Disseminating and accessing colonial records: Exploring the Portuguese public works database

Abstract

The documentary research and treatment developed over the last decade at the Portuguese Overseas Historical Archive (Arquivo Histórico Ultramarino, Lisbon) have enabled contact with several Public Works archives. It happened most significantly during three international research projects, namely “The Colonial Urbanisation Offices” (2010-2013), the “Coast to Coast” (2017-2019) and the “ArchWar” (2021-2024) - both projects hosted by DINAMIA’CET, Iscte-IUL. Since 2019, a display of this archival work has been available for consultation on the historical archive research portal, in a database named “Public Works” (Obras Públicas in the original). This paper explores the content of the database, considering archival records as markers of colonial memories, this paper explores the content of the database. Accessing the Portuguese Public Works archives enables the study of colonial actors, missions, constructions, and technology once they are recurrent presences in these records - layers upon layers uncovering a complex colonial information system. Colonial Public Works shape landscapes and archives, unravelling several typologies of technical documents such as studies, consultations, projects, reports and information’s - bureaucratic rigour evidence demonstrating architectural informational circuits.