Pieve Vergonte

Pieve Vergonte
Comune
Pieve Vergonte
Coat of arms
Location of Pieve Vergonte
Pieve Vergonte Location of Pieve Vergonte in Italy Pieve Vergonte Pieve Vergonte (Piedmont)
Coordinates: 46°0′N 8°16′E
Country	Italy
Region	Piedmont
Province	Verbano-Cusio-Ossola (VB)
Frazioni	Fomarco, Loro, Rumianca, Megolo
Government
• Mayor	Maria Grazia Medali (lista civica) dal 26/05/2014
Area
• Total	41.7 km2 (16.1 sq mi)
Population  (30 September 2008)
• Total	2,680
• Density	64/km2 (170/sq mi)
Demonym	Pievesi
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Postal code	28886
Dialing code	0324
Patron saint	San Vincenzo, San Anastasio, Sant' Orsola
Website	http://www.comune.pievevergonte.vb.it/

Pieve Vergonte is a comune (municipality) in the Province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 110 kilometres (68 mi) northeast of Turin and about 20 kilometres (12 mi) northwest of Verbania.

Pieve Vergonte borders the following municipalities: Anzola d'Ossola, Piedimulera, Premosello-Chiovenda, and Vogogna.

Geography

Pieve Vergonte parish lies in the valley of Ossola, which forms part of the Upper Novarese, and extends from the Lake Maggiore, where it starts in the south, to the Valais and Switzerland which it borders from the North. To the west, it is bordered by the Valsesia,and to the east by the valley of the Milanese and Lugano, itself divided into Upper and Lower Valleys.

Various streams are present in the territory of Pieve Vergonte: Stream Marmazza which is the most important river of Pieve Vergonte, Rio San Rocco, Rio Santa Maria, Rio Toietti, Rio della Fontana, Rio della Valletta, Rio della Vallaccia, Rio said Lanca, Rio said Rialetto, Arsa Rio, Rio del Castello, Rio della Chiesa, Rio said Inferno, Togni Rio, Rio Mot. Branchis. The river's Taverna and Rio Fornate have an outlet into the valley Anzasca. The Industrial Water Channel of Rumianca is an important infrastructure for the production of hydroelectric energy for industrial purposes. The Lake St. Anna, in the hamlet of Loro, linked to the Fishermen Company Sant'Anna, was created in 1964 for trout fishing.

The streams listed on the register of public waters are Rivo Inferno Valley, Rivo Megolo, Torrente Arsa, Rivo Vallaccia, Creek Marmazza, Torrente Anza.

Pieve Vergonte is part of the Western Alps, the Pennines, which are perhaps the most spectacular mountain chain in Europe. Located along the border between Southwest Switzerland and Northwest Italy, this compact area boasts ten of the twelve highest summits in the Alps (the other two are part of the Mont Blanc massif). The high peaks of the Pennine Alps include many 4,000 meter peaks and hundreds of peaks over 3,000 meters. The high mountains are separated by long narrow valleys. Some of the major peaks of the Pennine Alps include the many high peaks of the Monte Rosa Massif, Dom, Weisshorn, Matterhorn, Dent Blanche, Nadelhorn, and Grand Combin. Pieve Vergonte is located 33.7 km from Macugnaga, which lies at the feet of Monte Rosa Massif.

History

From the Celtic tribes to the Roman Empire

The ancient peoples of this part of Italy where Pieve Vergonte rises, were known by the Romans under the name of Galli, as the area was known as Gallia Traspadana, alluding to the territory named Gallia Cisalpina located between the Alps and the river Po.

Among the most notable populations of the time were the Insubri, from which much of this region gained the name Insubria. Meanwhile, it seems that the Celtic tribe that settled in the region (that includes Pieve Vergonte) was that of Agoni, of whom traces of their presence remains in the names of the river Agogna and the city of Vogogna.

