Verbania is a scattered Italian town on the western shore of Lake
Maggiore with 30 192 inhabitants, the capital of the province of
Verbano-Cusio-Ossola, in Piedmont, and is the most populous center
in the entire basin of Lake Maggiore.
The municipality was
born on April 4, 1939 with the Royal decree n. 702, from the union
of the municipalities of Intra and Pallanza, and became the
provincial capital in 1992. The name Verbania is a cast of the Latin
name of Lake Maggiore, Lake Verbanus. It has assumed the title of
city since 2007; previously, both Intra and Pallanza had already
been awarded this title.
Oratory of San Remigio
Declared a national monument in 1908, it is
a Romanesque oratory located on top of the Castagnola promontory which
dates back to the first half of the 11th and 12th centuries. A porch was
added to this in the 14th century.
Church of Madonna di Campagna
The church of Madonna di Campagna, recognized as a national monument, is
a Renaissance-style church designed in the first half of the 16th
century by Giovanni Beretta da Brissago in place of a pre-existing
Romanesque building, of which only the bell tower remains.
Basilica of San Vittore
the basilica of San Vittore, located in the
historic center, was built in the same place where an ancient Christian
church from the 5th century existed. It has assumed the function of the
main church of the city since the proclamation of San Vittore as patron
saint of Verbania (1992), a celebration which ends with the procession
and the suggestive ceremony of the blessing of the lake.
Collegiate Church of San Leonardo
Located on the lakefront of
Pallanza, it was built between 1535 and 1590. The 65-metre-high bell
tower was built in several stages (the first part dates back to the 16th
century, the terminal part was built in 1689). The interior is made up
of three naves with a cross vault ending in three polygonal apses and a
dome hidden by a lantern. The wooden sculptures, the altar, the pulpit,
the choir, and the covering of the baptismal font (as well as the
painted canvases) date back to the 17th century. The organ, whose
present construction dates back to 1797, the work of Eugenio Biroldi
from Varese, is the oldest in the city.
Parish Church of Santo
Stefano
Located in the Villa a Pallanza district, it was built in the
second half of the 12th century and partially rebuilt in the 17th
century. Inside is the Ara delle Matrone, a Roman cippus in Candoglia
marble dating back to the first half of the 1st century showing a scene
of sacrifice surmounted by an epigraph with a dedication by the freedman
Narcissus to the emperor Caligula. On the other sides, ritual dances are
portrayed in honor of the matron goddesses. The organ is by Carlo
Vegezzi Bossi (1911) enclosed in a Renaissance case.
Oratory of
Saints Fabiano and Sebastiano
Located in front of the lakefront of
Suna, it dates back to the 12th century and was restructured and
enlarged in the 17th and 18th centuries by adding, among other things,
the portico and the stairway that climbs from the lake to the church.
Church of Santa Lucia
Located on the lakefront of Suna, it dates
back to the 16th century. It contains 8 tondos painted in oil on canvas
made by Mario Tozzi and located on the vault. The four roundels, made
between 1923 and 1924, are dedicated to Saint Lucia of Syracuse and
episodes from her life, to Saint Andrew of Avellino, to Saint Francis of
Assisi and to Saint Mauro. Saint Lucia is the patroness of Suna and
protector of stonemasons.
Methodist Evangelical Church
Located
in the historic center of Intra, in corso Mameli 19, it has its own
architectural value both inside and out; inaugurated in 1892, note its
bell tower which is a reference point for those entering Intra both by
road and by crossing the lake. In 1861 two English pastors, Pigott and
Green, arrived in Italy, sent by the Wesleyan Methodist Missionary
Society to carry out evangelization work. Henri Pigott settles in Milan
and from there he begins to visit the area of Lake Maggiore and the Val
d'Ossola. Intra was a small town that had numerous manufacturing
industries whose owners were mostly German-speaking and Protestant
Swiss, who were not looked after "pastorally" by anyone; however Pigott
insists on working with the Italians. The Evangelical Methodist Church
of Verbania was born in 1863, one of the first communities born from
Methodist preaching in Italy. Before the formation of the other
communities, it gathers all the Protestants of Lake Maggiore, Lake Orta
and Val d'Ossola.
