DauisDauis is one of the two municipalities comprising Panglao Island, the other being Panglao. It is a 4th class municipality in the province of Bohol, Philippines and has a population of 36,139 people according to the 2007 census occupying a land mass of 4,288 hectares. The inhabitants of the town speak the Visayan (Bol-anon) language yet are also proficient in the English and Tagalog languages. IndustryThe Panglaonons are hardworking; the people of Dauis not an exception. They work hard and engage in farming, fishing, carpentry, fine jewelry making, shell craft making woodcarving, basketry and other small scale home-based processing of food products such as the purple yam. Jewelry and shell craft making can be found in barangay Poblacion; basket making in barangays San Isidro and Dao, and furniture making in barangays Totolan, Songculan, Tinago and Bingag. A number of the people though have found employment in the different resorts of Panglao Island, in Tagbilaran City and also abroad. Tourism is becoming a major industry in the municipality of Dauis. It has several major tourist attractions; the most famous of which is the Hinagdanan Cave, an underground cave with a body of freshwater in it; the Dauis Church, Cedar Cove, Bikini Beach and others. The white sand beaches of Dauis also have come to the attention of local and foreign tourists and their influx triggered the development of resorts in the beach areas. Many of the local inhabitants have found jobs in these resorts thus augmenting their incomes and improving the well-being of the populace. Location and Political SubdivisionPanglao Island is situated on the southwestern tip of Bohol and is connected to mainland Bohol by two causeways. One causeway connects to Panglao town while the other causeway connects Dauis to barangay Mansasa of mainland Bohol, thru the Gov. Jacinto Borja Bridge. The town of Dauis is politically subdivided into 12 barangays: Biking, Bingag, San Isidro (Canlongon), Catarman, Dao, Mayacabac, Poblacion, Songculan, Tabalong, Tinago, Totolan and Mariveles. TransportationThe town of Dauis is traversed by the national, provincial, municipal and barangay road network. The town's main roads are near to the urban road network of Tagbilaran City. Dauis has a total of 91.28 kilometers of road which comprises about 59% barangay, 2.4% municipal, 28. 9% provincial and 9.7% national. Of its total road length, 4.4% is paved with concrete. The other roads are either in asphalt or gravel. Road density measured in terms of kilometers per square kilometer (km/sq. km) of land is 1.30 higher than the province average road density of 0.71. There are 2 existing bridges in Dauis; the Songculan Riverside Bridge, which is made of timber and the Dauis Bridge made of reinforced concrete. Primary modes of transportation are buses and tricycles. There is no wharf. Island population is too dependent on Tagbilaran City port facilities. The approximate distance of municipal center to Tagbilaran City is 7.4 kilometers or a travel of about 10 minutes. CommunicationsDauis has a telegraph facility owned by the government which is located in the Poblacion. Other communication facilities such as postal and telephone services are also being offered. Mobile phones or Cellular phone subscribers are also available. At present cable TV has been provided entry in the barangays Poblacion Totolan. HistoryDauis is one of the oldest municipalities of Bohol and was well-populated even before the arrival of the Spaniards, as shown by early Chinese artifacts retrieved in the area in the 1970’s. However, no record of its establishment exists because all municipal records were burned down during World War II. Church records state though that the parish was established in 1697, so the founding of the town may be near that period. The inhabitants of Dauis built their houses of very strong materials, mostly of molave, and whitewashed with lime during the Spanish regime. The people were continually harassed by Muslims who come and attack the town and capture people for ransom or for the slave market. The stone watchtower, whose ruins stand near the present church and bearing the date 1774, was built to alert the town of the coming marauders. During World War II, Dauis bore the brunt of the bombing, shelling and strafing, first from the Japanese and later from the Americans. When the resistance movement was started in September 1942, most of the able-bodied men of the town joined the cause and the civilians supported them with cash, food and other means. Dauis ChurchThe 18th century Dauis Church, dedicated to the “La Señora de la Asuncion” or Our Lady of the Assumption underwent so many changes starting from its inception when the first Spanish missionaries arrived in the town in 1697. The church was believed to be built of light materials. By 1753, another church with a convento was finished under Rev. Fr. Joseph Nepomuceno, a Jesuit. According to Javellana, after 1753, the Jesuits moved their main residence from Loboc, in the interior of Bohol, to Dauis by the seashore. The Recollects built another church of bamboo and wood in 1769 and was finished in the year 1772 during the time of Fr. Domingo Escondrillas. The church though was burned down in 1795, thus necessitating the construction of a fourth church. An 1886 report described this church as made of tabigue and roofed with nipa. This must be the one immortalized by a painting on the ceiling on the sala of the convento. The present church, the 5th, was started by Rev. Fr. Julio Saldana, a Recollect, in 1863. This was a meter more in length than the older one, but 9 meters more in width, and 6 meters more in height. The first level façade was completed in 1879. Fr. Saldana had his name and date when the church was finished written on the frieze above the principal arcade. Come January 1884, the 4 arches supported by a column holding up the cupola collapsed. Repairs were made; a second tower was built but left unfinished as it stands today. In 1884, a convent was constructed by Fr. Joseph B. de Rafaez. The upper level of the façade of the church was completed in the early 1920’s by. Rev. Fr. Natalio del Mar. The church was consecrated by Bishop Juan Gorordo of Cebu on August 23, 1923. 61 years after Fr. Saldana laid its cornerstone, a cross was installed over the pediment in the year 1924. The convent constructed in 1884 was eventually renovated and utilized as Formation and Day Care Centers. The church of Our Lady of the Assumption is a center for Marian pilgrimages emanating from the different towns of Bohol. On certain occasions, the Tagbilaran faithful hike the distance from their city to the site to invoke special petitions or mainly to honor Our Lady. A well, known for its water’s healing power, lies at the foot of the main altar. Local history tells that this well originated from the Spanish era. Pirates often attacked Christian settlements and it was during one such attack that the people took refuge behind locked doors of the church. Besieged by the enemy for days, the people run out of food and water. The well miraculously sprang up and since then has become the source of drinking water for the populace nearby, especially during droughts. The water tastes truly fresh, despite the well’s closeness to the seashore. The image of the patron saint, Our Lady of the Assumption, is famed to be miraculous, too. (So many petitions of her devotees are granted!) Tales from time to time crop up that the patron saint’s attire is filled with amorsico, a vexing weed. The faithful believe that their Mother goes around Her domain as she watches over Her children. Dauis church is a pilgrimage site, with the pilgrims carrying empty containers to take home water from the miraculous well. Back to Bohol Philippines
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