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Region 6: Western Visayas ••• Iloilo Muelle Loney From the fort, San Pedro Drive loops following the flow of the Iloilo River. This brings you to the International Port. The port of Iloilo was opened to international trade by a Royal order dated 29 September 1855. Nicolas Loney, first British vice-consul, landed at this port on 31 July 1856; Sir John Bowring, Hong Kong governor, visited the port in 1859. On 2 March of that same year, the first direct exportation of sugar left for Melbourne, Australia on board the rig Pet and the first importation of sugar mill machinery from Glasgow, Britain arrived in 1863.Expect traffic as you pass the port area, especially if a ship is docked or is loading and unloading cargo. Upstream is the dock for fast ferries to Bacolod. The port is a picturesque place with vessels of every kind, from international cargo ships, to wooden fishing trawlers and even to smaller vessels (although the dock for such vessels is on Ortiz and near the mouth of the Iloilo River). Occasionally you might find a batel. This is a plank-built wooden ship, propelled by jib and triangular sail, which was once very common throughout the Visayas for cargo and passengers. The batel has all but disappeared; there is only one community at Nueva Valencia on Guimaras Island which makes and repairs the batel. Occupying a block along Muelle Loney is the Aduana or Customs Building built during the American colonial period. It is a copy of the Immigration building in Manila, whose characteristic is a tall tower that rises at the center of the building. Beside it is Iloilo's City Hall. Also along Muelle Loney was the Iloilo station of the railroad that crossed Panay Island, south to north. Running a total of 95 kilometers the railroad system linked Iloilo with Capiz and the interior towns, running through the upland towns of Dueñas, Passi, and Cuartero. The railroad has ceased operating for almost three decades. The construction of paved roads crisscrossing Panay Island has rendered the railroad obsolete. In its day, the railroad was a leisurely journey through picturesque countryside, passing through tobacco and rice fields, the Central Azucarera de Passi, up the mountain range that separates Iloilo from Capiz, until the train descends to the narrow coastal plains of Capiz. Muelle Loney is named after the vice-consul, Nicolas Loney, who spurred the growth of the sugar industry in Iloilo. A monument and a historical marker to him can found in the pier. The marker tells us that he was born in Plymouth, Devonshire, England in 1826. He arrived in Manila in 1851, became British vice-consul in 1856 when he went to Iloilo. He founded Loney and Co., exporting sugar and importing machinery from England. He died 22 April 1869 and is buried in Iloilo.
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