Vila Real de Santo António, Faro, Portugal Genealogy

This is a historical and genealogical guide to the municipality of Vila Real de Santo António.

History

 * Megalithic tribes constructed beehive tombs prior to Pombalinan times.
 * In 1240 small village fishing town.
 * also known as Santo António de Arenilha.
 * destroyed by Lisbon Tsunami and Earthquake in 1755.
 * Attacked by Pirates and Privateers.
 * 30 December 1773 by royal decree creation of a new town.
 * Completed in 1776
 * The population of Vila Real de Santo António, Faro is roughly 20000 people.

Online Records
After 100 years, all civil registration records are sent to the municipality's district office.

To view online civil registration records, visit Faro Civil Registration.

Contact a Civil Registration Office
The following is a list of civil registration offices within the municipality.

Conservatória do Registo Civil de Vila Real de Santo António E.N. 125 Pal Justiça – R/C – D Vila R St. Antº 8900-228 Vila Real de Santo António PORTUGAL Phone: 281544212 Fax: 281512740 Email: [mailto:rcp.vrsantonio@dgrn.mj.pt rcp.vrsantonio@dgrn.mj.pt]

Communicate your request in Portuguese whenever possible. For writing a letter or email in Portuguese, use the translated questions and phrases in this Portuguese Letter-writing Guide.

Online Records
In 1910, the Portuguese government transferred all birth, marriage, and death records from all the country's parishes to the district offices. These records are now in either District or National archives. Many of these records have been digitized and can be viewed at the District Archive's website or on FamilySearch.

To view online records, visit Faro Church Records.

Contact a Parish
If you are seeking church records created more recently than 1910, it is possible to obtain them by writing to the parish where the record was created. Writing to a parish is not always a reliable way to obtain information, because officials may or may not respond.

Conferência Episcopal Portuguesa lists websites for the 20 Dioceses of Portugal. Once on the Diocesan website, use the listing of parishes (paróquias) to locate contact information for the parish in question.

Communicate your request in Portuguese whenever possible. For writing a letter or email in Portuguese, use the translated questions and phrases in this Portuguese Letter-writing Guide.

Cemeteries
Cemeteries did not become popular in Portugal until the late nineteenth century. Prior to this, individuals were buried in their parish church cemetery, and their bones were later removed to an unmarked burial place.

Family History Centers
Huelva Spain Family History Center Plaza de la Glorieta s n HUELVA HUELVA 21002 PORTUGAL Email: [mailto:ES_Huelva@ldsmail.net ES_Huelva@ldsmail.net] Website: Huelva Spain Family History Center