The Origin Question
The Evangelistas of Candaba, Pampanga is an old Filipino clan who were part of the Principalia or the noble ruling class, the elite during the Spanish Colonial Era. The clan's power, influence, and riches were at its zenith in the 19th century. If you were to ask an Evangelista today about their origins, many would say the clan derived its wealth from a Spanish priest who left the priesthood, got married, and brought into the marriage enormous tracts of land in Candaba, Pampanga that he had amassed when he was a man of the collar. This is a story that has been passed down from generation to generation. On the other hand, the prominent Evangelistas of Angeles City, Pampanga, relatives of the Candaba branch, tell a different story. They claim that our common ancestor was an Italian trader, that the Evangelistas are descendants of wealthy Evangelisti merchants from Italy who were traders in the Holy Roman Empire, and never soldiers. This Italian ancestor(s) traveled from Italy to Spain, and thence to the Spanish colony of the Philippines. The Evangelistis settled in Vigan, an important coastal trading port even before Spanish colonial times with Chinese traders already living in the area. The Italian merchants began intermarrying with the local populace. At some point the family's last name was changed to the more Spanish sounding Evangelista. After some time, most of the clan moved south to Malabon, and then dispersed throughout the country. The ex-priest who owned all the land in Candaba is supposedly a first cousin of Don Román Evangelista y de la Resma, the patriarch of the Angeles City branch. There is apparently an Evangelista ancestral house in Vigan, location and current owner unknown.
Is there any truth to the oral history of either the Spanish friar or Italian merchant ancestry? To try and separate fact from fiction, a family name and genealogy research, a survey of the clan's common physical traits, a DNA test, a study of old Evangelista family records dating back to the Spanish era, were conducted to ascertain the truth about the clan's origin.
The Evangelista or Evangelisti surname was first identified in Verona, an ancient and flourishing city in northern Italy's Veneto region. They were merchants of Verona. The Evangelisti family can trace their roots to the Domus Mercatorum or Casa dei Mercanti (Merchant's House), the guild of the city's merchants, as early as 1447. Medieval records showed that early Evangelistis were advisors to the city government. In 1502, they were mentioned as nobile Consiglio. In 1527, they were noted merchant providers for Verona. To be included in medieval records was indicative of noble ancestry. Is Evangelista the original surname of the clan from Candaba? On November 21,1849, then Governor General Narciso Claveria issued an edict, the so-called Claveria Decree, that required all Filipinos to have a surname. The proclamation came with a 141-page book known as the Catalogo Alfabetico de Apellidos (Alphabetical Catalogue of Surnames) from which family names were distributed geographically throughout the Philippines. Prior to this decree, many natives only used their given names. Did the Evangelista Clan get their surname from the Catalogo? The answer is no. There are Candaba baptismal records going back to the 1700s that prove Evangelista was the family name held by the clan at least a hundred years before the Claveria Decree.
With regards to physical appearance, a dominant physical trait of Evangelistas from Candaba is their "chinito" or slanted Chinese-looking eyes. Generations of Evangelistas have often been referred to as "Intsik" (Chinese). Many have been described as Chinese mestizos. Photographs or paintings of Evangelistas who were born at the turn of the 20th century, such as those of the dashing doctor Don Honorio Canciller Evangelista y Salunga and his beautiful sister Doña Maria Natividad Canciller Evangelista-Santos y Salunga showed them as possessing Asian "chinito" eyes with European aquiline noses. They appear to be Euarasians.
We turned to science by taking advantage of the latest innovations in DNA technology. Alvin Clyde Evangelista y Co, who comes from eight generations of an unbroken male line of Evangelistas of Candaba reaching back to the earliest known ancestor Don Marcos Evangelista, took the 23andMe DNA test in early 2022. DNA results showed that Alvin Evangelista is in fact Eurasian being primarily of Filipino-Chinese descent, with a mix of Southern European ancestry. He most likely had an ancestor who was 100% Spanish or Portuguese estimated to have been born between 1770 and 1860. According to the DNA report, it is possible that the Southern European ancestor was Italian but there is a much higher probability that he or she was Spanish or Portuguese. This is significant because according to a 2001 Stanford University study, only 3.6% of the Philippine population have European Y-DNA. Could this Southern European ancestor be Don Marcos Evangelista? It's possible. However, a genealogy research conducted on the Evangelista Clan of Candaba was unsuccessful in locating Don Marcos' baptismal record in Candaba, Pampanga, or elsewhere. His exact date of birth, estimated between 1750 and 1770, and place of birth are unknown. The baptismal records of his four known children, however, does shed some light on him.
