The Camilo Castelo Branco Municipal Library will be returned to the people of Famalicão on 28 September, the day the municipality celebrates 188 years as a municipality, following the first meeting of the Municipal Commission that took place on 28 September 1835 under the chairmanship of António Ribeiro de Queiroz Moreira, after the re-establishment of Vila Nova de Famalicão's municipal autonomy proclaimed by Queen Maria II.
The inauguration of the renovation, extension and modernisation of the Municipal Library will be the highlight of the celebration of Municipal Day, in a ceremony scheduled for 17:30. Until then, and from next Monday, September 4, the temporary facilities installed in the Famalicão Pastoral and Parish Centre will be closed to the public to transfer equipment to the new facilities.
The new Camilo Castelo Branco Municipal Library is the result of extensive work carried out by Costeira - Engenharia e Construção under the design of architect João Marta, who designed the building that opened in 1992. With this intervention, the Famalicão Library has been adapted to the contemporary demands of study and reading by valorising its different spaces, including the Eduardo Prado Coelho Library, the Local Fund and the different reading and audio-visual rooms.
The Famalicão Municipal Library was founded in 1913, at the time in the basement of the Town Hall. In 1987, it joined the National Network of Public Libraries and a year later, the foundation stone for the new building was laid in the presence of Mário Soares. Four years later, on 1 June 1992, the 2400m2 building was inaugurated, located in the heart of the city centre's green space, Parque de Sinçães. The ceremony was held to mark the anniversary of the death of its patron Camilo Castelo Branco and World Children's Day.