San Sebastian Church
located near Piazza
Gramsci in Pallanza, construction began in the 17th century as a votive
offering for survivors of the plague and completed in the 1720s. It was
closed for worship in 1867 and deconsecrated in 1890. It was used by the
municipality (to which it belonged) for various uses and finally used as
a warehouse for the vehicles of the fire brigade until its demolition in
1935.
Church of San Giuseppe
in Intra, documented in the 12th
century with a dedication to Santa Maria, the current building was built
in the 16th century on the ruins of the previous one, and was remodeled
in the following centuries.
Church of San Giuseppe
in
Pallanza, an eighteenth-century church, built on the site of a medieval
oratory
Viani Dugnani Palace
Baroque-style palace built in the 16th
century by the Viani family[20] the landscape museum is located in the
palace. In the courtyard facing the portico there are two Roman
tombstones found in the Verbano area.
City Palace
institutional seat of the Municipality, nineteenth-century building with
a remarkable portico.
Villa Julia
owned by the municipality,
performances, exhibitions and conferences are held there, with a garden
open to the public overlooking the lake.
Villa Maioni
seat of
the municipal library named after the philosopher Pietro Ceretti.
Villa San Remigio
in Neapolitan Baroque style, with an adjoining
park, owned by the Piedmont Region, it houses regional offices.
Villa Rusconi-Clerici
the former residence of Stefano Türr.
Water
Research Institute
located in Pallanza.
Botanical Gardens of Villa Taranto
Located between Pallanza and
Intra. Made by the Scottish captain Neil McEacharn who in 1931 bought
land owned by the Marquise of Sant'Elia to be able to create an English
garden in Italy. Dozens of botanical specimens were imported from all
over the world, until the completion of the works in 1940. The complex
was given the name of Villa Taranto in memory of an ancestor of Captain
McEacharn, Marshal McDonald who had been appointed Duke of Taranto by
Napoleon . The gardens include specimens of about 1,000 plants and about
20,000 varieties and species of botanical interest, the villa is the
seat of the Prefecture of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola.
Fondo Toce nature
reserve
Protected nature reserve along the shore of Lake Maggiore and
the final stretch of the Toce river.
Park of Memory and Peace
It stands in the place where on June 20, 1944 the Nazis shot 43
partisans, many of whom were prisoners from the Val Grande raid. In
memory of this fact, there is a monumental area dedicated to the
resistance.
By plane
The closest airports are those of Milan Malpensa (MXP),
Milan Linate (LIN)
By car
Highways:
Highway 26 (Highway 26)
Genoa Voltri ↔ Sempione:
Take the Verbania exit in Gravellona Toce
and then take the State Road 34 towards Verbania.
Streets:
State Road 34 (Strada Statale 34) Gravellona Toce ↔ Brissago:
The
state road on the western bank of the upper Verbano passes through the
center of Verbania.
On boat
Verbania can be reached using
boats or using the ferries (also with car transport) of the Navigazione
Lago Maggiore from the Lombard shore to Laveno-Mombello. The timetables
foresee a ferry every 20 minutes. The crossing takes about 20 minutes.
Navigation Lake Maggiore.
The provincial capital, with the
Verbania - Pallanza FS railway station located in Verbania - Fondotoce,
is connected to the Milan - Domodossola - Briga - Basel international
line.
Verbania - Pallanza FS railway station, Piazzale Stazione
1-2, Fondotoce, ☎ +39 0323 49 60 37.
At the railway station there
is a stop for the suburban buses of the line № 1 Verbania ↔ Omegna of
the VCO Trasporti company. From the station it takes about twenty
minutes to Verbania Pallanza and a thirty minute journey to Verbania
Intra.
By bus
Road bus services to and from Verbania:
Comazzi (Autoservizi Comazzi), Via Nosere, 49, Domodossola, ☎ +39 0324
240 333, ☎ +39 800 011 404, comazzi@comazzibus.com. Bus line to Verbania
from: Domodossola, which provides 8 buses a day. The journey time is
about fifty minutes up to Verbania.