On October 20, 1784, an entry was made by Fr. Narciso Bonifacio de Mendosa, osa in the Protocolo de Baptismos des te Candava des de El Año de 1672 or the baptismal records of Candaba beginning in 1672 at the San Andres Apostol Catholic Church, when he baptized a two-day old baby girl named Brigida Evangelista, the legitimate daughter of Marcos Evangelista and Juana Candelaria, "mestizos de Sangley'' and residents of Barrio Batto. Gregoria de la Encarnacion stood as the child's godmother. On February 8, 1788, a son named Gaspar Evangelista who was born on February 6, 1788, was baptized by Fr. Dionisio del Rosario, osa with Don Eulogio Samson of San Luis, Pampanga, and Antonia Candelaria of Candaba as his godparents. This is the first document where Marcos Evangelista is styled as Don Marcos, an indication that he was part of the noble ruling class. Simón de los Santos Evangelista, the third child of Don Marcos Evangelista and Doña Juana Candelaria, was born on October 14, 1791 and baptized twenty days later on November 2, 1791 by Fr. Dionisio del Rosario, osa. Simón de los Santos Evangelista's godparents were Don Nicolas Oson of Tambobo (now known as Malabon), and Antonia de la Encarnacion of Candaba. The last known child born to Don Marcos and Doña Juana was Dionicio Ubaldo del Rosario Evangelista who was born on October 24, 1796, and baptized on October 26, 1796, by Fr. Dionisio del Rosario who also stood as his godfather. His godmother was Doña Maria Thomassina of Candaba. This last entry mentioned that Don Marcos and his wife were "mestizos de Sangley" residing in the Barangay of Don Manuel Gatbonton in Candaba.
The Golden Age
From the parochial records of his four children, we can glean that Don Marcos Evangelista was a wealthy man with a high social stature as the godparents of Don Marcos' children, who were from Principalia families from nearby towns, were part of his social circle. In two documents his status was classified as a "mestizo de Sangley" by the priests baptizing his children which would mean his heritage was known to them: either Don Marcos was the son of a Chinese father or he was a descendant of a Chinese male ancestor. He must have had the appearance of a Chinese mestizo. He must have possessed the Evangelista "chinito" eyes. If he was of Spanish, Italian, or Portuguese ethnicity, the parish documents would have stated Español Europeo, Portugués Europeo, or Italiano.
The baptismal records and the predominant physical characteristic of the Evangelista Clan of Candaba validate the DNA results that the Evangelistas are Chinese mestizos. But unlike most Chinese mestizo families, the Evangelistas do have Southern European roots. Was the original Evangelista male ancestor Chinese or Southern European? Based on these old Candaba records of the first generation of Evangelistas born in Candaba, it appears Don Marcos Evangelista was probably of Chinese ancestry. Then why is his family name European? One possibility is the Evangelista last name may have been adopted by Don Marcos' Chinese male ancestor who was more than likely a merchant who came to the Philippines, assimilated with the locals, and on his baptism into the Catholic Faith took the last name of his godfather. Another scenario is Don Marcos' Chinese ancestor married a woman whose last name was Evangelista. During the Spanish rule, the official way of registering a person consisted of the given name and two surnames. Traditionally, the first surname is the father's surname, and the second is the mother's. Over time, many Filipinos dropped the first surname and retained the second.