The Romans fought for a century against the Gauls to subject them to their rule until the defeat of Insubri at Milan by Proconsul L.Valerio Flacco in the year 560 of Rome, 194 BC. We read in the Trophy of the Alps, as reported by Pliny In the Historia Natural (I. III. C. 20) that the people named Gauls "sub imperium populi romani redactae sunt" ("under the control of the Roman people").

About a century later, the Romans were threatened by a loss of all their conquests in Gaul by an invasion of Cimbri tribes, which together with their allies, the Teutoni, decided to invade Italy. Having received news, the Romans sent the consuls Mario and Catulus with a large army at the mouth of the Alps. Mario went with his army to Provence. Catulus reached the port of Verbania, marched along the Atisone river, or Toce as it is called today, and strengthened two well-fortified castles, as appears from Plutarch in the life of Mario and may be inferred from the inspection of the site, that stretches from the ancient Vergunto (Pieve Vergonte) and Vogogna, in one side, to beyond the Toce, in the other.

The Cimbri in fact came down on this side of the Alps, and in numbers so immense, that most of the Romans were forced to abandon the field, except for a small garrison left by Catulus in the defense of those castles. But the Cimbri crashed its resistance, and passed easily. The Cimbri, moving along the valleys unto the plain between the Sesia and the Ticino—and through the territory of Borgomanero—fought in a battle in the countryside of Vercelli, on one side of the Sesia. This battle took place the year of Rome 653 (101 BC). If you give credence to their stories, one hundred and forty thousand Cimbri were killed on the ground or in flight, and sixty thousand were taken prisoners. Thirty-three military insignia were taken away from them, two by the army of Mario and thirty-one from that of Catulus, gathered together. Roman historians draw the scene of the battle in Fields Raudii, nowadays Meadows Raudii at Casalbeltrame (V. 2 Vellejo, 12, and Floro 3,13,14 calling it Raudio field), and with the field Candio. The battle is described graphically by Giambattista Tiepolo in the framework of "The Battle of Vercellae", a work that is part of ten canvases painted to decorate Ca 'Dolfin, Venice, and on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

The ancient road of the Simplon was drawn in the contiguous territory of Vogogna, which grew near the ruins of Vergunto, destroyed since ancient times, and Pietrasanta, destroyed by a flood in the 14th century. The road to the Simplon Pass was built to the east of the River Toce, which is the ancient Atisone, and bounds Cardezza, Beura, Masera, and Montecrestese, until crossing the Ponte Maglio, running a little along the opposite bank of the river to Crevola, from then going into the valley Deveria and going forward for Iselle to Algabio and Simplon.

The description of the road work can be found in the Roman stele of Vogogna which reads "Quia FACTA EX ....... HS XIII DCC Domitio Dextro II P. .... FUSCO COSS M VALERIO OPTATO.C.VALERIO.THALETE CURATORIBUS . OPERI.DATIS.IMPERIO.VENUSTI.CONDIANI.PROC.ALP.ATRECT.MARMOREIS CREPIDINIBUS.MUNITA". In the second line of registration we read "Caius Domitian Dextro iterum, Publius Fusco Consulibus", who were the consuls in the year of Rome 948 (196 A.D). Dextro, in the long line of the Fasti, is the only consul with that name that has obtained the fasci twice. In that same year bursts the civil war between Severus and Albino governor of Britain, which once occupied Gaul. The latter was defeated by the legions of Severus in in the year 197 A.D. in Lyon , a city reached—according to some historians—through the Simplon Pass.

5th century

In 476 A.D., when the barbaric militias (who formed the majority of the Roman army) demanded a third of the lands of Italy and received a refusal by the patrician Orestes (who ruled the empire for Romulus Augustus), Odoacer was acclaimed king by the rebelled Barbarians (August 23, 476). Orestes was killed in Piacenza (28 August), Romulus Augustus was deposed and banished with a pension in Campania, becoming the last Roman emperor of the West. In 498, following the events surrounding the fall of the Western Roman Empire (476) and the subsequent Barbarian invasions, Zeno, emperor of Byzantium and Theodoric, king of the Ostrogoths, created a new agreement, according to which the Ostrogoth king would reconquer Italy on behalf of the empire. Theodoric entered Italy (498) and defeated the army of Odoacer. Odoacer was killed and Theodoric was lord of Italy, including Pieve Vergonte (Vergunto). The Ostrogoths settled mainly in central and northern Italy and garrisoned forts in the Alps, to prevent new invasions.

