Tabalon, Carlos Joaquin R. 2024. “Luzon’s Once Extensive Railways.” Review of The Colonial Iron Horse: Railroads and Regional Development in the Philippines, 1875-1935, by Arturo G. Corpuz. TALA: An Online Journal of History 7 (1): 185-194.

Abstract

The Philippines’ experience with rail transport may be characterized as one that is riddled with underappreciation towards the latter. Nevertheless, Arturo G. Corpuz has proven in his book, The Colonial Iron Horse: Railroads and Regional Development in the Philippines, 1875–1935 (1999), that a diligent look at repositories both in the Philippines and abroad allows the reconstruction of the still-nascent subject of the history of rail transportation in the Philippines. Corpuz shows in The Colonial Iron Horse that beyond simply moving people and freight, Luzon’s once extensive railways were also a significant factor in the development of its towns in the period straddling the latter part of the Spanish colonial period to the beginning of the Commonwealth period. Despite Corpuz not being a trained historian, The Colonial Iron Horse has remained an unparalleled work in Philippine railway history. Beyond documenting Luzon’s formerly extensive railway system and discussing its role in shaping the historical trajectories of different places, Corpuz’ work is also a useful guide book in our presently transport crisis-laden cities illustrating that transportation infrastructure should always take into account local realities for it to be efficient, economical, and beneficial.

Keywords: colonial iron horse, railways, railway history, regional development, Luzon