Why is it most likely that the Chinese ancestor was a merchant who settled in Pampanga? Many Chinese traders who were in Manila during the 1500s fled to Pampanga in 1603 to escape the Spanish massacre, a purge of ethnic Chinese at the hands of the country's new European masters. This was the beginning of Chinese history in Pampanga. The Chinese men settled in the bustling port town of Guagua, Pampanga because many goods entering and leaving Pampanga passed here. Its strategic location offered them many business opportunities. In time, many Chinese merchants - industrious, determined, thrifty, persevering - grew very wealthy and intermarried with the local women creating a Chinese mestizo class, the mestizos de Sangley. When the Chinese were excluded by law from Pampanga from 1766 to 1849, it was these business-minded Chinese mestizos, intelligent, aggressive, highly motivated, driven, who took over the economic leadership of the province. Armed with large fortunes, the Chinese mestizos then moved into agriculture. First, as money lenders to local farmers. Eventually, they became landowners around Pampanga, heralding their entry into the upper echelons of society. These Chinese mestizos made it a point to marry women with pedigrees, who belonged to old landed families, the ruling class. By becoming hacienderos themselves and marrying into the elite, the Chinese mestizos moved into a higher social standing and began to dominate the powerful Principalia. It is important to point out that many of the traits that characterized the pioneer Chinese and Chinese mestizos in Pampanga - hardworking, persevering, with strong business acumen and ambition - are known attributes of the Evangelista men of the 18th and 19th centuries. This included their penchant for marrying women from Kapampángan nobility. There is, therefore, a high probability that the Chinese merchant ancestor is the most likely origin of the Evangelistas of Candaba. The Southern European bloodline may be coming from a spouse of an Evangelista. No definitive answers can be provided until documents -- baptismal, immigration, census, or tax documents -- relating to Don Marcos Evangelista, and his forefathers are located, if such records still exist.
To gain a better perspective of the early Evangelista settlers in Candaba, it is necessary to know the area's history. Long ago, before the arrival of the Spaniards, Candaba was ruled by Don Dionisio Capulong, a son of Lakan Dula, the last King of Tondo. A local aristocracy was already in existence in the area which included the Capulong, Balagtas, Soliman, Gatbonton families. Descendants from some of these families would eventually marry into the Evangelista Clan. For example, around 1850, Don Marcos' grandson Don Toribio Canciller Evangelista, the son of Don Simón de los Santos Evangelista and Doña Vicenta Bautista, married Doña Regina Lacanilao y Balagtas who came from a noble family. She was one of the 8 children of Juan Carlos Balagtas and Anastasia Paguio. Juan Carlos Balagtas is the great-great grandson of Francisco Balagtas (born c. 1650). In 1575, at the beginning of Spanish Colonial Rule in the Philippines, the vast territories of Candaba was awarded as an encomienda or estate-grant to General Amador de Arriarán. As an encomendero, de Arriarán was given a royal grant of the tributes (tributo entero) levied on the residents of Candaba as his pension which in turn obligated him to look after the spiritual and material needs of the community. In 1591, the next encomenderos of Candaba were Don Juan Ronquillo and Don Goncalo de Ballesteros. Due to poor management and rampant malfeasance, the Spanish Crown ended the Encomienda System and replaced it with civil authority. The first Gobernadorcillo (Little Governor) or town leader of Candaba was Jose Suba in 1738. The office of Gobernadorcillo was traditionally held by an Indio (native) or a Chinese mestizo. Spaniards were prohibited by law that was enforced until 1786 to live outside Manila, with the exception of Spanish Religious and Spanish officials. So most of the people Don Marcos Evangelista associated with until 1786 were either Indios or Chinese mestizos.
THE GOLDEN AGE OF THE EVANGELISTA CLAN The 1800s ushered in the Golden Age of the Evangelista Clan of Candaba. It was a century marked by political leadership, enormous growth in the clan's wealth through property accumulation, and service to the Candabeños. Among Don Marcos' children, it is the line of his eldest son Don Gaspar Evangelista, a second generation haciendero, that became at one point the most prosperous and dominant family in Candaba. Don Gaspar married into another Principalia family when Doña Guillerma del Rosario de Santa Cruz became his bride. Doña Guillerma was born on February 9, 1789, and baptized three days later at Candaba Church. She was the daughter of Don Juan de Santa Cruz, Gobernadorcillo of Candaba, and Doña Maria de la Encarnacion Bautista. Besides Doña Guillerma, they had four other children: Joseph (b. 1773), Isidora (b.1784), Vicenta (b. 1786), and Rufina (b. 1790) de Santa Cruz. Doña Guillerma's paternal and maternal ancestors were already in Candaba in the 1600s, if not earlier. The Santa Cruz family were prosperous landowners and were classified in 18th century Candaba records as mestizos de Sangley. It was quite common for two wealthy Chinese mestizo families to unite through marriage. This would guarantee the preservation, if not the increase, of their land holdings.