SAF (SAF Srl, ex Autoservizi
Nerini Snc), Via alla Cartiera, 39, ☎ +39 0323 552 172, fax: +39 0323
552 165, verbania@safduemila.com. Extra-urban bus and coach lines for
Verbania from: Malpensa Airport (Alibus) - Arona - Milan - Novara -
Miazzina - Valle Intrasca.
VCO (VCO Trasporti Srl), Via Holland, 55,
☎ +39 0323 518 711, ☎ +39 800 503 001, fax: +39 0323 503 448.
Extra-urban bus and coach lines for Verbania from: Railway Station -
Omegna - Domodossola - Premeno - Piancavallo - Cannobio - Brissago. From
Brissago it takes about fifty minutes to travel to Verbania.
By public transport
Public services with road vehicles serve the
city, the hamlets that form an urban agglomeration with Verbania and the
neighboring suburban municipalities. The main bus line is line № 1
Verbania-Omegna.
Then there are suburban and extra-urban bus
connections such as line (to the west) № 1 Verbania ↔ Omegna, which
connects the city with the Verbania-Pallanza railway station, with trips
at daytime times approximately every 30' (weekdays) and 60' ( holidays)
and the line (towards east) № 3 Verbania ↔ Cannobio ↔ Brissago with
trips at daytime times approximately every 60' and additions on
weekdays.
Urban bus lines with stops in the municipal area of
Verbania:
2 — Verbania, Pallanza piazza Gramsci ↔ Verbania, Intra ↔
Verbania, Trobaso ↔ Verbania, Renco.
Time table: Line № 2 Operator:
VCO Trasporti S.r.l.
Extra-urban bus lines with stops in the
municipality of Verbania:
1 — Omegna, Dogna ↔ Crusinallo, Railway ↔
Gravellona Toce ↔ Verbania, Railway ↔ Verbania, Fondotoce ↔ Verbania,
Suna ↔ Verbania, Pallanza piazza Gramsci ↔ Verbania, Intra ↔ Verbania,
Trobaso.
Time table: Line № 1 Operator: VCO Trasporti S.r.l..
3 —
Brissago, Posta ↔ Cannobio ↔ Cannero-Riviera ↔ Oggebbio ↔ Ghiffa ↔
Verbania, Intra ↔ Verbania, Pallanza piazza Gramsci.
Time table: Line
№ 3 Operator: VCO Trasporti S.r.l..
4 — Verbania, Intra ↔ Premeno ↔
Piancavallo.
Time table: Line № 4 Operator: VCO Trasporti S.r.l..
5 — Verbania, Intra ↔ Verbania, Pallanza piazza Gramsci ↔ Verbania, Suna
↔ Verbania, Fondotoce ↔ Mergozzo ↔ Gravellona ↔ Ornavasso ↔ Cuzzago ↔
Premosello ↔ Vogogna ↔ Piedumulera ↔ Pallanzeno ↔ Villadossola ↔
Domodossola, bus station.
Timetable: Line № 5 Operator: VCO Trasporti
S.r.l..
8 — Verbania, Intra ↔ Ghiffa ↔ Oggebbio.
Time table: Line
№ 8 Operator: VCO Trasporti S.r.l..
8 — Verbania, Intra ↔ Ghiffa ↔
Oggebbio.
Time table: Line № 8 Operator: VCO Trasporti S.r.l..
9 —
Verbania, Intra ↔ Verbania, Trobaso ↔ San Bernardino Verbano.
Time
table: Line № 9 Operator: VCO Trasporti S.r.l..
10 — (Verbania,
Pallanza piazza Gramsci ↔) Verbania, Intra ↔ Vignone ↔ Bureglio (↔ Bèe ↔
Premeno, Pian di Sole).
Timetable: Line № 10 Operator: VCO Trasporti
S.r.l..
11 — Verbania, Pallanza piazza Gramsci ↔ Verbania, Cavandone.
Timetable: Line № 11 Operator: VCO Trasporti S.r.l..
12 — Verbania,
Intra ↔ Cargiago ↔ Caronio.
Timetable: Line № 12 Operator: VCO
Trasporti S.r.l..
Spring Camellia exhibition, Villa Giulia, corso Zanitello, 8-10. last
Saturday and Sunday of March 10:00-19:00. At 10:00 on Saturday the
inauguration at the Porticoes of the Town Hall.
