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San Jose del Monte (SJDM), officially the City of San Jose del Monte (; ), is a component city in the province of Bulacan, Philippines. According to the , it has a population of people, making it the largest local government unit within the province of Bulacan and Central Luzon, and the 18th most populated city in the Philippines.
It was proclaimed as a component city on 10 September 2000, through Republic Act No. 8797. Its conversion into a highly urbanized city was by virtue of Proclamation No. 1057 issued by President Rodrigo Duterte on 4 December 2020; the conversion was rejected on a referendum held on 30 October 2023, by the voters of Bulacan including the concerned city.
San José del Monte derived its name from Saint Joseph, whose statue was found in a veritable forest. The hunters called it as such, which means “Saint Joseph of the Mountain” in Spanish.
History
Early accounts of the founding of the city, as gathered from the old people, contend that it was formerly a part of the town of Meycauayan. This is supported by a decree from the Archbishop of Manila dated March 1750 on the creation of new municipalities. The municipality of San Jose del Monte was then officially founded on 2 March 1752.
In all probability, the hunters reported their findings to the parish priest of Meycauayan. It was said that the priest built a stone church at the site where the town proper is now located. The statue was installed in the new church. Extant Catholic Church records reveal that the first parish priest was Father Antonio de Moral. He took charge of the parish in 1845.
During the revolt against Spain, the town became a battleground between the Katipuneros and the Spanish forces. The revolutionaries lost and the vengeful Spanish soldiers burned down the settlement. The townspeople fled for their lives to nearby towns. At the advent of American rule, it was made a part of Santa Maria until 1918 when the town was recreated and Ciriaco Gallardo appointed the first municipal president. Public schools were opened at the start of the American regime but due to the scarcity of the population, the highest grade organized was at the fourth grade.
thumb|left|Gerilyerong San Joseño monument, which symbolizes the local's resilience during the Japanese occupation
During the Japanese occupation, the town became an ideal hiding place for the locally recognized guerrillas because of the town's hilly and wooden terrain. The Japanese Imperial Army took over the local government of San Jose del Monte from 1942 to 1943. In resistance, the municipality formed its guerrilla unit. San Jose del Monte experienced large casualties when the Americans bombed the town center on 11 January 1945, and again on 14 January 1945. When the combined Filipino and American troops came, peace reigned but not for long.
At the height of the Hukbalahap Rebellion, the town was raided on 10 October 1950. The Huks burned down the town hall. The town was raided for the second time on 21 March 1951. The Huks did not succeed because of the precautionary measures instituted by the town officials after which the Huks were gradually eliminated.
In the 1980s, thousands of informal settlers from Metro Manila were relocated to San Jose del Monte. Due to the large number of residents, Bulacan Governor Roberto Pagdanganan recalled in 1996 that the relocation did not ensure new livelihoods for its informal settlers, thus turning many squatters toward criminality; he noted that the town had the highest crime rate in the province according to police reports.
In 1988, Eduardo Roquero was elected mayor of the municipality by a margin of eight (8) votes against his closest opponent, reelectionist Reynaldo Villano.
thumbnail|left|Saint Peter the Apostle Church (San Jose del Monte) balcony-gallery in 2015
Cityhood
2000 plebiscite and later events
In December 1999, district representative Angelito Sarmiento filed the bill converting the then municipality of San Jose del Monte into a component city. This was approved on July 15, 2000 as Republic Act No. 8797.