Don Gaspar and Doña Guillerma had six children: Don Antonino (b.1812), Don Rosalino (b. c.1814), Don Tranquilino (b.1816), Don Román (b.1819), Doña Salamona (b.1824), and Don Mauricio (b. 1826) Evangelista y de Santa Cruz. This third generation of Evangelistas added Canciller to the family name in 1850, to comply with the Claveria Decree. According to genealogist Todd Lucero Sales of The Filipino Genealogy Project, most towns started implementing the decree between March and June 1850. The Evangelistas, he explained, adopted "Canciller" to their surname, which is a variation "Cancilier" that is listed in the Catalogo. From then on, members of the clan carried the last name Canciller Evangelista. This distinguished the Evangelistas of Candaba from other families with the same family name. Don Gaspar and Doña Guillerma's children made brilliant matches by marrying into other Principalia families who brought more land into the clan, on top of the properties that the Evangelistas were continuing to purchase around Candaba. Don Tranquilino Canciller Evangelista married Doña Maria Buenaventura de la Cruz. Don Román Canciller Evangelista married Doña Alberta Trinidad. Doña Salamona Canciller Evangelista married Don Simon Canivel. Don Mauricio Canciller Evangelista married Doña Decideria Cabistino.
On July 18, 1842, Don Gaspar's other son Don Rosalino Canciller Evangelista married Chinese mestiza Doña Dorothea Tecson y Tongco at San Bartolome Catholic Church in Malabon. The groom's mother Doña Guillerma del Rosario de Santa Cruz was his only parent present at the ceremony which may mean Don Gaspar Evangelista may have already died by then. Doña Dorothea's parents Don Fulgenico Tecson y Samson and Doña Telesfora Tongco y Sevilla were landowners in Malabon and were part of the local aristocracy. Doña Dorothea's maternal lineage, the Tongco y Sevilla families, had been in Malabon for at least two hundred years at the time of her marriage to Don Rosalino Canciller Evangelista. On her father's Tecson side, Doña Dorothea is most likely a descendant of one of three Tek Sun brothers from Guangzhou, China who arrived in the Philippines in the late 1600s. The Tecson surname is a Spanish transliteration of the Hokkien Tek Sun. The tombstone of one of the Tek Sun brothers, Jose Tecson (d. 1728) is at the San Andres Apostol Church in Candaba.
Doña Dorothea was born March 28,1815, and baptized at San Bartolome Church on March 29,1815. Her father, Don Fulgencio Tecson y Samson was born in 1791 in Malabon to Santiago Tecson and Theodora Samson (1750-1800). Church records show Don Fulgencio was baptized on January 19, 1791. Doña Dorothea's mother Doña Telesfora Tongco y Sevilla was also born in 1791 and was baptized on January 6, 1791, at San Bartolome. Doña Telesfora's parents, Leonardo Tongco and Francisca de Sevilla y Gutierrez, resided in Malabon. Francisca de Sevilla, born in 1760, was the daughter of Juan de Sevilla (1725-1783) and Fabiana Josepha Gutiérrez (1726-1781) who were both born in Malabon and were married on April 26, 1750. Juan de Sevilla's parents Bartolomé del Espíritu Santo and Lucia Clara of Manila were born around the late 1600s or early 1700s. Juan de Sevilla's last name is different from his father's last name because many indigenous Filipinos and mestizos until the mid 19th century had no family names. In most cases , their last name was a given name. Fabiana's parents, Juan Gutiérrez and Augustina Phelipa de Mendosa were married on May 23, 1734. Juan Gutiérrez's parents Andres de la Cruz and Juana Lucrecia, and Augustina Phelipa's parents Joseph de Mendosa and Juana de la Rosa, described as "indios" (natives) are the oldest known ancestors of Doña Dorothea Tecson. They are her great-great-great grandparents.
