Canovas Sawmill was built on April 3, 1923 at Baryong Lagi (Old Barrio), Bgy. Mabini in the Southeastern part of El Nido. The sawmill was owned by the Canovas family, one of the first Spanish families in El Nido during the late 19th Century.
With a simple celebration in the morning of April 3, 2023, the Bgy. Council of Mabini and the Municipal Tourism Office led a program for the residents to look back to the ruins’ 100-year history. Bgy. Captain Ruel Igam welcomed the participants and laid his plan for Mabini’s tourism development which will start with the construction of tourist information center at the Baryong Lagi. Meanwhile, Bgy. Councilor Angelina Pabilona, Committee Chairperson on Tourism, read the Bgy. Resolution declaring Canovas Ruins as Bgy. Heritage Site.
The program was highlighted by the speech of Ms. Ma. Luisa Rey-Sabroso representing the Rey family, relatives of the Canovas family. She narrated how the Canovas family started the lumber business in Dumaran and eventually moved to Oton, the present-day Mabini, and built the sawmill. She also mentioned the kitchen utensils left by the Canovas family to the Rey Family that they never thought would be so historically valuable today. She was delighted by the initiatives of the government and expressed willingness to give permission for the display of the said items in a secure place in the future.
The program ended with the cultural presentations from the students and the barangay officials themselves. In the afternoon, the participants visited the visual art exhibit about the 100-year history at the Barangay Covered Court.
El Nido Heritage 