Moncado White House

Moncado White House

This is the Moncado White House, an old ancestral house that has become as famous as its illustrious owner, the late General Hilario Moncado, founder and supreme commander-in-chief of the Filipino Crusaders World Army (FCWA) - whose followers are referred to as "Moncadians", a religious sect known for their strict observance of raw food and vegetarian diet and whose male followers used to sport long hairs and long beards, which its members thought to "shadow" the face of God.

The old Moncado house, known locally as "The White House", is a two-storey house with an attic constructed mostly of wooden materials, that sits on top of a hill of the 19-hectare land called Camp 19 in Barangay Limao in the Island Garden City of Samal, an island just off the coast of Davao City, overlooking the picturesque Gulf of Davao and the city itself in the background. While the old structure has sadly become dilapidated over time, it has remained one of the most popular attractions in the Island, frequented by locals, domestic travelers in the country and foreign tourists as well. 

Bust of General Hilario Moncado

Inside of the Moncado White House

Inside of the Moncado White House

The owner, Hilario Camino Del Prado Moncado, was born on November 4, 1898 in Pondol, Balamban, Cebu, Philippines to a very wealthy and influential family whose father, Monsigñor Fermin Moncado Del Prado, was a Spanish friar commissioned by the Vatican to the Philippines, and a close descendant of the royal family of Spain. His mother was a Spanish Mestiza named, Celia Camino.

Hilario Camino Moncado (middle) in Berlin (1931)

Moncado was multi-talented in the first order: At the tender age of nine, he graduated with honors from the College of Mystery and Psychics in Calcutta, India. At age 13, he authored several publications as "Watch 1927-1935", "Equifrilibricum", "Sun, Moon and the Star", "Matahari of India", "Mikado of Japan", "Re-Vizaya of the Philippines" and "Divinity of Woman". He fluently spoke 11 languages and could also speak and understand three Filipino dialects: Hiligaynon, Tagalog, and Ilonggo. He was a pianist, a dancer, and an avid golfer. He was owner and editor of the Filipino Nation, a semi-monthly Filipino magazine published in English which he established in Los Angeles, California on November 1, 1924 and was the only Filipino to be ever listed in the billionaire's association in America and in Europe. In 1925, in Los Angeles, California, USA, Moncado founded the Filipino Crusaders World Army and became its  supreme commander-in-chief. He was a member of the 1934 Constitutional Convention and ran for President in the 1946 elections against Manuel Roxas and Sergio Osmeña but lost. However, Moncado passed away at a relatively young age of 57 in 1958.

Ker Mansion

Ker Mansion

This was the old mansion of Robert Ker that used to stand elegantly on the highest elevated ground near the corner of J. P. Laurel Avenue and Buhangin Road in Bajada, Davao City. It was a renowned landmark because of its historical value and significance in the early years of the city when Davao became the center of abaca production in the Philippines in the 1920s largely due to Ker.

Robert Ker was a businessman from Scotland who came to Davao in the 1800s and established his abaca plantation and trading business called Ker and Company. He purchased a piece of land and built the white European-style mansion which became his residence and base of operation for many years. The land was verdant with old acacia trees and the mansion was perched on the highest vantage point of the property giving him a 360-degree view of his vast abaca plantation in the area. Ker leased the neighboring lands and further expanded his plantation, while farmers in the community started to grow abaca for him.

However, Ker ceased his abaca operations in 1961 but continued his distribution business and the Mansion was then used as residence of his company's branch manager in Davao up to the time it was sold to Camella in March 2009.

The mansion was also used by the Japanese Imperial forces as headquarters during World War II.

The Ker Mansion at the corner of J. P. Laurel Avenue and Buhangin Road in Bajada

Today, while this old British Colonial-inspired structure is still there, much of it had been renovated and converted into a clubhouse now named Wakefield Manor when Camella Communities, a local developer in Davao, bought the 2.8 hectare property and converted the land into a pine estate condominium community called Camella Northpoint.

Wakefield Manor Clubhouse of Camella Northpoint

View from the Mansion

While Robert Ker was a Scot by birth, he is fondly remembered by Davaoeños, most especially the descendants of his many loyal employees who told stories of him bestowing his land to their families. This bond was strengthened by the citation given by the National Historical Commission to Ker and Company as one of the top 10 oldest companies in the Philippines. 

Both Ker and his once old mansion remain an indelible part of Davao’s rich history: Ker, as one of its foreign inhabitants who became purveyors of commercial development; and the Mansion which, for  several decades, was an imposing sight that once stood magnificently in all its former grandeur - a silent witness to Davao’s transformation, from its humble plantation years to the bustling metropolis that it is now fast becoming.