Two of Don Gaspar's sons, Don Tranquilino Canciller Evangelista and Don Mauricio Canciller Evangelista were elected Gobernadorcillo of Candaba in 1841 and 1856, respectively, which greatly increased the profile of the clan. This was the highest political position a local could attain under the Spanish regime, and was only open to members of the Principalia. Out of respect, Don Tranquilino and Don Mauricio were both addressed as Capitan by the townsfolk. They were described as "matenacan," a Capampangan word meaning very wise, brilliant, learned, or well-bred and "masipag," meaning hardworking. One of the qualifications for the position of Gobernadorcillo is substantial properties including land, livestock, sugar or rice mills, buildings. The election of two Evangelistas to this position gives us an idea of just how much land the Evangelista Clan had amassed in Candaba by the 1840s and 1850s.
Among Don Mauricio's eight children was his son Don Hugo (Cabesang Hugo) Canciller Evangelista (1859-1926) who served as a Cabeza de Barangay, and was well-liked by his constituents. Don Hugo married Leoncia Cañas (1868-1926). They had five children: Vicenta, Catalina, Aurora I (died in infancy), Aurora (b.1890), and Maria Morcas (b.1891) Evangelista. Aurora Evangelista married Getulio Castor, and were the parents of Dr. Jacobo Castor y Evangelista (1917-1964), a prominent Candabeño doctor. Dr. Jacobo Castor married Abundia Pelayo y Limdoza (1918-2018). They had 11 children, most of whom now reside with their respective families in Indiana, U.S.A. Their children are Robert (1942-1951), Conrado (a cardiologist) born in 1945, Zosimo (1948-2021), Eduardo (b. 1950), Leandro (b.1951), Marc (b.1952), Johnny (b.1954), Christina (b.1956), Catherine (b.1957), Aurea (b.1960), and Jacob (b.1961) Castor y Pelayo.
Don Tranquilino Canciller Evangelista and Doña Maria Buenaventura de la Cruz had six children: Doña Juana I (b.1836, died in infancy), Don Sorano (b.1838), Doña Gregoria (b.1840), Doña Juana (1842-1923), Doña Gerarda (b.1844), and Doña Luisa (1851-1928) Canciller Evangelista. Doña Luisa married Don Juan Canivel. Doña Gregoria married Don Tito Capulong.
Evangelistas in the Modern Age
Don Rosalino, on the other hand, was a haciendero and businessman through and through, concentrating his time and effort in managing and growing his own share of the vast rice and watermelon fields, and fishery business. Some of the palay harvested by the Evangelista tenants were stored in one of his large warehouses on Calle Real situated within the town proper. Don Rosalino and Doña Dorothea grew their family too: Doña Monica, Don Ambrosio (b. December 6,1844), Don Santiago (b. July 24,1846), Don Adriano I (1848-1848), Don Gregorio (b. April 23,1850), Doña Tomasa (b. December 20,1851), and Don Adriano II (b. September 7,1853) Canciller Evangelista y Tecson. All of Don Rosalino's children continued the tradition of marrying into distinguished and land-owning families in Candaba, Pampanga, thus further increasing the clans property holdings. The Evangelista Clans estate covered a large part of Candaba, Pampanga, "stretching as far as the eye can see." It was so vast that Don Rosalino's sons had to ride horses just to get around their family's properties. According to Dr. José Evangelista y Limjoco, Don Rosalino Canciller Evangelista's great-great grandson, one could ride all day and still not reach the end of the estate. Based on public records including the Philippine Government's Official Gazette, the known areas where the Evangelista clan owned agricultural lands included Pansinao, Santo Rosario, Mapaniqui, Ungut, Salapungan, Magumbali, Mandili, Cuayang Bugtong, Mandasig.
