The Casa do Povo de Alfeizerão was founded by charter of March 15, 1934, just over a year after the decree-law 23:051 (Diário do Governo, n.º 217/1933, Series I of 1933-09-23 ) of the central government that authorized the creation of Casas do Povo, that is, «organisations of social cooperation, with legal personality».
The first minute of the Book of Minutes of the General Assembly of the Casa do Povo is dated March 19, 1934, and the General Assembly had Adelino António Ferreira as president and João da Silva Santos and Joaquim dos Santos Bernardo as members. One of the priority themes of the first sessions of the General Assembly concerns the construction of the new headquarters of the Casa do Povo; various land and properties are considered for this purpose and the choice falls on an old barn in Largo de Santo Amaro that belonged to Custódio Maldonado Freitas, to whom a proposal to purchase the property is addressed (LAAGCPA, Acta n.º 13, fls. 9r – 10r, Session on 12 May 1936).
In the elections of November 16, 1941, Father João de Matos Vieira is chosen as vice-president of the General Assembly, with Dr. Júlio de Melo Ferrari as president and Joaquim Casimiro as member, with the Board being entrusted to Joaquim Machado Ferreira, president; Francisco Marques Grilo, treasurer and Salvador Maria Moita in the place of secretary (LAAGCPA, minutes no. 15, fls. 12v – 13v). The following month, on 18 October 1941, a joint session of the Board and General Assembly was held, in whose minutes the contract entered into between Casado Povo and the doctor António André Ferreira de Carvalho for the latter to provide medical assistance to the members was recorded. of the People's House. The doctor, chosen from among several names suggested, is the first clinician to perform this role in the history of the house (LAAGCPA, minutes n.º 16, fl. 14r).
The new headquarters of Casa do Povo is officially inaugurated on October 30, 1944 with the presence at the ceremony of various official entities, a music band and a large influx of people. During the ceremony, José Rino de Avelar Fróis offered his services to the institution and the mayor of Alcobaça, the president of the General Assembly of Casa do Povo (Father João de Matos Vieira) and the doctor in office, the Dr. António André Ferreira de Carvalho (LAAGCPA, minutes no. 18, page 15r).
On January 10, 1945, the General Assembly met to elect the managing bodies for the three-year period from 1945 to 1947. José Fróis was elected to the General Assembly, while Father João de Matos Vieira was vice-president and member Joaquim da Silva Pereira; for the Board were elected: as president, João Casimiro; secretary, Henrique Madeira Matias and treasurer, António dos Santos Brilhante. The Chairman of the Board recalled the meritorious action of José Rino de Avelar Fróis, namely the amount that allowed the institution to pay off its debts and its influence with the Secretary of Corporations so that the works on the new headquarters could be completed (LAAGCPA, minutes n. 19, page 15v).
©2022 · IDStudies · All rights reserved
