Born to Lucio Lacson and Clara Ledesma in 1865,Mariano Lacson was the youngest of eight. One of his brothers was the revolutionary general,Aniceto.
The bachelor Mariano was an avid traveler even then. In one of his visits to Hongkong,he met and feel in love with a Portuguese lady from Macau. Her name was Maria Braga.The fairy tale romanceculminated in marriage. Mariano and Maria had 10 children. In 1911, while nearing the full term of her 11th pregnancy,Maria had an accident. Both mother and child were lost.
Heartbroken and inconsolable,Mariano decided to build mansion in remembrance of Maria,right in the middle of his 440-hectar sugar plantation in Talisay City,Negros Occidental.It was,in fact ,designed to be a monument to enduring love affair Maria's father, a ship captain, introduced European architectural influences into the design of the mansion,from the over- all Italianate inspirationto the shell details on the roof. The structure of the house was of solid concrete. Interior floors were dressed either in tiles imported from Spain or 20=meter=long hard wood planks that were cut a meter wide.
Until the World WarII,the mansion served as residence of mansion and all of his unmarried children.In 1948,Mariano Lacson died,his monument to love in irreparable ruins.
The unmarried children of Mariano Lacson
The daughter of Mariano Lacson
Maria Braga Lacson
