$^2$ | 712 |
| Barangay 604 | 0.02000 km$^2$ | 1,477 |
| Barangay 605 | 0.03845 km$^2$ | 1,751 |
| Barangay 606 | 0.03072 km$^2$ | 532 |
| Barangay 610 | 0.02922 km$^2$ | 968 |
| Barangay 611 | 0.03176 km$^2$ | 808 |
| Barangay 612 | 0.02191 km$^2$ | 703 |
| Barangay 613 | 0.02612 km$^2$ | 568 |
| Zone 61 |||
| Barangay 607 | 0.04699 km$^2$ | 1,782 |
| Barangay 608 | 0.02579 km$^2$ | 756 |
| Barangay 609 | 0.02867 km$^2$ | 1,046 |
| Barangay 614 | 0.01654 km$^2$ | 404 |
| Barangay 615 | 0.02034 km$^2$ | 1,828 |
| Barangay 616 | 0.03139 km$^2$ | 910 |
| Barangay 617 | 0.03125 km$^2$ | 921 |
| Barangay 618 | 0.04016 km$^2$ | 740 |
| Zone 62 |||
| Barangay 619 | 0.2010 km$^2$ | 1,283 |
| Barangay 620 | 0.02244 km$^2$ | 725 |
| Barangay 621 | 0.07931 km$^2$ | 1,787 |
| Barangay 622 | 0.02481 km$^2$ | 1,197 |
| Barangay 623 | 0.02529 km$^2$ | 954 |
| Barangay 624 | 0.02421 km$^2$ | 1,429 |
| Barangay 625 | 0.03206 km$^2$ | 1,027 |
| Zone 63 |||
| Barangay 626 | 0.03282 km$^2$ | 1,285 |
| Barangay 627 | 0.04027 km$^2$ | 1,605 |
| Barangay 628 | 0.1839 km$^2$ | 15,202 |
| Barangay 629 | 0.03937 km$^2$ | 1,633 |
| Barangay 630 | 0.2551 km$^2$ | 4,660 |
| Zone 64 |||
| Barangay 631 | 0.04890 km$^2$ | 1,254 |
| Barangay 632 | 0.01467 km$^2$ | 254 |
| Barangay 633 | 0.01554 km$^2$ | 447 |
| Barangay 634 | 0.05924 km$^2$ | |
| Barangay 635 | 0.05317 km$^2$ | 660 |
| Barangay 636 | 0.08512 km$^2$ | 2,135 |