Tulip Week, Villa
Taranto, Via Vittorio Veneto, 111, Pallanza, ☎ +39 0323 55 66 67. 10.00
EUR for adults, 5.50 EUR for minors. 12-25 Apr 2015 08:30-18:30. It was
inaugurated for the first time by Captain Neil Mc Eacharn back in 1957.
In this period the park is colored by over 80,000 bulbous plants, all
unique and all in bloom, where tulips undoubtedly stand out.
Cactus
follies, Villa Giulia, corso Zanitello, 8-10, Pallanza. in mid-July.
Exhibition-market of succulent plants.
Palio Rowing, Pallanza. In
August, precisely the night before mid-August. Galleon race with the
unique feature in Italy of taking place at night. At the end of which a
fireworks display is held.
Winter Camellia Exhibition, Villa Giulia,
Corso Zanitello, 8-10, Pallanza. first Saturday and Sunday of December
10:00-18:30. At 10:00 on Saturday the inauguration at the Porticoes of
the Town Hall.
Food
1 Bioè (organic food), Via Maurizio Muller, 35, Intra, ☎ +39
0323 407 414. Accepted credit cards: Mastercard, Postepay, Visa
2
Tigros supermarket (ex Billa supermarket, ex Uno supermarket), Corso
Goffredo Mameli, 23-31, Intra, info@tigros.it.
bookstores
Margaroli, Corso Goffredo Mameli, 53-55, Intra, ☎ +39 0323 401 027.
Shoes
Colombara, Piazza Daniele Ranzoni, 63, Intra, ☎ +39 0323
404 159, info@colombara1960.com.
Modest prices
1 San Bernardino restaurant, via alle Fabbriche, 8,
Pallanza, ☎ +39 0323 402 347. Italian cuisine.
2 Sunshine Restaurant
(former Dell'Arco restaurant), 127/a via Vittorio Veneto, Pallanza (on
the SS34 in front of the Carabinieri barracks), ☎ +39 0323 407 478, +39
331 2 763 595, info@sunshineristorante.com. lunch (all you can eat) at
10,- EUR and evening buffet at 20,- EUR per person.. 11:30-15:00 and
18:30-23:30. Chinese, Italian and Japanese cuisine.
McDonald's
Verbania, Viale Sant'Anna, 1, ☎ +39 0323 503066. Mon-Sun: 07:00-01:00.
McDrive service is also available.
Average prices
3 La Casera
restaurant, piazza Daniele Ranzoni, 19, Intra, ☎ +39 0323 581 123,
eros@formaggidieros.it.
Modest prices
1 Hotel Al Centro, Via alle Fabbriche, 8, Pallanza,
☎ +39 0323 519 568, fax: +39 0323 408 542, info@alcentro.it. single from
EUR 30,-, double from EUR 50,- with buffet breakfast (drinks not
included). Accommodation.
Average prices
2 Albergo Pesce
d'Oro, Via Paolo Troubetzkoy, 136 (in the hamlet of Suna), ☎ +39 0323
504 445, info@hotelpescedoro.it. single from EUR 55,-, double from EUR
75,- with breakfast buffet. Three-star accommodation with restaurant.
Internet for free.
High prices
3 Grand Hôtel Majestic, Via
Vittorio Veneto, 30-32, Pallanza, ☎ +39 0323 509 711,
info@grandhotelmajestic.it. double (low season) from 174,- EUR and (high
season) from 186,- EUR with breakfast buffet. Four-star accommodation
with restaurant.
Health
San Giorgio Pharmacy, Corso Goffredo Mameli, 141, Intra
(Lungolago di Intra), ☎ +39 0323 401 355, fax: +39 0323 517 268,
info@farmacia-sangiorgio.it. Tue-Sun 09:00-13:00 and 14:30-19:00 (Sun
from 15:00). Pharmacy, from Grasso, Dr. Andrea, with a phytotherapeutic
vocation with products that are Italian as far as possible and in any
case with certified raw materials of known origin. We speak English,
German and French.
