House of the churchyard
Its History
Our Lady of Livramento Church, Curral das Freiras parish. Previous to 1895
MFM-AV, Inv. JAS/144, in deposit at the ABM
Until the 19th century, Curral das Freiras belonged to the Santa Clara convent in Funchal, which donated the land for the construction of the church and rectory in 1787. In 1861, women's convents were abolished in Portugal (although the existing nuns could remain in the convents there until their death) and their goods and properties were incorporated into the Fazenda Nacional [National Treasury] in 1962. The lands previously owned by the Santa Clara convent were sold and for the first time Curral das Freiras had several new landowners, one of them being José Militão Camacho (1840-1924).
The land on which this house is built was purchased by José Militão Camacho, a local landowner and resident in Murteira [a place nearby, the first of the "low places" in the valley. It was the most central location before the construction of the church, as it was situated at the point of arrival to this valley from the road coming from Estreito de Câmara de Lobos, to the south; and from Royal Road 27, between Funchal and Boaventura, in the north of the island of Madeira].
According to oral tradition, there was a grocery store called "Venda da Bernarda", a small construction that would be the origin of the current house.
José Militão Camacho; family archive
José Militão Camacho promoted the agricultural development of these lands. One of the most profitable crops was cidra (a lemon-like fruit that, when crystallised, is used in traditional confectionery) which was consumed in Madeira and also exported to England.
After 1896, year of his second marriage, to Leonor Augusta Teixeira Dória, the house became a second home for the family. A new floor was added and the roof was tiled.
This was the beginning of the concentration of new houses in the Caminho da Igreja [Church road] and the site of Casas Próximas [Nearby Houses], where previously only two tiled houses stood out, near the church, among some small rural buildings covered with thatch: the rectory and the house of the Soares Henriques family (visible in the first photo, before 1896).
After José Militão Camacho's death in 1924, his property was divided among his six children, and his daughter Bela inherited this house and the adjoining land. The plots to her right went to José, the youngest son, who lived in Funchal. He later sold them to families in Curral das Freiras - such as the Rebolo family - who built new houses in Caminho da Igreja.
The house, which is part of an agricultural estate, still preserves the old lagar [wine mill]
and wood oven, the adega [wine cellar], a small corral and two wells, as well as the traditional terraces supported by stone walls. When Bela Dória Camacho inherited the house in the 1920s, it was enlarged again, and two windows overlooking the churchyard were added. The small room on the corner was rented out as a bar until the 1990s. Agricultural production continued, mainly vines and fruit trees.
José Militão Camacho, who was the regedor [local civil authority] of Curral das Freiras for many decades, played an active and important role in this village, and his descendants include well-known personalities in Madeira.
Manuel Francisco Camacho; family archive
His son Manuel Francisco Camacho (1875-1970) was a very important clergyman. He was ordained priest in 1904 in the church of Curral das Freiras, then became a canon in the Cathedral of Funchal, and finally, between 1924 and 1970, he was the Vigário-Geral
(General-Vicar) of Funchal Diocese. He was known, among other relevant actions, as a true diplomat in the relations between the Catholic Church, the civil power and society in general.
The fifth of José Militão Camacho´s
children, Bela Dória Camacho Ornelas (1896-1981), was very esteemed in Curral das Freiras, where she was known to everyone as “Dona Bela“. She lived in this house after her marriage to Jordão Joaquim de Ornelas in 1914, and her four children (Filomena, Cecília, Jaime and José) were born here. She inherited the house in 1924, the same year she became a widow, and moved to Funchal. The family would remain deeply attached to Curral and would spend every summer in the house, for the whole three months.
Bela Dória Camacho with her sons Jaime (with glasses) and José
Vicentes Fotógrafos, 1941; family archive
Her son, Jaime Ornelas Camacho (1921-2016), became the owner of the house in 1997, and it remains in the family to this day. He was a civil engineer and during his career he participated in some of the most important public works in Madeira and Porto Santo, such as the levadas (irrigation channels bringing water from the north to the south of the island) and the airports of both islands. He was the first President of the Regional Government of Madeira when the region was recognised as autonomous in 1976.
Jaime Ornelas Camacho; family archive