Don Rosalino's daughter Doña Monica Canciller Evangelista y Tecson married Don Crispulo Gatbonton y Manalastas, a nobleman and the son of Don Eduardo Gatbonton y Salas and Doña Nicolasa Manalastas. The Gatbontons are one of the earliest clans in Philippine history. They were part of the pre-Hispanic native nobility and relatives of Lakan Dula, the last King of Tondo. The ancestor of Don Crispulo named Gat Bonton was the administrator of the rice granary of the kingdom and the son of Dayang (Lady) Lahat, sister of Rajah Sulaiman I, the father of Lakan Dula. Dayang Lahat and her brother Rajah Sulaiman were among the children of Rajah Lontok (or Gat Lontok) and Dayang Kalangitan. Rajah Lontok, who was the Rajah of Tondo and Prince of Brunei, was born in Brunei Darussalam, and was the son of Sultan Bolkiah ibni Sultan Sulaiman of Brunei. The fortunes of the Philippine royalty and aristocracy changed with the coming of the Spanish conquistadors. In 1521, the Philippines were claimed in the name of Spain by Ferdinand Magellan, a Portuguese explorer who sailed under the Spanish flag. Magellan named the islands after King Philip II of Spain. To avoid the intense Spanish persecution of the native aristocracy in the late 1500s, the Gatbontons escaped from Tondo for Candaba via the Rio Grande River. Generations later, the Evangelista Clan was united to the Gatbonton Clan with the marriage of Don Rosalino's daughter Doña Monica to Don Crispulo Gatbonton. They had at least one child, a son named Don Gregorio Gatbonton y Evangelista, who was born on March 10, 1870. He was baptized at the Candaba Church by Fray Vicente Ferrer,osa on March 12, 1870. Her brother Don Ambrosio Canciller Evangelista y Tecson stood as godfather.
Don Rosalino's youngest son Don Adriano Canciller Evangelista y Tecson married Doña Norberta Cardenas y Reyes the daughter of Don Sebastian Cardenas y Reyes and Doña Manuela Sadie. The Sadie and Cardenas y Reyes clans were part of the landowning Principalia class of Candaba. The family name Cardenas y Reyes later became Cardenas Reyes or simply Reyes. Don Adriano and Doña Norberta had eight children: 1.Rosa Maria Evangelista y Reyes (b. 1868) 2. Francisco Evangelista y Reyes (b. 1871) married Florencia Gulapa - Son: Martiniano Evangelista y Gulapa 3.Nicolas Evangelista y Reyes (b. 1873) married Alberta Angeles Gatbonton -Children: Maria Julita (b. 1894), David Santiago (b. 1896), Joaquin (b. 1898), Maria Leonor (b. 1900), and Justina (b. 1903) Evangelista y Gatbonton 4.Cecilio Evangelista y Reyes (b.1875) 5.Viviana Evangelista y Reyes (b.1876) married Rustico Anacleto -Children: Deogracias (b.1901) and Sisenando (b.1902) Anacleto y Evangelista 6.Maria de la Paz Evangelista y Reyes (b.1879) 7.Nicanor Evangelista y Reyes (b.1880) married Benita Padilla -Son: Jose Evangelista y Padilla (b.1902) 8.Isabel Evangelista y Reyes (b.1882) who married Carlos Pelayo -Children: Anatolia (b. 1898), and Maria Pelayo y Evangelista (b.1902)
Don Rosalino's two other sons Don Santiago Canciller Evangelista and Don Gregorio Canciller Evangelista were both elected to the top leadership role in Candaba. Don Santiago was Gobernadorcillo from 1881-1883, while Don Gregorio became Municipal Presidente (a title formerly known as Gobernadorcillo) in 1898. Don Gregorio had a reputation as highly intelligent and hardworking, and was well-respected by the Candabeños. He led Candaba through one of the Philippines' most tumultuous times, the Spanish-American War, which then segued into the Philippine-American War. In 1898, Don Gregorio had the great distinction of being one of the signers of the Philippine Independence to Foreign Governments, a declaration sent by Philippine President Emilio Aguinaldo to leaders around the world. In the early 1900s, during the start of the American Colonial Rule, Don Gregorio was part of the Municipal Council of Candaba. He also served as Justice of the Peace of the town.
