San Nicolas is one of the sixteen districts in the city of Manila in the Philippines. It is located at the west central part of the city, on the northern bank of Pasig River[2] bounded by the districts of Binondo to the east by Estero de Binondo, and Tondo to the north and west, and by the Pasig River to the south. Considered as a heritage district of Manila,[3] this community has kept its 19th-century ancestral houses, which symbolizes the wealthy lives of the people who used to live there, similar to the ancestral houses of Silay and Vigan.

San Nicolas
District of Manila
The intersection of Madrid and San Fernando Streets, in front of the San Nicolas Fire Station
Country	Philippines
Region	National Capital Region
City	Manila
Congressional district	Part of the 3rd district of Manila
Barangays	15
Founded	1598
Founded by	Dominican Order
Named for	St. Nicholas of Tolentino
Population  (2020)
• Total	42,957[1]
Zip codes	1010
Area codes	2

As of the May 1, 2020 national census, the population of San Nicolas, which is composed of 15 barangays named as numbers from 268 to 276 and from 281 to 286, is 42,957. This is slightly lower than the 2010 census that counted San Nicolas residents at 44,241.[1]

History

San Nicolas was originally a fishing town named Baybay, which is also a Tagalog word for shore.[3][4] It was renamed to San Nicolas, after the patron saint of sailors, boatmen, and mariners.[5] San Nicolas is the western part of the first Chinatown in the Philippines, and perhaps the world;[6] the eastern part is Binondo, which was founded in 1594 by Governor-General Luis Pérez Dasmariñas.[6] The Dominican order came to western part of Chinatown in 1596[6] and then founded San Nicolas in 1598.[3] This was the first mission by the Dominicans outside Intramuros.[3]

In 1901, during the American colonization of the Philippines, San Nicolas became a district of the newly chartered city of Manila as its borders were extended outside the walled city presently known as Intramuros.[7] Daniel Burnham, an American architect and urban planner, was commissioned to build a Plan of Manila.[8] The result of the plan was the making of places and parishes that included San Nicolas.[9] In modern times, San Nicolas is one of the administrative districts of Manila and part of the third legislative district of Manila.[10] It became an extension of the Filipino-Chinese community in Binondo.[11]

Barangays

Barangays 268, 269, 270, 271, 272, 273, 274, 275, and 276 are part of Zone 25; and Barangays 281, 282, 283, 284, 285, and 286 are part of Zone 26.

List of cultural properties of San Nicolas

Cultural Property wmph identifier	Site name	Description	Province	City/municipality	Address	Coordinates	Image
	Pasig River Lighthouse	Pasig River Lighthouse	Metro Manila	San Nicolas, Manila	Muelle dela Industria Street	14.596401°N 120.960695°E / 14.596401; 120.960695 (Pasig River Lighthouse)
	General Antonio Luna Ancestral House	General Antonio Luna Ancestral House	Metro Manila	San Nicolas, Manila	#457 Urbiztondo Street	14.598246°N 120.972287°E / 14.598246; 120.972287 (General Antonio Luna Ancestral House)	}}
	Ides O'Racca Building	Ides O'Racca Building	Metro Manila	San Nicolas, Manila	M. De Santos St.	14.598246°N 120.972287°E / 14.598246; 120.972287 (Ides O'Racca Building)

In art

• Barrio de San Nicolas—Calle de Ylang-Ylang, watercolor by José Honorato Lozano, n.d.

Gallery

• 
  Ancestral house
• 
  Ancestral house
• 
  Ancestral house
• 
  Ancestral house
• 
  Arch of Solidarity
• 
  Fire Station
• 
  Jose Abad Santos High School
• 
  Justice Jose Abad Santos General Hospital

See also

• San Nicolas Fire Station, Manila

References