Lolo Bomboy
dear diary,
![]() |
| Impong Bibiana (seated) and Impong Andrang (standing) |
in january of 2001, i recall i tried to publish the BM FAMILY TREE REPORTER... I was hoping that i would have the time as assistant clan historian to continue the effort to bring everyone an update on the Bibiana Cuevas Madrid family tree project inasmuch as the BM Clan newsletter had in the meantime gone out of circulation....but even this BM FAMILY TREE REPORTER did not materialize for reasons known only to me and which i don't even remember now... at any rate, i still have a copy of the supposed maiden issue of this reporter...like I said, the supposed first issue was entitled " An update on the Bibiana Cuevas Madrid Family Tree Project...
in it, was a brief review of the family tree of of Bibiana Cuevas Madrid based on the Ate Aurora's report in the first quarter 1999 issue of the BM Clan newsletter...
From that report, we can glean the following information:
1. Bibiana Cuevas Madrid, our "impo" or grandmother, was born to Catalina Cuevas and Roverto Madrid, son of Gil Madrid... She was born on December 24, 1867 in Penaranda, Nueva Ecija and she died on May 30, 1957, and was buried in Munoz, Nueva Ecija...
2. Bibiana's first marriage was to Silvestre Hernandez with whom she had two daughters: Felipa and Teofila..
3. Bibiana married Silvino Alarilla Jimenez after her first husband died....Silvino was the son of Rufino and Elena Concepcion Jimenez of San Nicolas, Gapan, Nueva Ecija...Born to this marriage were Felicisimo,Anita Florentina, and Juana...
![]() |
| from left to right: Tefila, Felipa, Felicisimo, Anita Florenina, Juana |
" Despite all the odds confronting her, our impo was able to support all her children, five in all. Our impo should be admired and immortalized for her steadfast courage, utter determination, presence of mind and strong-willed personality...."
(by Kuyang Teodoro J. Acejas, email dated may 4,1999)
The Family Branch of Felipa Hernandez and Teofila Hernandez:
Felipa Hernandez married Casiano Aves of Penaranda, Nueva Ecija...They had the following children: Rufino, Benjamin,Romulo, Luzviminda, Honor Aves Chandler, and Perlynn Aves Zanis...
Teofila Hernandez married Fernando "Andoy" Paulino of San Miguel, Bulacan... They had the following children: Silvestre, Estelita, Fe, Myrna, and Bienvenido....
a brief history of the Hernandez branch of the family:
In connection with the family branch of Felipa Hernandez, we would like to include here the contents of an email report dated June 1, 1999, submitted by Sorcio Hernandez, a second cousin of the grandchildren of Bibiana Madrid and Silvestre Hernandez...including Rufino, Benjamin, Romulo, Luzviminda, Honor and Perlynn Aves and Silvestre, Estelita, Fe, Myrna, and Bienvenido Paulino...the said email of Sorcio Hernandez states:
The Hernandezes came from Bulacan (per my father Rosendo Gamboa
Hernandez' account). Dionisio Hernandez was the first to reach Peñaranda. He was a
teacher appointed by the Spanish government to teach grammar. Also called Maestro Dionisio, he sired two sons.
The elder, Isidoro Hernandez, married Florencia of the distinguishedGamboa family. He died a captain of the Philippine Army of the Aguinaldo government against the American invaders. He was under the command of Brig. Gen. UrbanoLacuna of Gapan, N.E. Later, his unit was attached to the regiment of Lt. Gen. Pio del Pilar which blocked the forces of Gen. Lawton at San Isidro. Their purpose was to delay the Americans in their pursuit of Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo. The then Generalissimo of the Army and President of the Republic was in flight from the Americans and escaping towards the northern provinces. Capt. Isidoro died in this battle probably in Oct. 1899, leaving behind a young son and a pregnant wife.
My orphaned father, Rosendo Gamboa Hernandez, was raised by his godfather Cabesang Aurelio Jardiel. His elder brother, Pedro, died of cholera in his teens and so my father was the only surviving son of Captain Isidoro.
Unfortunately for my father, his guardian discouraged him from attending school even though it was free and compulsory. Cabesang Aurelio said that the Americans would teach the children their language so that they could be conscripted as workers and slaves of the invaders.
My father married Felipa Canlas and the union was blessed with thirteen children: Pedro, Maria, Ramon, Agripina, Lucia, Carmen, Felicisima, Julia, Felisa, Consorcio, Elsa, Jaime and Emma. Pedro died in infancy while Felicisima (a classmate of Luzviminda Aves, her second cousin) died at age 13, just before graduating from elementary school.