6th century

Following the dismissal of Belisarius, general of the Roman Empire, at war for the Byzantines against the Goths, Narses, general of the Roman Empire, commanded the expedition of 551 against the Goths with the help of many Germanic mercenaries, including 2,500 Lombards warriors, future invaders of Italy. The domain of Ostrogoths in Italy, including Pieve Vergonte, was terminated as a result of military defeat of King Totila, who clashed with Narses at Busta Gallorum in Tagina (Gualdo Tadino) in July 552, was defeated and died in the escape. Authentic proof of Gothic Ossola, including Pieve Vergonte, are the closets of Greek-Goths coins from Finero (Verbania Repertoire 4980), a treasure with gold coins and jewelry, while the closets of Masera (Domodossola 5010 Repertoire), are only silver and already of Lombard origin. The Lombards, led by King Alboin in 569, crossed into Italy. In the autumn of 569 Alboino conquered Milan, where he was proclaimed king of Italy from its people (dominus Italiae), while Pavia was able to resist up to 571, when it fell under Lombard rule, followed by Vergunto (Pieve Vergonte). In 584, facing the real threat of an invasion of the Franks, Lombards submitted to the king Autari and his successor, Agilulf (590–616).

7th century

In July of the year 604, during a ceremony at the circus in Milan, Adaloaldo was proclaimed King of the Lombards, in the father's presence, the king Agilulfo, and the ambassadors of the king of the Franks, Theudeperto. The royal child was betrothed to the daughter of Theudeperto and peace was signed in perpetuity with the Franks.

8th century

In 712, Liutprand, King of the Lombards, ascended to the throne previously held by his father Ansprando. An avowed Catholic, he proved an energetic builder and restorer of churches in Pavia and Northern Italy. He is said to have restored back to Pavia the relics of St Augustine, which were threatened in Sardinia by the Saracens. Circa 728, Liutprand founded the Monastery of San Pietro in Ciel d'Oro, and provided it with farmland, the Vergunto parish (Pieve Vergonte), and with the right to fish in the river Atosa (Toce), later reconfirmed by Conrad the Salic in 1033.

The Lombards rule in Italy and Vergunto parish (Pieve Vergonte) terminated with Desiderio, King of the Lombards, Duke of Tuscia, who replaced childless King Aistulf at his death (756) and was proclaimed his successor. He was able to ascend the throne with the intervention of Pope Stephen II. In 773, Charlemagne—even though he had married the daughter of Desiderio, Ermengarde, in 770—invaded with the Franks to defend Pope Adrian I. Desiderio was defeated at Chiuse of Susa in 773, was besieged in Pavia until June 774, and surrendered. Adelchi (or Adelgiso), son of Desiderio and thus associated to the throne, reappeared in Verona, was defeated, and fled to Constantinople.

9th century

The Holy Roman Empire was formed in Europe in the Middle Ages from the symbolic date of 25 December 800, when Charlemagne receives the crown in St. Peter's by Pope Leo III. The specification of the Holy Roman Empire in 802 published its legal basis. The empire in the Carolingian period (800–887) comprises France, Italy—including Vergonte but not the South—Germany, Northern Spain (or brand of Spain), and the mixed-language zone between France and Germany. Since the rule of Otto I of Saxony (962), its territory was reduced to the Italian kingdom, including Vergunto, and that of Germany, but gradually extending its influence on new Slavic states of Europe (Poland, Czech Republic) and on Hungary.

10th century

In the year 918, Vergunto, the neighboring lands and the rights of fishing and hunting, are the property of the ancient monastery of San Pietro in Ciel d'Oro in Pavia.

