The Gaston Mansion—also known as Hacienda Santa Rosalia or the Gaston Ancestral House—is a beautifully preserved two-story ancestral home built in the 1930s by sugar baron José M. Gaston on his 120-hectare hacienda in Manapla, Negros Occidental. Situated amidst endless sugarcane fields, the mansion features elegant French‑Creole furnishings adapted to the Philippine tropical climate, seven spacious balconies overlooking meticulously landscaped gardens with Victorian fountains, a classic swimming pool (used as a hiding place during WWII), a windmill, basketball court, pond, and even a whimsical “shoe house” playground. |UnknownCebu|
A unique spiritual highlight is the Chapel of the Cartwheels—an open-air chapel constructed from repurposed wooden farm cartwheels shaped like a salakot‑inspired cone, symbolizing elements of faith. Famously immortalized as “Hacienda Lorenzo” in the iconic 1982 film Oro, Plata, Mata, the mansion serves today under the care of the family, offering guided heritage tours complete with heirloom-family buffet lunches served in the original dining hall—an immersive journey into Negrense haciendero life. |UnknownCebu|
To get there, one has to traverse an old unpaved dirt road for about two kilometers inland until you reach the gates of the mansion. You have to call in advance for an appointment or reservation before trying to enter as they do not cater walk-ins.
|U.C.S|
Sources:
“Hacienda Rosalia.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Last modified March 2025. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hacienda_Rosalia (accessed July 2, 2025).
“Oro, Plata, Mata” Ancestral Home of the Gaston Family. Rappler. Last modified March 26, 2019. https://www.rappler.com/…/41757-oro-plata-mata-gaston…/ (accessed July 2, 2025).
UnknownCebu. Interview with the house caretaker at Gaston Mansion, Manapla, Negros Occidental. June 9, 2025.
The Pinoy Byahero. “Gaston Mansion @ Hacienda Sta Rosalia, Manapla, Negros Occidental.” The Pinoy Byahero, April 17, 2011. https://pinoybyahero.blogspot.com/…/gaston-mansion… (accessed July 2, 2025).
McAdam, Gina Consing, and Siobhán Doran. Houses That Sugar Built: An Intimate Portrait of Philippine Ancestral Homes. Hardbound. Oakland: ORO Editions, 2024.
