Sagada

According to legend, Sagada was founded as an ili or village by Biag, a man from Bika in eastern Abra.^[5] The people from Bika were forced out of their ili by raiding headhunters. Biag's family resettled in Candon, Ilocos but when baptism or the giving of names was enforced, Biag's family chose to move back toward the mountains in search for a settlement. Along the way, he and his siblings decided to part ways. A brother, Balay, chose to return to Candon, a sister to Abra. Another brother settled along the upper Abra River. Biag pushed further to the east until he came to what is now Sagada.

Perhaps for lack of transportation and willing guides, few conquistadors set foot in Sagada during the Spanish Era, and a Spanish Mission was not founded until 1882^{[citation needed]}. As a result, it is one of a few places in the Philippines that has preserved its indigenous culture with little Spanish influence.

Anglican missionaries led by Rev. Fr. John Staunton built the Church of Saint Mary the Virgin and founded St. Mary's School, Sagada in 1904.^[6][7]

Sagada was one of several municipalities in Mountain Province which would have been flooded by the Chico River Dam Project during the Marcos dictatorship, alongside Bauko, Bontoc, Sabangan, Sadanga, and parts of Barlig.^[8] However, the indigenous peoples of Kalinga Province and Mountain Province resisted the project and when hostilities resulted in the murder of Macli-ing Dulag, the project became unpopular and was abandoned before Marcos was ousted by the 1986 People Power Revolution.^[9]

In 1983, refugees fleeing the Beew massacre (in which the 623rd Philippine Constabulary burned down Sitio Beew in Tuba, Abra, claiming that they were "rebel sympathizers") were forced to take refuge in the Church of the St. Mary, where they were given succor by Fr. Paul Sagayo Jr. until they could finally be aided by Atty Pablo Sanidad of the Free Legal Assistance Group and journalist Isidoro Chammag of the Bulletin Today.^{[10]: 197–198}

Sagada is nestled in a valley at the upper end of the Malitep tributary of the Chico River some one and a half kilometers above sea level in the Central Cordillera Mountains, enveloped between the main Cordillera Ranges and the Ilocos Range. Mount Data in the south and Mount Kalawitan in the southeast pierce the horizon. Mount Polis, Bessang and Mount Tirad in the east, and Mount Sisipitan in the north mark the Mountain Province–Abra boundary. There are limestone mountains throughout Sagada. This part of Luzon used to be submerged in the ocean tens of millions of years ago, and fossilized seashells can be found in the walls of Sumaguing Cave.

Sagada is politically subdivided into 19 barangays. Each barangay consists of puroks and some have sitios.

Under the Köppen climate classification, Sagada features a subtropical highland climate (‘’Cwb’’). The area averages 2,835 mm of precipitation annually, the bulk of which falls between the months of May and October. Temperatures are relatively consistent throughout the course with average daily temperatures ranging from around 17 to 20 degrees Celsius.

Seeing that the Roman Catholicism in the Philippines has long been established, missionary Charles Henry Brent mentioned that "we are not building an altar over and against another altar," thus focusing Episcopal missionary activity among the Filipino-Chinese in Manila, the tribes in Mindanao and the tribes of northern Luzon. Since the coming of missionaries from the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States, the municipality of Sagada has become the only Philippine town that is predominantly Anglican with almost 95% baptised into the Episcopal Church of the Philippines (ECP). A known landmark at the centre of town is the Church of St. Mary the Virgin, a vibrant Episcopal parish. In 2004, the ECP celebrated its centennial with much of the festivities centered on the town of Sagada.

Poverty incidence of Sagada

Since the climate is similar to those of Benguet, its crops are likewise temperate products such as cabbage, tomatoes, green pepper, potatoes, carrots, beans, and others. Between 1882 and 1896, the Spanish colonizers introduced Arabica coffee: a source of income since the American occupation. Citrus, mainly lemon, lime and Valencia oranges were introduced from Spain by Jaime Masferre to provide the needs of American missionaries and employees of the Mission of Saint Mary the Virgin. During the American Period, the Americans introduced products like strawberries, and peaches due to its cooler, highland rainforest climate.

In recent years, tourism has also grown to contribute significantly to the local economy. Inns, restaurants, tour guide services, and other tourism-related industries have also grown rapidly. The municipal government also collects significant amounts through the environmental fee it charges each tourist, as well as through the taxes levied on local businesses.

Sagada, belonging to the lone congressional district of the province of Mountain Province, is governed by a mayor designated as its local chief executive and by a municipal council as its legislative body in accordance with the Local Government Code. The mayor, vice mayor, and the councilors are elected directly by the people through an election which is being held every three years.

Members of the Municipal Council (2022–2025):^[24]

• Congressman: Maximo Y. Dalog Jr.
• Mayor: Felicito O. Dula
• Vice-Mayor: David T. Buyagan
• Councilors:
  • Andrea Taltala
  • Kapon Gomgom-o
  • Mokyat Aclayan
  • Raynold Davis Dapliyan
  • Tambol Padawil
  • Fermin Lumbaya
  • Benjamin Capuyan
  • Felicito Kibayan Jr.

Sagada has many natural wonders, including:

Other notable places include:

• The Church of St. Mary the Virgin
• The gravesite of Philippine history scholar William Henry Scott

• Eduardo Masferré - Filipino-Catalan photographer regarded as the Father of Philippine photography.^[27]
• William Henry Scott - Historian and Episcopalian missionary best known for numerous books on the Cordilleran peoples and on Precolonial Philippines.^[28]

• Sagada was featured in the Filipino film, Don't Give Up on Us, and That Thing Called Tadhana.
• Sagada was featured in an episode of Locked Up Abroad.
• In the "Death" episode of The Moaning of Life, Karl Pilkington visits Sagada to see a local community's cliffside burial techniques.

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  Rice terraces in Sagada
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  Varieties of Sagada coffee
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  Hanging coffins in Echo Valley
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  Hanging coffins in Echo Valley

• Official website
• Philippine Standard Geographic Code
• Philippine Census Information
• Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism on Sagada Archived 2011-09-27 at the Wayback Machine