Pietro Ceretti Civic Library, via Vittorio Veneto, 138 (stop at Verbania, San Bernardino - Playa bus lines № 1, 2, 3, 4, 5), ☎ +39 0323 401510, fax: +39 0323 408091, verbania@bibliotechevco.it . Sun-Mon closed, Tue 09:00-12:30 and 14:00-18:30, Wed 15:00-22:00, Thu 09:00-12:30 and 14:00-18:30, Fri 09:00 -12:30 and 14:00-18:30, Sat 09:30-18:30. Public reading library, with a bibliographic endowment made up of over 80,000 documents, divided as follows: 60,000 monographs, 11,000 children's books (0-14 years), 5,000 local history documents, 4,000 multimedia documents (VHS, DVD, music CDs).
The city stands on a triangular-shaped promontory in the center of
Lake Maggiore which marks the northern end of the Borromean gulf, where
the Toce flows into. On the south-western bank are the villages of
Pallanza and Suna, towards the east, separated by the course of the San
Bernardino stream, is the village of Intra, while to the north is the
hamlet of Trobaso. The hamlets of Zoverallo, Antoliva and Biganzolo are
located in the hills; on Monte Rosso there is the hamlet of Cavandone.
Surrounded by mountains: Monte Rosso to the east, while to the north the
rugged mountainous area where the Val Grande National Park stands and
where Monte Zeda (2156 m a.s.l.) and Pizzo Marona (2051 m a.s.l.) are
located. he other nature reserve, the special nature reserve of
Fondotoce, is located just outside the city, at the confluence of the
Toce with Lake Maggiore.
Territory
The municipal territory
extends from an altitude ranging from 197 meters on the shores of the
lake, to 693 meters on the top of Monte Rosso, despite this, most of the
inhabited center extends from 200 to 400 meters, moreover a good part of
the municipal territory it is covered by woods and forests.
Hydrography
The city, in addition to overlooking Lake Maggiore, is
crossed by the San Bernardino stream and the San Giovanni stream which
delimit the hamlet of Intra. The Mergozzo canal runs through the hamlet
of Fondotoce, connecting Lake Mergozzo to Lake Maggiore.
The climate is temperate humid with hot summer ("Cfa" according to
the Köppen climate classification), with continental type influences
(Dfb in the Köppen classification) in the inland and higher areas, such
as Intra and Trobaso. The average temperature of the hottest month
stands at 21.1 °C. The area is characterized by cold winters and fairly
hot summers, but the presence of the lake makes winters less harsh on
the coast than in inland areas, and summers cooler. The area is very
rainy in all seasons, with the exception of winter during which rainfall
is relatively modest since it still reaches 2130 mm per year; this makes
Verbania one of the rainiest areas in Italy. In summer, sunny and hot
periods alternate with cool and stormy ones. The average temperatures in
July, as mentioned, are around 21 °C and it is rare for the maximum to
exceed 32 °C; they are therefore lower than those of many localities in
the Po Valley. Despite this, the high level of humidity helps to
increase the sensation of heat even at relatively low temperatures.
Winter is cold but mitigated on the shores of the lake, with the
average January temperature around 1.5 °C (about 1 °C lower in the
hamlets of Intra and Trobaso, and all areas of the city above 300-400
meters); snowfalls, sometimes even copious, affect the area every
winter, with significant differences according to the areas of the city;
in the lower part of the city, especially on the lake, snowfalls are
rarer and less abundant (with average accumulations of 5-10 cm per
snowfall), above 300-400 meters the snow is more frequent and abundant
with accumulations that can locally reach 20–40 cm with a single
snowfall (especially in the hamlet of Cavandone, located between 400 and
500 m). The minimum night-time temperature often drops below 0 °C from
December to the first half of March and can sometimes reach -8 or -10
°C, but only in exceptional cases does it fall below these values.
Spring is characterized by a strong atmospheric dynamism: in March it is
not uncommon for the area to be affected by snowfalls and frosts; the
months of April and May are characterized by high rainfall and mild
temperatures, which can reach almost summer values, but also undergo
temporary drops.
