seen in the form of a balete tree growing on what was left of a portion of a wall of the old Tribunal House, right in the heart of Santa Catalina, which has become a symbol of the town. An adjacent town, Bayawan, became formally organized in the year 1872. The occupation of Negros Island increased rapidly, and agriculture progressed in an inconceivable manner. The Spanish government, in order to attain better administration, formed and organized the Province of Negros Oriental in the year 1890, completely independent from the Occidental, Dumaguete was made capital of Negros Oriental and Tolong was next to the last town in the south to be within the Province of Negros Oriental. American Regime In the new regime of the American occupation, sometime in the year 1903, the Poblacion of Tolong and Bayawan could not meet the minimum requirement to qualify for a municipality. So the two poblacions were fused together making Bayawan as the main Municipality, calling it Tolong Nuevo, and Tolong was reduced to be a mere Barrio called Tolong Viejo. Japanese Regime When World War II broke out, the Japanese occupied Dumaguete on May 26, 1942. Since Tolong was the headquarters of the Guerrilla Movement under the leadership of Col. Abside with Lt. Gonzalo Melodia and some of his Tolong Viejo defenders, the Japanese visited the place with caution, landing only at dawn and back to Dumaguete in the afternoon. The recognized guerrilla unit was aided by local soldiers of the Philippine Commonwealth Army military units engage to encounter by attacking Japanese troops at Santa Catalina from 1942 to 1945 until retreating of all guerrilla fighters from the enemy hands. The province was liberated on April 26, 1945, by the combined forces of the United States Army, Philippine Commonwealth Army, Philippine Constabulary and the Recognized Guerrillas. Post World War II After the war, in 1945, Congressman Enrique Medina, who considered himself as a son of Tolong Viejo, sponsored a move to separate Tolong Viejo from Tolong Nuevo. On December 17, 1947, President Manuel Roxas issued executive order No. 111, making Santa Catalina (previously Tolong Nuevo) the 26th municipality of Negros Oriental. After which, Tolong Nuevo immediately passed a resolution to rename their municipality Bayawan reviving the former name. Hence, the name TOLONG immediately disappeared. Geography The topography of Santa Catalina is predominantly slightly rolling hills (70% of its area), 25% is flat, and