![Visit the Historical Sites of Nueva Ecija](https://www.vigattintourism.com/assets/article_main_photos/optimize/1344583774KUlYn9fc.jpg)
Nueva Ecija figures in our country's history for its many significant contributions towards Philippine liberty, and its people have kept alive and have zealously protected the many monuments and tributes to their fellowmen who have given their all for freedom.
Camp Pangatian Shrine
Location: Cabanatuan City, Nueva Ecija
Used as a military training camp for twenty years before the war, the camp was converted into a concentration camp for Allied Prisoners-of-War (POWs) by the Japanese imperial forces during the last world war. It serves as a memorial to the Filipino guerillas led by Captains Eduardo I. Joson (Squadron 213) and Juan Pajota (Squadron 201) who effectively prevented the Japanese reinforcements from proceeding to the camp on January 30, 1945, thus bravely rescuing and liberating the 516 allied prisoners-of-war without bloodshed (most of them survivors of the infamous Death March). The rescue, jointly undertaken by Filipino guerillas, Alamo Scouts and the US 6th Ranger Battalion under Lt. Col. Henry Mucci, was described as one of the most daring and successful missions of its type in the annals of US military history. That event is now immortalized in marble in the Pangatian War Memorial. It contains monuments and memorabilia of the events that transpired during the occupation. The roof deck contains a large mural of Filipino and American soldiers carrying each other arms-in-arms in battle. Written on the memorial walls are the names and ranks of the American servicemen imprisoned in the camp (some of them Westpointers). Atop a circular platform are two identical markers from the National Historical Institute, one in English, the other in Filipino. The shrine is maintained and managed by the American Battlesites and Monument Commission while the Pangatian Heroes Hall is owned and maintained by the provincial government of Nueva Ecia. It is located along the Cabanatuan-Palayan road in Brgy. Pangatian or some eight kilometers from the city proper. It is one of the few places in the country where the American flag flies side-by-side with the Filipino flag.
Dalton Pass
Location: Carranglan, Nueva Ecija
About five hectares in size, this place can be reached by any type of motor vehicle via Maharlika Road. Standing on Dalton Pass is a monument of Gen. Dalton, an American military official assigned in the province during World War II.
San Isidro Town
This idyllic town in Nueva Ecija is etched in history as the site if the “First Cry of Nueva Ecija” where Filipino revolutionaries took arms against Spain on September 2, 1896. The fighting, under the leadership of Gen. Mariano Llanera, went on for three days and resulted in the freedom of jailed leaders and members of the revolutionary forces. Gen. Gregorio del Pilar came with his troops to reinforce the Novo Ecijano fighters. That uprising earned for Nueva Ecija the distinction of being immortalized in the Philippine flag as one of the eight provinces that first rose in arms against Spanish rule. San Isidro was once the capital of the Philippines when then President Emilio Aguinaldo transferred his seat of government to the town. It was the capital of Nueva Ecija from 1852 to 1912. The town was once known as “factoria” because a tobacco factory was established there to service the Tobacco Monopoly. It was in San Isidro where the Wright Institute, the first high school outside Manila, was established during the American rule. The school became the Nueva Ecija High School before it transferred to Cabanatuan City several years later. During the Japanese occupation, San Isidro shared with Pampanga and Tarlac the site of the formation of the Hukbo ng Bayan Laban sa Hapon, a Japanese resistance group. The house that Aguinaldo used before he was captured by Gov. Gen. James Wright and Col. Frederick Funston with American troops in Palanan, Isabela has been preserved. All these serve as symbols of history and education for visitors to the town. (Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer, October 1, 2008, by writer Anselmo Roque)
San Isidro Municipal Hall
Location: San Isidro, Nueva Ecija
The building used to be the provincial jail and capitol, when San Isidro was the chief commercial town and capital of Nueva Ecija from the Spanish times until 1912.During the restoration in 1993, workers had excavated and recovered two sacks of 50-cal bullets for machine guns. The place was used as a garrison by the Japanese during the war.
Accommodations
Here is the list of hotels and resorts that can be found in the province of Nueva Ecija located in Cabanatuan City - one of the towns in Nueva Ecija.
- LA PARILLA HOTEL - Zulueta St., Melencio Corner Cabanatuan City
- VILLAGE INN - Mabini Homesite, Cabanatuan City
- FRED'S APARTELLE - 0728 Victoria Mansions, Bitas, Cabanatuan City
- GREENLAND SUITES - Mampulog, Cabanatuan City
- PRIME RESORT AND HOTEL - Mampulog Bitas, Cabanatuan City
- HUNTER VALLEY PLANTATION & RESORT - Brgy. Cabu, Cabanatuan City
- ACROPOLIS NORTH WATER CAMP & COUNTRY CLUB - Cabanatuan City
Restaurants (Cabanatuan City)
- PLAZA LETICIA
- ARCELI'S RESTAURANT
- DE LUXE RESTAURANT
- VICENTICO'S GRILL
- ALLESANDRA'S RESTAURANT
- CHARCOAL GRILL
- Cafe CRISTINA RESTAURANT
- RETRO BAR & RESTAURANT
- MAX'S RESTAURANT
- CIRCLES BAR AND RESTO
- JOEY'S SNACK HOUSE
- CAKELAND
FAST FOOD CHAINS
Jollibee, Mc Donald's, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Greenwich, Red Ribbon, Chowking, and Kenny Roger's Roaster are available at NE Pacific Mall and Mega Center the Mall.
Accessibility
Visitors can reach the province of Nueva Ecija by bus from Manila via Cabanatuan City. There are bus lines (The five star, Philippine Rabit, Baliwag, Saulog transit and Victory Liner) that ply the route to Nueva Ecija. Jeepneys and tricycles are available in the province as a common way of transportation around the province.