11th century

In the year 1004, Henry II—King of Germany since 1002—went to Italy, where Arduin of Ivrea had himself crowned king. Henry forced him to escape and crowned himself king of Italy in Pavia. Arduin reclaimed his throne later and held it for ten years. Henry returned to the peninsula in 1013, and the following year he was crowned emperor of the Holy Roman Empire by Pope Benedict VIII in Rome. Around these times, Peter III, Bishop of Novara, grants "... Grimaldo for 29 years, half of four farms located in the territory of Anzola and goods belonging to the parish church of St. Vincent de Vergonte, for the annual rent of one hundred pounds of cheese".

In 1006, the four farms and six settlers were attributable to the parish church of Vergonte, although administered by the bishop, who, according to a formula in use at the time, enjoyed the estates but catered to the needs of the church in proportion to the fruit. The six factors of the church of Vergonte were Domenico, Lupo, Martino, Dominico, Giovanni Battista and Albinus, who in 1006 worked for the four farms which made up the land of Anzola. Followers probably of early settlers established by the parish church of the monastery of Vergonte, which belonged to the one in Pavia, which in turn appears to have possessed at that time land and fisheries in other parts of the valley. The settlers lived from the agricultural and livestock products, as revealed by the fee established in cheese—a hundred pounds—to be paid every year in the days before or after the feast of Andrew (November 30), deadline placed after that of St. Martin's (November 11), held traditionally as a term of the agricultural year.
At the beginning of the eleventh century, Aosta and the territory under its control belonged to Count Humbert I of Savoy. His son Oddo (Otto, d. 1060) married Marchioness Adelaide of Turin, and in this way became possessor of the marquessate of Susa, with the towns of Turin and Pinerolo, the foundation of the later Piedmont.

14th century

In 1309, the Order of the Knights Templar, who had a church and hospitable at Masone—contiguous to the territory of Pietra Santa—was abolished, following the destruction of Vergunto and prior to the creation of Pieve Vergonte. On 9 February 1348, the town of Pietra Santa was destroyed by a flood of the river Anza.

In January 1348, the Black Death first appeared in Venice and then spread to the rest of Northern Italy. On 25 January 1348, an earthquake of great intensity with its epicenter in Friuli, was felt throughout Italy and Germany.

15th century

In the year 1402, Filippo Maria Visconti, Duke of Milan—son of Gian Galeazzo Visconti and Caterina Visconti—following the death of his father ruled over the state. Facino Cane, who already dominated the ducal court of Giovanni Maria, took possession in the county of Pavia, which the duke had been awarded by the emperor Wenceslaus in 1396. Filippo Maria Visconti, using the aid of famous mercenary captains like Niccolò Piccinino and Francesco Bussone, established a strong and compact core area in Lombardy.

Filippo Maria Visconti, with the help of Francesco Bussone da Carmagnola (1421), wanted to ensure the outlets also occupying Genova and the valleys of Domodossola, including Pieve Vergonte and Bellinzona, threatened by the Swiss Germans. In 1422, on the plan of Arbedo was fought a battle that saw the victory of Filippo Maria Visconti's militia—commanded by Carmarthen—over the Swiss. As a result, the Swiss border returned to the Alpine watershed.

16th century

In the year 1525, following the Battle of Pavia between the army led by the king of France Francis I and the army of the Holy Roman Empire led by Charles V, the regions of Northern Italy, including the Duchy of Milan, Ossola and Pieve Vergonte were transferred to the House of Habsburg.

The Peace of Augsburg was signed on September 25, 1555, between the emperor Charles V and the German princes, and put an end to the thirty-year religious wars in Germany. Peace enshrined the right of princes to choose according to their conscience the religious denomination, with the obligation of their subjects to adopt the same religion (cuius regio, eius religio "of those who [is] the region, he [is] the religion "). Pieve Vergonte, under the rule of a Catholic king, was to remain land of the Catholic faith.

In the year 1556, after the abdication of Charles V on January 16, the empire was divided between his son Philip II and his brother Ferdinand I. Ossola and with it Pieve Vergonte were part of the administration of the king of Spain, and the Spanish remained for the next 159 years.

