Baguio City

Baguio City is a mountain resort city in the Philippines. It lies in an area rich in gold and copper on the island of Luzon. The Philippines was a possession of the United States in the early 1900's. William Howard Taft, the American governor of the Philippines from 1901 to 1904, authorized the construction of a major road to Baguio City. Taft, who later became U.S. President, enjoyed visiting Baguio as an escape from the heat of Manila, the Philippine center of government. Taft commissioned the American architect Daniel H. Burnham, who laid out the modern city of Baguio in 1905. Baguio was nearly destroyed in 1945, during World War II, but was later rebuilt. The Japanese Army made its final stand in the Philippines near Baguio against U.S. forces led by General Douglas MacArthur. In 1990, the city was severely damaged by an earthquake, but was later rebuilt.