Tomás Mapúa

He was the first registered architect in the Philippines, Manila councilor and first worked at the Philippine Bureau of Public Works. He later established his own construction company, the MYT Construction Works, Inc.

• Name — Tomás B. Mapúa • Birth Name — Tomás Bautista Mapúa • Born — 21 December 1888 • Birthplace — Binondo, Manila, Captaincy General of the Philippines • Died — 22 December 1965 • Place of death — Manila, Philippines • Resting Place — La Loma Cemetery • Education — Cornell University • Children — Carmen Oscar Sr. Gloria • Parents — Juan Mapúa Justina Bautista-Mapua • Significant Buildings — Mapúa Mansion, Librada Avelino Hall (Centro Escolar University) • Significant Design — Manila Central Post Office, St. La Salle Hall Don Tomás Bautista Mapúa (December 21, 1888 – December 22, 1965) was a Filipino architect, educator, politician and businessman from the Philippines. He was the founder and first president of the Mapua University. Gonzalo T. Vales as co-founder and founding dean of school and co-founder and founding president of Central Colleges of the Philippines, after he established the school on January 25, 1925. He was the first registered architect in the Philippines, Manila councilor and first worked at the Philippine Bureau of Public Works. He later established his own construction company, the MYT Construction Works, Inc.

Mapúa was born to Juan Mapúa and Justina Bautista-Mapúa on December 21, 1888, in Binondo, Manila. His education started at the Ateneo de Manila University and at the Liceo de Manila, both to finish his primary education. In 1903, he was sent to the United States to complete his high school education as one of the pensionado students of the United States. The 1903 Pensionado Law awarded university scholarships to the US for exemplary Filipino students. In exchange, they agreed to work on local government construction projects. He completed his secondary education at the Boone’s Preparatory School in Berkeley, California, and with the pensionado scholarship obtained a degree in architecture at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. Upon his return to the Philippines, he joined the Bureau of Public Works where he initially worked as a draftsman in the agency from 1912 to 1917. He was later appointed as the supervising architect for the Bureau from 1917 to 1928. He spearheaded many government projects including the Philippine General Hospital Nurses Home, Psychopathic Building (National Mental Hospital) and the School for the Deaf and Blind. He also designed the Manila Central Post Office Building in Ermita, Manila. Tomás became known for his great contributions in the field of architecture. • Illustration — Historical markers of Tomás Mapúa in English and Tagalog placed by the National Historical Institute in 1989. The location of the markers is currently unknown. • Illustration — The façade of St. La Salle Hall, designed by Mapúa in 1920 Around 1916, Mapúa joined the competition for the design of the new school building initiated by the La Sallian Brothers. He won the competition against nine other entries and was awarded with a prize of P5,000.00. (The building, St La Salle Hall, was the only structure from the Philippines to be included in the coffee table book, "1001 Buildings You Must See Before You Die: The World's Architectural Masterpieces," authored by Mark Irving and published by Quintessence Books in 2007.) He was also one of the first councilors of the City of Manila. He co-founded and became one of the presidents of the Philippine Institute of Architects. After retiring from public life, he eventually went back to the private sector. Aside from MIT, he led his own construction firm called MYT Construction Works, Inc. His designs for private homes had also been adjudged as among Manila’s beautiful houses before World War II.

Mapúa was married to Rita Moya on November 3, 1916. They have three children, Carmen, Oscar, and Gloria.

• Illustration — Mapúa's grave at the La Loma Cemetery Mapúa died on December 22, 1965, in Manila, just a day after his 77th birthday.

• Illustration — Aduana de Iloilo (Iloilo Customs House) is the second biggest customs house in the Philippines after the Aduana (Intendencia) de Manila in Intramuros. • 1916: Aduana de Iloilo (Iloilo Customs House) • 1924: St. La Salle Hall • 1928: Manila Central Post Office (with Juan M. Arellano)