page_title: Ermita
section_title: American & Commonwealth Era (1900 - 1944)
hierarchical_section_title: Ermita / History / American & Commonwealth Era (1900 - 1944)
caption_attribution_description: PictionID:38277196 - Catalog:AL-135A 098 Commanding General's Residence Manila 8Sep27 - Filename:AL-135A 098 Commanding General's Residence Manila 8Sep27.tif - This image is from a photo album donated to the Museum by JL Highfill, who was a photographer for the Navy before and during the Second World War-----------PLEASE TAG this image with any information you know about it, so that we can permanently store this data with the original image file in our Digital Asset Management System.-----------------SOURCE INSTITUTION: San Diego Air and Space Museum Archive
context_page_description: Ermita is a district in Manila, Philippines. Located at the central part of the city, the district is a significant center of finance, education, culture, and commerce. Ermita serves as the civic center of the city, bearing the seat of city government and a large portion of the area's employment, business, and entertainment activities.
  Private and government offices, museums, and universities thrive in Ermita. It is also home to famous tourist attractions and landmarks, notably the Rizal Park, the premier national park of the Philippines.
  Originally, Ermita and its neighboring district Malate were posh neighborhoods for Manila's high society during the early 20th century where large, grandiose mansions once stood. Unfortunately, Ermita and its surroundings were heavily bombed and flattened during the Second World War after it became a battleground during the Manila Massacre. After the war, Ermita and its twin district, Malate, had undergone commercialization resulting in a shift from being a sprawling upscale suburb to a commercial district.
context_section_description: Ermita gained renewed prominence during the American & Commonwealth Era. As part of Daniel Burnham's City Beautiful Movement during the early 1900s, Ermita district alongside Intramuros' surrounding areas had undergone a drastic redevelopment from being the outskirts to urban districts.
  Burnham envisioned the district especially in the northern portion to be the center of the Philippine Government, redeveloping Luneta into a grand park patterned after that of National Mall in Washington D.C.. Government buildings such as the Legislative, Executive and Judicial branches were also planned to be located in the area. A proposed Philippine Capitol was also planned to be built at the eastern tip of Luneta Park but was never materialized. 
  It also became known as the university district, containing the campuses and dormitories of the Philippine Normal University, University of the Philippines, the Ateneo de Manila, Adamson University, the Assumption College and St. Paul College. The residential portion of Ermita was populated by American residents, who set up such establishments as the Army and Navy Club, and the University Club.
  Aside from its universities, and leisure clubs; Ermita district, as well as its adjacent district, Malate which both happened to be facing the Manila Bay were once home to Manila's high society and were filled with large, gilded mansions. Manila's wealthiest families used to live in the twin suburbs.
caption: Aerial view of Ermita District facing the Manila Bay
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