Autumn is mild and pleasant until mid-October,
to then become rainy and gradually colder; the first weak frosts affect
the area starting from mid-November. Fog is a very rare phenomenon due
to the mountainous conformation of the area. The data from the Verbania
meteorological station refer to the hamlet of Pallanza, located in a
very sunny area compared to the rest of the city, and therefore hotter.
The hamlets of Intra, Trobaso, Fondotoce, Zoverallo and Cavandone, being
located in less sunny and/or higher altitude areas, have values 1 or 2
°C lower.
Ancient age
The territory has been inhabited since prehistoric
times and the first peoples we know of are the Leponzi. They were
annexed to the Roman Empire by Emperor Augustus in the 1st century.
Medieval age
In the 11th century Pallanza and Intra were owned
first by the bishops of Novara, then by the counts of Pombia and then by
the da Castello family to whom Federico Barbarossa assigned the property
of Pallanza and Intra in 1152. After the defeat of Federico Barbarossa,
the territory first it returned under the influence of Novara, but in
1199 the da Castello allied themselves with Vercelli against Novara and
managed to regain control of it, ceding Pallanza and the Intrasca Valley
to the cadet branch of the Barbavara.
In 1218 Pallanza and Intra
were sold to Novara, but Pallanza and Ossola rose again allying
themselves with Vercelli. Eventually Pallanza was besieged and sacked.
With the peace of Pavia of 1259 Novara regained control of Pallanza,
which in 1270 built a fortified village in Intra to strengthen its
control against successive rebellions. Towards the end of the 14th
century, the Verbano territories became part of the Duchy of Milan and
were broken up into various fiefdoms, of which the Moriggias obtained a
large part by concession from Filippo Maria Visconti in 1447, however
Pallanza remained exempt from feudal jurisdiction until 1620 in exchange
for heavy ransoms. The statutes of Pallanza and Intra date back to 16
February 1393.
Modern age
In 1714 with the Peace of Rastatt
the territories of the lake passed under the Habsburgs and in 1743 the
entire western shore of Lake Maggiore was ceded to the Savoy with the
treaty of Worms. In 1751 the province of Upper Novarese was created
(comprising Vergante, Valle Intrasca, Valle Cannobina, Omegna, Val
Strona, Ossola, Valle Anzasca, Val Vigezzo) with Pallanza as capital. On
May 6, 1770, the upper Ossola was also added up to Domodossola. In order
to protect trade towards Lombardy, Pallanza requested exemption from
customs duties, obtained with a Royal Decree of 17 April 1753.
During the period of French domination following the Napoleonic
invasion, the province of Alto Novarese was suspended and its
territories incorporated into the Department of Agogna. Pallanza with
the Intrasca Valley was aggregated in the 15th District with the capital
Intra. The province was re-established with the return of the Savoys.
With the edict of 10 November 1818, Upper Ossola was detached from the
province and became a separate province, to return to the province of
Pallanza with the edict of 10 October 1836. With the administrative
reform of 1864, the province was suppressed and replaced by the
districts of Pallanza and Ossola, forming part of the province of
Novara.
Contemporary age
Already in the eighteenth century the
first signs of future industrialization begin to show, San Bernardino is
used for whitening activities of cloths also coming from Switzerland and
Germany; the opening of the Simplon road dates back to 1806. In 1808 the
first mechanical spinning mill of the Müller brothers was opened, which
was followed by other spinning, weaving, dyeing, paper, hat and ribbon
factories and at the beginning of the 20th century the industry textile
employs 3500 workers out of 17584 inhabitants. The first mutual aid
societies were established in Intra and Pallanza in 1860 and in Trobaso
in 1887. In the 19th century Suna was a center for the traffic of timber
and home to numerous stonemasons.
In the second half of the 19th
century, the construction of villas began on the panoramic Castagnola
promontory, which juts out into the lake between Intra and Pallanza,
following the construction of the coastal road in 1840.
On 4
September 1850 Luigi Cadorna was born in Pallanza, a soldier and
politician who led the Italian army during the First World War until the
defeat of Caporetto.
In 1927 the municipalities of Arizzano
Inferiore, Trobaso and Zoverallo were aggregated to Intra, while the
municipalities of Suna, Fondotoce and Cavandone were aggregated to
Pallanza. In 1929 Unchio was also added to Intra. Finally, in 1939 the
municipality of Verbania was established from the merger of the
municipalities of Intra and Pallanza. The name of the new municipality
derived from that of Lake Maggiore, also known as Verbano.
