1945 Bachrach Motor Company Map of Manila

This is a set maps of Manila, the capital of the Philippines, published by the Bachrach Motor Company in October 1945. Published just over 8 months after the Americans liberated Manila, the maps highlight American military bases and other locations across the city.

A Closer Look

This set includes 2 sheets. One sheet (the one with the lighter impression) has the map 'Manila Area North of Pasig River' on the recto and 'Manila Area South of the Pasig River' on the verso. The second sheet has only 'Manila Area North of Pasig River'. Reflecting years of the ongoing war, most locations identified are military installations, ranging from hospitals and quartermaster depots to installations for engineers, radio stations, and signalmen. Other identified locations are monuments, factories, sawmills, and several cemeteries. Bridges are identified by name, and major streets are illustrated and labeled. While it is unknown exactly why these maps were created, given the number of installations identified here, we believe these maps were printed for servicemen stationed in Manila after the war and that they were distributed by Bachrach's taxi company.

Wartime Devastation in Manila

Among the great forgotten tragedies of the Second World War, the Battle of Manila (February - March, 1945) was one of the last large land engagements of the war and a humanitarian disaster. Over 100,000 civilians were killed as both sides indiscriminately leveraged heavy weapons, and Japanese troops committed scorched-earth civilian massacres of civilians before retreating. The participation of Filipinos, who had sided with either the Japanese or Americans and been engaged in a civil war during the Japanese occupation, added to the intensity and ruthlessness of the battle. By the end of the Manilla's retaking, the city was near-fully destroyed.

Emil Bachrach and the Bachrach Motor Company

The Bachrach Motor Company (c. 1907 - c. 1965) was founded by Emanuel Maurice 'Emil' Bachrach (1874 - 1937) a Jewish Belarusian immigrant. Bachrach was born in Belarus and immigrated to the United States in 1892 at the age of 18.  He remained in the U.S., working odd jobs until 1901, when he left for Manila. After arriving in Manila, he worked selling watches. He then established the American Credit Company, a pawn and loan firm that operated out of Plaza Santa Cruz. He started this business with phonographs, a few dressers, some bedsteads, and a sewing machine. His business model found success mostly due to the installment plan payment option he offered. As this company grew, he renamed it the Cosmopolitan Furniture Company.

Thanks to the furniture company's success, Bachrach turned his attention to another venture: automobiles. He secured the Ford Motor Company franchise for Manila (which probably meant the entirety of the Philippines) and soon brought the first Model Ts to the archipelago. Bachrach Motors, expanded to offer Cadillacs, Nash, White Trucks, Saxon, and Overland. Car fever took over the Philippines by 1909, with livery stables converted into garages. Bachrach offered the same installment payment plan at the Bachrach Motor Company, expecting only a 50% deposit at the time of sale. Bachrach and two partners formed the Rapid Transit Company in 1918, Manila's first bus company. Bachrach Garage and Taxicab Company, which Bachrach Motors operated, was Manila's largest taxicab company during the 1910s. In the 1930s, the Bachrach Motor Company began offering American Austin and American Bantam cars, which it sold until the outbreak of the Second World War. Bachrach's success also extended into the community, with several of his former employees moving on to found their own successful businesses. Bachrach also donated funds to build the first synagogue in Manila (destroyed during WWII). The Bachrachs built a palatial mansion, known as 'Casa Blanca' that hosted meetings between Manila's business elites as well as government officials, including Philippine President Manuel Quezon.

Bachrach's business interests later extended into Aviation. He founded the Philippine Aerial Taxi Company (PATCO), the Philippine's first civilian airline, on December 3, 1930. PATCO merged with Philippine Airlines (PAL) on February 26, 1941. PAL inherited PATCO's commercial license, making it Asia's oldest scheduled airline that is still in operation. Bachrach Motor Company continued operating after Emil's death on September 28, 1937, and Mary lived at Casa Blanca until Japanese General Yamashita took it over as his residence in 1944. Casa Blanca became General MacArthur's residence after the liberation, and Mary Bachrach left the Philippines in the early 1950s. Bachrach Motors closed in the mid-1960s.

Publication History and Census

These maps were made by an unknown cartographer and published in October 1945 by the Bachrach Motor Company. These are the only known cataloged examples.