The Moncado White Mansion on Samal Island in Davao del Norte is one of the oldest surviving houses in the Davao Region, and one of its most spiritually active. The sprawling white structure, originally built during the American colonial period, was once home to the Moncadistas — followers of Hilario Camino Moncado, the founder of the Filipino Federation of America, whose religious sect practiced strict vegetarianism, raw food diets, and required male members to maintain long hair and beards as a reflection of their perceived image of God.
The sect's unusual practices and the house's subsequent abandonment gave rise to a dense concentration of reported hauntings. At least six distinct spirits are said to inhabit the mansion, each with its own territory within the structure. Among them are a white lady who appears in the second-floor windows, visible from the grounds below; an American man — possibly connected to the colonial-era origins of the house — seen in the main hall; and a man shackled with chains and iron balls who drags himself through the ground floor, his heavy metallic sounds audible from outside the building.
The diversity of the spirits reflects the house's layered history. Samal Island served as a base for both American and Japanese military operations during World War II, and the island's indigenous Sama-Bajau people have their own rich tradition of ancestral spirits tied to the land. The Moncadistas themselves, with their syncretic blend of Christianity, Filipino folk religion, and ascetic practice, may have attracted or concentrated spiritual energy through their rituals.
The mansion has become a site of curiosity for paranormal investigators and history enthusiasts visiting the Davao Region. Local guides warn visitors against entering the building after dark, noting that the spirits inside have reportedly become more aggressive in recent years as the structure has deteriorated. The chains-and-balls spirit in particular is said to react to intrusions with violent shaking of doors and windows.