42. LA INSULAR CIGAR & CIGARETTE FACTORY in Binondo

Turn of the Century postcard of La Insular Cigar and Cigarette Factory

 

Postcard  by Lambert

The La Insular Cigar & Cigarette Factory was a famous landmark in Binondo before the war. The factory together with Hotel Oriente and other building in its surrounding was ravaged by fire during the liberation of Manila in 1944.  It is very unfortunate that this important landmark was lost.  Now the Wellington building stood on the former site of the factory.

In my collection I have some old postcards, photos and cigarette labels of La Insular which I would like to share. The photos depict the daily life of tobacco workers inside the factory.  Here is a glimpse of the glory days of the La Insular Cigar and Cigarette Factory.

Sepia toned postcard of the factory

Postcard of the factory with
Binondo Church belfry at the background

History:  La Insular, Plaza Calderon de la Barca Plaza Calderon de la Barca in Binondo retained most of the period houses and buildings built during the 19th century. One of those was the La Insular Building. The company of La Insular was founded by Joaquin Santamarina way back during Spanish colonial times. In 1878, Santamarina decided to go into the tobacco manufacturing business. He stored tobacco leaves in a warehouse for five years before he went into manufacturing. In 1883, he used five-year old tobacco leaves to make his cigars and La Insular was born.

The building of La Insular was built in 1888 at Plaza Calderon de la Barca with Juan Jose Hervas, then Manila's Municipal Architect as designer. Designed along Moorish lines, the building became a notable landmark in Binondo's major plaza, together with the old Hotel de Oriente. As a business, La Insular continued to be an economic presence in the

Philippines until the prewar years.

Turn of the century photo of the La Insular building
beside the Hotel de Oriente on the left.

La Insular exported cigars and tobacco to different countries abroad, with the majority going to the United States and England. Its Tres Coronas were especially favored by the English. One of the best customers of La Insular was King Alfonso XIII of Spain. He gave the company royal authority to name a cigar, "King Alfonso XIII" with his own signature.

The La Insular building retained its old Spanish period building in Binondo. It was later destroyed by fire caused by bombs during the Second World War.

Source: Binondo In The Twentieth Century by Lorelei D.C. de Viana

Photos inside the La Insular Factory

La Insular's tobacco workers

Tobacco being sorted

Packaging of the cigars

La Insular's cigar factory line

La Insular's cigar storage room

Large humidifiers to control the humidity  in the room.

Large stacks of tobacco inside the warehouse

Dried tobacco leaf  being sorted out.

Insular storage room with nice poster of the factory

La Insular's display room for its finest cigars and cigartte

Delivery trucks of La Insular

 La Insular's Cigarette Wrappers

HEBRA

HEBRA 30 Cigarillios, Plaza De Binondo

HEBRA 5 Cigarillios, Plaza De Binondo

HEBRA 30 Cigarillios, Plaza De Binondo, 18 centavos

HEBRA 30 Cigarillios, Plaza De Binondo, 25 centavos

HEBRA 30 Cigarillios, Fuerte, Plaza De Binondo,

HERMINAL

MATAMIS 30 Cigarillios,Hebra Especial

REGALIZ 30 Cigarillios,Hebra Especial

LA INSULA MAITIM, MAHABA 30 Cigarillios, Entre Fuerte