Towns and Villages

Raised to the category of town in the 16th century, the original nucleus of the village of Barreiro was composed of various fishermen from the Algarve, who settled here and worked in the barra (river mouth) of the port of Lisbon, and hence were known as "barreiros".

In the 18th-19th centuries the area developed enormously, due to the establishment of the terminus of the South and Southeast railway line. This made it a busy place, with many people passing through, and led many people and industrial concerns to settle there. The town of Barreiro continued to grow, and in 1984 it was raised to the category of a city.