Finally, there is Don Santiago Canciller Evangelista, the great Capitan Tiago, Don Rosalino's second son who was born in 1846 and is arguably the most famous Evangelista and the greatest of his generation, a Gobernadorcillo who served a two-year term in office, a haciendero who went on a land buying spree purchasing hundreds of hectares just in the last 16 years of his life, a businessman, and the father of 13 tribes of the Evangelista Clan. Within the Principalia, the ruling class of Candaba, Capitan Tiago acted as their banker. Specifically, he was their money lender since he was the richest man in Candaba, as attested by Fr. Esteban Ybeas, the parish priest of Candaba in the late 1800s. Besides being land owners, the Evangelistas, both the Candaba and Angeles City branches, were known for their accumulation of large amounts of cash. Family members, including Capitan Tiago, would hide their cash in secret drawers under their oratory or prayer tables at home. The intrepid businessman and politician was married three times. Capitan Tiago's life was cut short when he died of a stroke in March 1895 but by then he had made his mark in Candaba. One of his sons, Don Pedro Canciller Evangelista, distinguished himself in Candaba's political life as Municipal Presidente in 1908, and is known as the modernizer of Candaba. Under Don Pedro's administration more schools were built, a municipal cemetery and artesian water for the town were established among his numerous accomplishments. This makes a grand total of 5 Evangelistas bearing the family name who assumed the highest post in Candaba. There were other Evangelistas who served as Cabezas de Barangay, Councilors, Vice-Mayor, Justice of the Peace, Assessor (Delegado de Hacienda).
During this Golden Age of the Evangelistas, they were much sought after as godparents not only for the children of the Principalia, but more so for the infants of their farmer tenants. There are pages and pages of baptisms in the Candaba Church during the 1800s where an Evangelista, both male and female, stood as godparent. The tenant families could rely on their generous contributions to baptisms, birthdays, and other important milestones. To be asked to stand as a padrino (godfather) or madrina (godmother) was (and still is) a special place of honor in a person's life. In this way important personages who are non-relatives would be considered a part of the family. The compadrazgo system (godparent hood) is an integral part of Philippine cultural life.
EVANGELISTAS IN THE MODERN AGE The Evangelistas basked in immense wealth and power in the 18th and 19th centuries but as with all Principalia families they lost their privileges when the Spanish Colonial Rule ended in 1898, and American Imperialism took root in the nation. At the turn of the 20th century, the Philippines was still predominantly an agricultural country, feudalism and land ownership was still a crucial part of Philippine society. The Evangelistas still owned all the land that had come down from their forebears, along with all the farmer tenants who tilled their lands. The sons of Don Santiago continued to run their haciendas. Foremost among them were his eldest son Don Emiliano Canciller Evangelista and his 4th child, Don Ambrocio Canciller Evangelista who owned some of the stateliest Bahay na Bato in Candaba. Together with their other siblings Doña Ygnacia Canciller Evangelista-Canivel, Don Pedro Canciller Evangelista, Doña Luisa Canciller Evangelista-Gomez, Don Quintin Canciller Evangelista, Don Juan Canciller Evangelista, Doña Graciana Canciller Evangelista-Kabigting, and their stepmother and widow of Don Santiago, Doña Maria Pilar Salunga and her children Doña Rosario Canciller Evangelista-Olson, Doña Maria Natividad Canciller Evangelista-Santos, Don Honorio Canciller Evangelista, Don Jose Canciller Evangelista, and Doña Virginia Canciller Evangelista-David, their cousins, aunts, and uncles, collectively controlled the largest palay harvest in Candaba. The landlord-tenant farmer relationship was a paternalistic one, with the farming families running to the Evangelistas for loans many of which were never repaid. Under American rule, haciendas faced growing unrest from their tenants, and in response, the government began to enact a series of agrarian reforms. Over time, throughout the decades that followed, these land reforms put increasing pressure on large estates and affected many landowning families in Candaba, including the Evangelistas.