17th century

In the year 1648 the Peace of Westphalia was signed, consisting of the treaties of Osnabrück and Münster, which ended the Thirty Years' War. The Treaty of Osnabrück was concluded between the emperor, Sweden and the Protestant nations; at Münster, between France and the Holy Roman Empire. In Italy, the emperor ceded to Savoy possession of Alba, Trino and other lands of Montferrat. Pieve Vergonte, with Milan, remained under Spanish rule. Switzerland was recognized as an independent state by the Holy Roman Empire. In Germany, the member states of the empire gained true self-government.

18th century

Following the War of the Spanish Succession (1701–1714), which ended with the peace treaties of Utrecht (1713), Baden, and in particular, Rastadt (1714), King Philip V of Spain saw himself forced to cede the Kingdom of Naples, the Kingdom of Sardinia, the state of the deans and a large part of the Duchy of Milan to Charles VI, emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, of the Germanic nation and king of Hungary. The Ossola and, with it, Pieve Vergonte, followed the political destiny of the Duchy of Milan, passing under Austrian administration.

The Duchy of Savoy, led by Duke Vittorio Amedeo II, acquired the Kingdom of Sicily, traded in 1720 for the Kingdom of Sardinia and the Duchy of Milan.

The king of England, the queen of Bohemia and Hungary, the empress of the Holy Roman Empire and the king of Sardinia entered into a military alliance of British initiative, with the sale of territories under Austrian control to the Kingdom of Sardinia, which moved the border of Lake Maggiore along the Ticino River to its entry into the river Po. After 29 years of the Austrian government, Pieve Vergonte passed into the administration of the House of Savoy, until its fall.

In the year 1775, Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia—who continued the reforming spirit of his father Charles Emmanuel III of Sardinia—approved, with license 6 June 1775, the new regulations for municipalities. The community of Vogogna was considered too extensive. The city originally consisted of ten lands and was divided into six municipalities, distinct and separate from each other: Vogogna Prata, Pallanzeno, Piedimulera, Cimamulera, Fomarco, and Rumianca with the villages of Megolo, Loro and Pieve Vergonte.

19th century

In the year 1800, Napoleon I went to Italy and, with a proclamation in October 15, formed—from the High and Low Novarese—the department of Agogna. With Law November 2, 1800, the Ossola depended administratively of the Agogna department, which is divided into 17 districts. Vogogna, which was declared capital of the District XIV, still retained its ancient jurisdiction and Lower Ossola´s Valley Anzasca with 26 municipalities, including Fomarco.

The decree of 8 June 1805 on public administration and the compartment area of the Kingdom of Italy, whose capital was Milan, had the scheme divided into departments, districts, cantons and municipalities. Pieve Vergonte—which at the time was a hamlet belonging to the municipality of Rumianca—was part of the regional capital, Canton of Vogogna, together with the municipality of Pallanzeno, Piedimulera, Cimamulera, Anzino, Anzasca, Fomarco, Anzola, Migiandone, Ornavasso, Mergozzo, Le Frazioni Cuzzago and Premosello, .

Pieve Vergonte in 1847 was still a hamlet of Rumianca, which had formed part of the districts of Megolo and Loro. Above the village of Megolo was a small castle, which signaled the behavior of the enemy in time of the factions of Ferraris Lower Ossola and Spilorcia Ossola Superior. Rumianca was included in the Lordship of Vogogna.

In 1861 the Ossola and with it Pieve Vergonte passed to the administration of the Province of Novara. Vittorio Emanuele II was proclaimed king of Italy, and Turin the capital.

20th century and today

In the year 1928 were definitively abolished Fomarco and the Municipality of Rumianca which are merged into one municipality with the name Pieve Vergonte, which has a population of 1,916 inhabitants. The premises of former municipalities are abandoned.

