Located at the intersection of the old Calle de Paco and Calle de San Catauna (now Padre Faura and General Luna Streets), the cemetery was constructed by virtue of an administrative order in 1807 following a cholera epidemic which ravaged Manila late in the 18th century. Don Nicolas Ruiz drew the blueprint of the graveyard while Jose Call supervised the construction which was finished on April 22, 1822; although by that time it had already been in use for two years. This cemetery of Paco (then known, as the village of San Fernando de Dilao, a part of Bagumbayan) consisted of two concentric stone walls, 14 feet high and 10 feet apart. The outer wall was built by a Chinese for P19,700, when Governor-General Fernando de Norzagaray enlarged the area to some 4,500 square yards. The inner wall enclosing the area of about 250 feet in diameter, has three semi-circular arches which form the entrances to numerous arched, oven-like receptacles -- some 200 to 300 of them -- bored against the wall, enough to receive the coffins. Within the inner circle and set against the wall is a dome-shaped chapel where the remains of Spanish Governors and Bishops were kept. At the back of the chapel is a smaller structure, the Angelorio and a recess in it, the Ossario. In the former were kept the remains of infants and children while in the latter, the bones of the dead buried in the receptacles for some time. It had been the practice to open up the niches of the dead long buried, their bones transferred to the Ossario, thus leaving the receptacles good for other interments. Dr. Jose Rizal was buried here after his execution on December 30, 1896. Recently converted into a national park, the Paco Cemetery has become a popular promenade where frequent weddings are held. It is no longer used as a graveyard. (also see CH00770)

Album de Manila 1863

(Manila) Vista Interior Del Cementerio General de Paco