Isidoro's widow, Florencia Gamboa, remarried someone with the family
name of Bahacan. Her second marriage produced three children: Alberto, Barbara, and Leandro.
According to Amang Paulino and other sources, the younger son,Silvestre Hernandez (Maestro Beteng), followed the footsteps of his father and eventually became a teacher under the American military government. He married Bibiana Madrid. Silvestre also died early leaving behind two young daughters.
The elder daughter, Felipa Hernandez, married Casiano M. Aves. Her husband was appointed by Commonwealth President Manuel L. Quezon as town mayor of Peñaranda in 1939. Casiano continued as holdover mayor in 1942 under the Japanese military government. He was re-elected after independence was declared.
The younger daughter, Pilang Hernandez, married Fernando Guansing Paulino.
Maestro Beteng's widow remarried and her second husband was Silvino Jimenez.
Per my father's account, the Peñaranda market site belonged to their grandfather, Maestro Dionisio, in addition to a large tract of agricultural land in Laur, N.E. that is now part of Palayan City. This account is buttressed by historical facts. During the Spanish regime, only educated people owning land were allowed to vote. Presumably, the landholdings were awarded to Dionisio because of his position as a government teacher.
My father further related to me that his cousin-in-law, MayorCasiano, told him that the one-block property presently occupied by the Peñaranda public market was donated to the municipal government by the Hernandez heirs. It was only during our Fairview reunion that Ted mentioned that lands were sold and the proceeds partly used by the wife of Silvestre, Bibiana Madrid, to
acquire the Muñoz properties. Whether the lands sold included the market site is not clear.
All along, my father's understanding was that the town property was merely donated. Be that as it may, I only mention this because of historical and human-interest twist. The large tract of land in Laur was likewise sold to the Maravilla family which in turn sold it to another family and the property eventually ended up as an Iglesia ni Cristo residential settlement.
And so the short story of the original Hernandez family ended in poverty.
The children of the eldest and second son all grew up uneducated. I hope that this will somehow contribute to your bm family tree, even only as a footnote.
Info on Fernando Paulino:
In his email dated May 4, 1999, kuyang Teodoro J. Acejas wrote:
The late Fernando Paulino was from San Miguel,Bulacan, He is another one belonging to an illustrious family... scattered all over the island. At age 19, he emigrated to Hawaii first, then eventually settled in San Francisco. He established his own laundry shop here and all his workers were the early chinese settlers of America. He stayed for 35 years in San Francisco and then came home for good.. It was really very unfortunate that he did not apply for US citizenship before going home, probably because he did not think that he would be able to raise a family at his age at the time..."
additional Info on Silvestre Hernandez:
Kuyang Ted in the said email also stated that the "late Silvestre Hernandez was from San Rafael, Bulacan. He came from a very distinguished and illustrious family. As a matter of fact, there is a place in San Rafael where everbody has the surname "Hernandez", and extending way up to Sta. Maria, also of Bulacan..."
Impo should be admired and immortalized:
In the same email, Kuyang Ted said this of Impo or Bibiana Cuevas Madrid:
" Despite all the odds confronting her, our impo was able to support all her children, five in all. Our impo should be admired and immortalized for her steadfast courage, utter determination, presence of mind and strong-willed personality...."
info on Silvino Jimenez:
Regarding the activities of our late grandfather - As a salesman, he was
doing his business alone and getting all his merchandise from "Tia Bora"
a relative of our Impo who had a big general merchandise store in
Cabanatuan at the time. I supposed Ate should know this information
or Kaka Ipang Benit. He was getting all his merchandise on credit and
will pay them when he returns to get the same merchandise on the same
term.
He was selling the usual household stuffs, such as petromax, gas, salt,
sugar, mosquito nets, salted fish (bagoong) and other incidental stuffs.
At the time, there was no electric lights, so he was selling mostly
petromax and gas to light.
Commentary of the family tree project:
"As you know, we are still in the process of putting together all the necessary input to the 'Family Tree' and without any shred of doubt, the most valuable piece of written instrument that we could ill afford not to have embarked upon. By and through this instrument, all the ensuing generations will be able to trace and remember their ancestral beginnings and where they are nwo..."(Solidarity by Teodoro J. Acejas, Fall 1998, Bm Clan Newsletter)