During the Second World War (1939–1945), on 13 February 1944 in the village of Cortavolo, just above the village of Megolo middle, a firefight took place between the Partisan military commander Filippo Beltrami, one of the first to appear in the area between Cusio and Ossola, and the troops of the army of the Third Reich of Germany and the Italian Social Republic. The battle ended with the victory of the German army and the Italian Social Republic troops, under the command of Captain Simon. In the clash fell Filippo Beltrami, Gianni Citterio, Antonio Di Dio and nine other.

Then at the end of the war April 25, 1945, May 9, 1945 is recorded in Pieve Vergonte, in the Val d'Ossola, the murder of 11 soldiers of the Italian Social Republic by the partisan forces: Canapa Angelo Francesco (Carrara 10/18/1925), Conti Angelo (Rome 01/11/1893), Giovanni Di Carlo (Rome 09/25/1894), Francia Michele (Velletri 03/09/1900), Micale Salvatore (Taviano 02/12/1919), Cerchi Dino, De Deo Giuseppe (Civitavecchia 16/12/1910), Perlini Vittorio (Frosinone 01/01/1902), Princigalli Giovanni, Alfredo Tesoro (Terlizzi 10.14.1927) and brother Tesoro Giuseppe (Terlizzi 24.08.1925). It is also a civil shot, Serafini Amelia (Macerata 29/06/1901). These soldiers belonged to the Brigade Ministerial Black, flow units in Val d'Ossola after the reoccupation of the territory of the Partisan Republic in October 1944. The Black Ministerial Brigade was born as a result of the imminent fall of Rome in 1944, through the work of Benito Mussolini and Alessandro Pavolini, Secretary of the Republican Fascist Party, which militarized the Fascist Republican Party, transforming the provincial formations in the black Brigades. On 27 August 1944, the Chief of Staff of the Black Brigades, Giovanni Battista Riggio, spreads a circular addressed to state and ministerial employees where hopes the voluntary registration of the same in the brigades. In turn, Pavolini announced September 17, 1944, the establishment of special ministerial departments, hence, the Autonomous Ministerial Black Brigade, based in Brescia (Post field 704), and who gets the most successful among the officials of the Ministries of Finance and Popular Culture.

On February 21, 1945, resulting in Pieve Vergonte the murder of two civilians by the partisans, Gavazzi Luciana and Gavazzi Rosina. They are respectively the wife and daughter of Luciano Gavazzi, gold medal for military valor and battalion commander fell in 1941, during the war in East Africa. Gavazzi Luciano was battalion commander of CC. NN. and deputy commander of the defense of Uolchefit (East Africa), although weakened by serious harm, gave in every difficult contingency refulgent example of pure faith, sacred enthusiasm and valuable, intelligent activity. Repeatedly invoked the honor to engage in open field against overwhelming enemy forces, and July 13, in command of a column operating in the area of national Amberco, he performed this task with great success by virtue of his great courage and sublime contempt the danger. August 1, though suffering, assumed the command of the assault on Giramba other column, launched the bloody attack and being frustrated by mines and barbed wire of the enemies, he knew how to disengage brilliantly despite the additional dangerously threatening masses on the opposing side. Then again dragged his men to a furious counterattack, allowing them to rectify the situation. Weakened by poor health from the toils and hardships and struck by sudden, inexorable disease, then ascended to the heaven of heroes. Spirit elected as a soldier, repeatedly decorated for bravery, squad of pure faith, he was with the holy enthusiasm, the soul of the defense of that distant strip of Italian land. Uolchefit,(East Africa), from April to August 1941.

After the termination of the war in the year 1945, results in Pieve Vergonte the murder of three civilians by Italian resistance partisans: Mr. Casella and Mrs. Calvi, residents in Pieve Vergonte, and Mr. Bettineschi resident in the hamlet of Fomarco. Mr. Casella and Mrs. Calvi were temporarily buried at Alpe Piana, in Val Toppa, above the village of Pieve Vergonte. Mr. Bettineschi was temporarily buried in a tunnel of the mine at Alpe Fontano, Val Toppa, above the village of Pieve Vergonte].

