Caloocan

Caloocan is a major city in the northern section of Metro Manila on Luzon island. The name derives from the Tagalog word look, describing an inlet along the shore of Manila Bay. Territorial boundaries divide the jurisdiction into two geographically detached southern and northern zones.

The Spanish colonial administration granted township status in 1815, detaching the farming settlement from the parish of Tondo. Secret societies organized local resistance against colonial authority during the 1890s, culminating in the first military skirmishes of the Philippine Revolution in 1896 under the direction of Andrés Bonifacio. The Philippine Commission established an insular civil government in the early 1900s. City status arrived through a national congressional charter in the 1960s, followed by incorporation into the capital region during the 1970s. The regional trial courts and local departments administer public affairs from the main city hall compound.

Commercial storefronts along Tenth Avenue supply motorcycle spare parts, replacement engines, and vulcanized tires. Peerless Products Manufacturing Corporation produces laundry powder, dishwashing liquids, and detergent bars. Ever Bilena formulates cosmetic lipsticks, foundation creams, and facial powders at its central laboratories. Philippine National Railways maintains passenger coaches and diesel switchers at the Caloocan maintenance yards. Metal fabrication plants across the northern sector manufacture structural steel trusses, aluminum window frames, and corrugated roofing sheets. Morning Star Milling Corporation mills wheat grains into commercial bakery flour.

Bonifacio Monument features a 14 m (46 ft) octagonal pylon sculpted by Guillermo Tolentino, crowned by a winged figure of victory and ringed by bronze statues of revolutionaries. San Roque Cathedral houses the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Kalookan, featuring stone belfries constructed during the 19th century. Manila Central University instructs students of pharmacy, dentistry, and nursing across its urban health campus. University of Caloocan City provides undergraduate degree courses in business administration and computer technology on its northern grounds.