were only 160 taxpayers then but the law required that it should have at least 500 taxpayers. Located some north of Pampanga's capital, Culiat became a barrio of San Fernando for 33 years and on December 8, 1829, became a separate municipality. The newly-autonomous town was renamed "" in honor of its patron saints, the Holy Angels, and the name of its founder, Don Ángel, coinciding with the rise of new barrios such as Santo Cristo (as the población or town proper), Cutcut, Pampang and Pulong Anunas. The progressive barrios developed some new industries like a sugar mill and a wine distillery. The transition of Angeles from a jungle clearing to a barrio, to a town and finally to a city took 168 years and in all that time, it survived locusts' infestations, wars, epidemics, volcanic eruptions and typhoons to become one of the fast rising towns in the country. When it received its first official municipal charter, the town contained some 661 people, 151 houses and an area of 38.65 km2. On May 7, 1899, General Emilio Aguinaldo transferred the seat of the First Philippine Republic to Angeles. It then became the site of celebrations for the first anniversary of Philippine independence, which was proclaimed a year earlier in Kawit, Cavite. Events included a parade, led by the youngest ever Filipino generals, Gregorio del Pilar and Manuel Tinio, with General Aguinaldo viewing the proceedings from the Pamintuan Residence, which was the Presidential Palace from May to July 1899 (and later was the Central Bank of the Philippines office in Central Luzon, before its ownership passed to the National Historical Commission of the Philippines). Aguinaldo's sojourn was short, however, for in July of this same year he transferred his government to the province of Tarlac following Angeles' occupation by the American forces. American period On August 10, 1899, U.S. forces began the attack on Angeles confident in capturing it in a few days. However, the Filipino Army defending the town refused to give in so easily and fiercely fought back and for three months, they battled the Americans in and around the town. It was only after the battle on November 5, 1899, that the town finally fell into American hands. The Battle of Angeles was considered to be the longest in the history of the Filipino-American War in Pampanga. This led to the establishment of an American camp in