The philanthropist Eusebio da Guarda stated in one of the sections of his will (25 January 1897) that after finishing the works of the School Group that were being carried out, his sisters and heirs should invest 200,000 pesetas in the construction of an iron market in Plaza de Lugo, for which the Town Hall should cede the land that had been levelled there.

So, in 1900, once the work on the schools had been completed, the City Council began negotiations with Rosa and Luisa da Guarda to fulfil their brother's wishes, deciding that the bequest would be invested in the central section of the building, and that the municipality would be responsible for the construction of the north and south sections. The total cost amounted to 600,000 pesetas.

The architect Pedro Mariño was in charge of the project, and work began in 1901. In this modern market, there was marble, mosaics, canopies, artistic ironwork, numerous water drains and light penetrating directly through the windows.

The central pavilion had 52 stalls which were exclusively for the sale of fresh fish, while the side pavilions had 45 stalls each, where vegetables, bread, eggs, chickens, pork and beef were sold. A further 28 stalls selling vegetables, flowers, fruit and other items were spread throughout the market.

The inauguration of the new facilities was presided over by the then mayor of the city, Mr Folla Yordi, accompanied by the first deputy mayor, Lens Viera, and the benefactor's sister, Rosa da Guarda.

Despite the architectural beauty of the building, the da Guarda Market gradually became too small for the neighbourhood it served, and it was decided to demolish it in sections. The central nave was the first to be replaced by a more functional, but not very aesthetically pleasing one, which became operational at the end of 1958. Later, the north and south sections were built in the 1960s to replace the building that had just been demolished.