Palácio do Deão - Quepem - Goa
 


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José Paulo was born to Faustino da Costa Pereira de Almeida and Margarida Ignacia da Encarnação Netto in the City of Braga in Portugal.

He was part of the entourage of Archibishop Dom Frei Manuel de Santa Catarina.
He arrived in Goa on the 3rd October 1779, at 19 years of age. José Paulo spent the remaining 55 years of his life here in Goa.

He died on the 10th of January 1835 at his residence in the Chapel of the Mount at Old Goa.

Bestowed with exceptional faculties of intelligence, he rapidly rose to positions of responsibility.

He began his public carrear in the Archidiocese as Secretario-Escrivao da Camara Pontificia on 30th Oct 1779

He spent a great amount of his energies dedicated to the rehabilitation of the two seminaries of Chorao and Rachol.

He is also said to be the founder of Quepem.

The Deão in Quepem
In 1787, Pe. J.P. de Almeida transferred his residence from Old Goa to Quepem and founded a hamlet. Quepem was, in those days, covered with forest. He ordered the planting of rice, coconut palms and other fruit trees.

He established a public market, hospital and other facilities for the benefit of the inhabitants.

He also founded the St. Cruz Church, at his own cost, as inscribed on the pyramidal structure in the churchyard.

It is believed that the Deão, began by erecting two columns at the entrance of Quepem. Thereafter, he obtained permission that criminal offenders who entered this village across these columns to work could rehabilitate themselves in this village which he had founded. Thus, he was able to establish Quepem as arable, self sustaining and habitable place.

It is not known the origin of this story, but one is able to still see the bases of these columns at the entrance of Quepem.

He constructed in Quepem, for his occasional stay, a spacious house that he modestly described as a ‘Farm House’. It was later, justifiably, come to be known as the ‘Palácio Do Deão’


 


















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