In
1929 the construction of the new Rhodiaseta plant was completed in
Pallanza, which later became Rhodiatoce, which employed 4,000 workers at
the beginning of the seventies and which attracted many immigrants first
from the Veneto and then from the South. The local industry, however,
entered a severe crisis in the seventies with the closure of many
factories.
On 20 June 1944 Verbania was the scene of a massacre:
43 partisans were shot by the German SS in Fondotoce after being forced
to parade on foot through Intra, Pallanza and Suna preceded by a sign
bearing the inscription "These are the liberators of Italy Or are they
the bandits?" One of the shot victims, Carlo Suzzi, miraculously
survived as he was not mortally wounded, pretended to be dead and was
later rescued by some women from Fondotoce. In memory of this bloody
episode, the Park of Memory and Peace and the House of Resistance were
erected in the place of the massacre, as well as the stretch of State
Road 34 which from Fondotoce reaches Gravellona Toce, passing near the
site of the massacre, is entitled in their memory "Forty-two Martyrs".
For this episode Verbania received the gold medal for the Resistance.
On 26 September 1944, following a strafing by an English plane, the
boat Milano sank, in public service on Lake Maggiore, commanded by
Antonio Colombo; on the boat were military forces from the various
departments of the Italian Social Republic and numerous civilians.
Thanks to the timely intervention of Sergeant Bruto Pozzetto of Grado
(Gorizia), who managed to take command of the rudder and bring the boat
closer to the shores of the lake, all the passengers on the boat managed
to save themselves before it sank definitively in the locality of
"Castagnola ". Research carried out in 2007 by divers from the fire
brigade effectively ascertained the absence of the remains of corpses on
board the wreck.
After the Second World War, the Verbano area
still belonged to the province of Novara: in 1976 the autonomous
district of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola was established, with offices in
Domodossola, Omegna and Verbania, up to the establishment of the
province of Verbano in 1992 -Cusio-Ossola.
Verbania Pallanza was famous after the Second World War for the
presence of an important chemical plant of the Rhodiatoce company (equal
shareholding of Montecatini and the French Rhône-Poulenc), founded in
1928. Production was centered on nylon 6.6, produced in national
exclusive under the «Nailon Rhodiatoce» trademark. In 1972 Rhodiatoce
was at the center of an important merger operation between the various
Montedison companies linked to the production of synthetic and
artificial textile fibers, an operation which led to the birth of
Montefibre. In 1975, the production of plastic polymers derived from
nylon 6.6 was spun off from the Montefibre production lines and
incorporated into the new company called Taban, which maintained its
activities within the plant.
The crisis in the chemical sector
which hit the Italian market in the 1970s and early 1980s put the
Montedison group and Montefibre in particular in serious crisis.
Therefore, to prevent the entire company from reaching receivership, the
management ordered the total freeze of production activities and the
transfer of national production quotas for nylon 6.6; this decision
particularly affected the Pallanza plant (the largest national producer)
which, in the autumn of 1983, was closed. In the same period, to
aggravate the economic and employment situation existing in the city,
the economic crisis led, after a short time, to the closure of the
important paper mill located in the hamlet of Possaccio, owned by the
company "Cartiere di Tolmezzo e Prealpine S.p.A.". With the closure of
the two main factories, the city thus found itself having to deal with
the most serious employment crisis in its history: over 3,000 people,
plus related industries, found themselves without a job. The appeals
(even from parliament) to convince Montedison and the Tolmezzo paper
mill to restart the plants were useless.
In 1989 the Mossi &
Ghisolfi group finally acquired the former Montefibre factory and
reconverted the production lines; In this regard, a new company was
founded, Acetati S.p.A., specialized in the production of cellulose
acetate.
Verbania has developed tourism thanks to its privileged
geographical position; of particular interest are the botanical gardens
of Villa Taranto on the Castagnola promontory and Villa San Remigio, in
Baroque style; therefore the city is defined as the garden on the lake,
given the abundant presence of gardens and terraces.