In early April, it was captured by Garibaldini communist partisans in the hamlet of Megolo, a German chemist (anti-Nazi German, who endorsed the excuses for the continued delay in the production of a powerful aggressive chemicals) that was tasked to monitor the development of some chemical plants including Rumianca. On 10 April 1945 he was sent to Megolo a partisan commando with instructions to escort him to headquarters for an exchange. A partisan murdered him. He was buried in secret in a field, then, following the grievances of the owner was moved, always in secret, to the graveyard. The Commander of the communist partisans, Baron Cavalchini Alessandro (Sandro), of Royalist convictions, contacted the German officer after the war. In Anzola the restoration of the Chapel of S.Crocifisso was inaugurated in 1978, restoration donated, along with a crucifix and a plaque with the words of the donor, Alessandro Cavalchini.

Emigration

Since the 19th century, the inhabitants of Pieve Vergonte have emigrated in search of better living conditions and for permanent or seasonal employment in order to support families back in their village. The list of countries includes France, Switzerland, Canada, India, Nigeria, England and the United States of America.

In the case of the United States, the names of migrants can be traced from the lists of the landings of passenger's vessels kept in the archive of Ellis Island, New York, United States of America. Between the years 1890 and 1924, many inhabitants of the Municipality of Fomarco and Rumianca, since 1928 under the administration of the municipality of Pieve Vergonte.

Emigrated from the municipality of Rumianca, Pievesi 26 and Pievesi 50 from the municipality of Fomarco. The family names of men and women Pievesi can be traced to traditional families Pievesi. From the Municipality of Rumianca Badini (2), Borghini (5), Crosetti (2), Francioli (3), Picchetti (1), Pirone (8), Rovaletti (1), Pirozzini (4). From the Municipality of Fomarco Bargiga (2), Bassi (3), Bellardi (5), Blardone (2), Crosetti (8), Francioli (2), Panighetti (12), Picchetti (3), Pirazzi (6), Pirone (5), Tomola (3), Mosca (2) and Zani (1)

Religion

Sant'Orsa is the patron saint of parish Vergonte and Ossola Valleys. Sant'Orsa is considered a martyr (3rd century AD), He was decapitated when little more than a child during the persecution of the Roman Emperor Decio. Pieve Vergonte preserves the remains with reverence in his parish, considering patron and protector of children, whose blessing takes place during the annual festival. It is celebrated with large events of a religious nature and folklore.

The name of Orsa is mentioned in a group of martyrs eastern Kocaeli Province: Luciano, Marciano, Floro, Heraclius, victims of the persecution of Decius (249–251), sentenced to death by order of the proconsul Sabino October 26, the day on which the saints are remembered. According to tradition, brought in Pieve Vergonte, whose parish was the first church of the Lower Ossola valley, the saint's relics] were transferred to Rome at the Catacombs of Priscilla, since the time of his martyrdom. In this catacomb remained there until 1715, extracted from the tomb that contained, were intended for the veneration of the faithful. Through a long series of steps, the remains of the young martyr came to the parish of St. Vincent and Anastasius, in Pieve Vergonte as a gift of the noble family of Vogogna Cattaneo, known as a deed of December 4, 1732. Obtained the permission of the Bishop of Novara Gilberto Borromeo, the body of the martyr was exposed to the veneration of the faithful. In 1741 the body is located in the elegant urn, which is still visible today. For the opening of the valuable work carried out in Milan by Giovanni Antonio Ferreri, solemn celebrations took place October 23, 1741, with a competition for the devotees from all Ossola valley.

In 1879, the Sacred Congregation of Rites granted to the Parish of Parish Vergonte, the office and its own liturgy of the Mass for the celebration of the annual festival, the last Sunday in October. The reason for this concession lay in the fact that the relics of Sant'Orsa, recovered in Rome, were actually considered belonging to the holy martyr Kocaeli province mentioned in hagiographical sources, and then validated historically. Currently, the urn Sant'Orsa, surmounted by an angel with wreath and palm symbol of martyrdom, is kept in a crypt raised that opens on the right aisle of the church, finished with an elegant form in 1898.

