The Recordação

The Recordação History

The Recordação (The Rememberance) was built in 1961 in Arrentela as a passenger ferry between Cacilhas and Terreiro do Paço. The fleet of boats that connected the two banks of the Tagus River were known as cacilheiros (named after the town of Cacilhas), and played a vital transportation role until a bridge was constructed in 1966.

The Recordação was the last cacilheiro to be constructed of wood, as plenty of it could be found in the country and it was much cheaper than steel. At 82' (25m) long, she weighed in at 85 tons and was powered by a single 525 horsepower engine. The vessel could accommodate 518 passengers and 4 crew, with a top speed of 10 knots. It sailed the Tagus for over twenty years for the company Transado until being sold to the town of Setúbal, and eventually being abandoned on a beach in an industrial zone in 2007.