De asilo a hospital dos Tifosos: O caso do asilo António Almeida da Costa na primeira metade do século XX. Génese, dinâmicas e funcionalidades

This work aims to analyse the genesis, dynamics and functionalities of the Antonio Almeida da Costa Asylum, founded at the beginning of the 20th century in Vila Nova de Gaia, in northern Portugal, in the elderly assistance, initially funded for the elderly workers of the industrial complex of Ceramics and Foundry of Devesas, and in their punctual initiative: the transformation into a hospital for the Typhosos when the epidemic occurred in the city. To meet these objectives, a historical reconstruction exercise was carried out through the benemerit acquis, in particular, based on the minutes of the administrative committee, in internal regulations and statutes and also in the book of invalids hospitalized in the Asylum. Based on the information found, it was possible to describe the institution’s dynamics in the assistance to the elderly, especially in the place of the Devesas in Vila Nova de Gaia, framing the important contribution of it in the public cause of the fight against the exanthematic typhus epidemic.