Whether they saw the writing on the wall with Land Reform, or it was the influence of American modern ideas, or education, or the loss of land on the gambling tables playing monte and pangguinge which plagued most Kapampangan landed gentry, or the harassment of landowners by communist Huks insurgents after World War II, or all of the above, the Evangelistas' participation in Candaba's socio-economic and political life slowly began to wane. The exodus of Evangelistas out of Candaba happened gradually over time. As with many wealthy families, the children of Don Santiago sent their sons to study in Manila with the proliferation of new schools and universities. While having doctors and dentists in the family brought prestige, it soon became apparent that this was a double-edged sword. The younger set began to focus their attention outside agriculture choosing to pursue their professional careers. Many became businessmen. In fact, two of Don Santiago's younger sons Don Honorio and Don Jose became doctors. In 1917, Don Honorio obtained his PhD in Veterinary Medicine at the San Francisco Veterinary College in San Francisco, California, the first known Evangelista to study abroad, while Don Jose enrolled at the University of Santo Tomas School of Medicine. In the 1920s, Don Honorio moved to Shanghai, the Paris of the East, upon the invitation of Shanghai's elite to manage the care of their prized horses. There in Shanghai, Don Honorio distinguished himself as the Captain of the Philippine Company of the Shanghai Volunteers Corps, leading his men into battle against the Japanese Imperial Army during World War II. He was a decorated war hero.
Don Adriano's grandson Joaquin "Ivan" Evangelista y Gatbonton became a famous violinist in India before World War II. The adventurous musician had traveled to India in the 1920s playing in jazz bands around the country. Jazz was the western music popular in the country at that time. Eventually, Ivan Evangelista moved to Jamalpur and formed his own band. He met and married Winifred Mabel Henderson, who was born in Calcutta, India, and played the ukulele and sang in his band. After Indian independence in 1947, Joaquin Evangelista and his family moved to the Philippines where they were reunited with the Evangelista Clan, and lived in various places including Cabanatuan City, Nueva Ecjia, Manila, Tagaytay. Sisters Emylene E. Jacinto-de Jesus and Deborah Evangelista Jacinto remembered visiting their Uncle Joaquin and his family in Tagaytay together with their mother Leonor Evangelista-Jacinto, the second cousin of Joaquin Evangelista. He died on August 3, 1982, in Santa Clara, California.
In the 20th century political scene, Jose Evangelista y de Castro, a son of Municipal President Don Pedro Canciller Evangelista, continued in the tradition of his illustrious antecedents as the face of the Evangelista Clan in Candaba politics. He was held in such high esteem by the Candabeños that there was no need for him to campaign when he ran for office. He refused to run for Mayor. But when he ran for Vice-Mayor in 1966, he won in a landslide victory without spending a day on the campaign trail. Anastacio Gallardo, who was active in politics from the 1940s through the 1960s, was another member of the Evangelista Clan by virtue of his marriage to Don Honorio Canciller Evangelista's adopted daughter Asuncion Evangelista y Lacanilao. Anastacio Gallardo served three terms as Mayor of Candaba in the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s. In 1966, he was assassinated by the Huks in an ambush while on his way to Malacañang Palace to meet with President Diosdado Macapagal.
As the children of Don Santiago died one by one, many of their descendants sold off their share of the Candaba estates and moved to the big cities. Many moved to Manila. This held true too for the descendants of Don Santiago's siblings and other branches of the clan. Beginning in the late 1940s with Dr. Honorio Canciller Evangelista moving to San Francisco, California, there was a steady emigration of descendants from the Philippines to the United States. Today, numerous Evangelistas originally from Candaba are scattered throughout the continent including California, Washington State, Nevada, Illinois, New York, Maryland, Virginia, Florida, Indiana. They have flourished in their new homeland. Many are entrepreneurs, business founders and owners in various fields including real estate, customs brokerage, the importation of goods, healthcare services, transportation and logistics. There are professionals in banking and finance, high technology and innovation in Silicon Valley. In the medical field, there are hard working nurses, and highly respected doctors, specialists in cardiology and internal medicine, pediatrics medicine, plastic surgery. Dr. Jose Evangelista y Limjoco, the grandson of Municipal Presidente Don Pedro Canciller Evangelista, a distinguished cardiologist, real estate magnate, businessman, and philanthropist is the most famous Evangelista in the United States today.
Whether in Candaba or elsewhere, Evangelistas continue to prosper. Perhaps one day a new generation of Evangelistas will decide to return and invest in Candaba, run for public office, and dominate the economic, social, and political landscape of Candaba as their ancestors did during the Spanish era. After all, Candaba is in their blood.