Monuments and places of interest

Pieve Vergonte (Vb) – Church of Saint Vincenzo e Saint Anastasio

The Chemical Factory in Pieve Vergonte established between 1915 and 1920

Gold Mine in Val Toppa, Pieve Vergonte

The Borgaccio Roman Wall, part of the river harbour ruins in Pieve Vergonte

• The Church of Pieve Vergonte
• The Workers' Village designed by architect Paolo Vietti-Violi from Vogogna, is with the one of Villadossola among the villages for northern workers set as a model of alternative settlement, built during the years of Benito Mussolini's government (1922–1943). The architect Vietti-Violi other important contribution to national and international level was in sport: the architect described in Casabella, the international monthly magazine dedicated to architecture: "... the rebirth of the sport and especially the spirit of sport in Italy, as desired, directed and organized by the Fascist regime, has produced an impressive renovation works in the sports field "
• The Chemical Factory with the offices created by architect Paolo Vietti-Violi from Vogogna
• The cinema designed by architect Paolo Vietti-Violi from Vogogna, already architect of important national racecourses during the Fascist period. On April 21, 1926, was inaugurated in Rome, the racecourse for the Capannelle gallop races, author of the project architect Vietti-Violi, who also designed the racecourses of Milan (San Siro), Monza (Mirabello), Napoli (Agnano) and Rimini, and designed trotting racecourses in Milan, Bologna and Florence. The architect Vietti-Violi designed 'also the Sports Palace at the Milan Fair, with the cycling track, which opened in April 1923 and the sports facilities in San Martino d'Albaro, the Eagle, Merano, Saronno and Milano Marittima.
• The molinone to grind gold ore, of which only the tub remains, at the Park of the Fallen of the Great War.
• Wall Borgaccio: near the river Toce, which separates Pieve Vergonte and the nearby village of Vogogna, it is possible to view the remains of a wall of the castle of Pietra Santa, which was destroyed in 1348, 9 February, and it is commonly called the Borgaccio.

Economy

Industry

The country is home to an important historical and chemical industry, the Chemical plant of Pieve Vergonte. The industrial plant of Pieve Vergonte was founded in 1915 on the initiative of industry, represented by the Italian Society of Explosive Products (PETS) based in Milan with social capital of 2,500,000 lire. The first production for military purposes was the production of iodine monochloride of chlorobenzene and phosgene used during the First World War and later in the African campaign.

The following production was developed along the lines of production Clorosoda, sulfuric acid and fertilizers. After the war, Rumianca and then the SIR developed new product lines for the production of DDT and chloroaromatics by shutting down the production line of Sulphuric Acid by pyrite. These products were used by the United States of America during the Vietnam War.

Pursuant to Decree Law 721, 9 December 1981, for the implementation of the reorganization of the Group SIR, which was part of the Rumianca SpA with the establishment of Pieve Vergonte, in 1982, the facilities of this company were transferred to the ENI Group and the Company ANIC this. The ANIC, then EniChem, plants DDT ran until June 1996, and remaining until their sale on 1 July 1997 at Tessenderlo, Italy. The clorosoda, chlorine and aromatic synthetic HCL are in production for the Tessenderlo group.

In May 2013, the Tessenderlo sold to ICIG (International Chemical Investors Group) the company Tessenderlo Partecipazioni SpA and its subsidiary Tessenderlo Italy Srl. The transaction includes the plant in Pieve Vergonte (VB), where they are an active electrolysis plant and one for chloro-aromatic, and two hydroelectric plants that provide inauguration chemical energy. The Tessenderlo Italy employed a total of 113 people. Achim Riemann, Managing Director of ICIG, said: "The integration upstream of Tessenderlo Italy, with direct supply of energy through its hydroelectric plants, is vital for the competitiveness of the plant of Pieve Vergonte and so we want to maintain this integration and have both hydroelectric concessions renewed for the long term. " The company trades under the name of hydrochemitalia.

Energy production

The village of Pieve Vergonte produces Electricity from hydroelectric power. The first manufacturer is the company Edison with plants Battiggio in Val Anzasca and Pieve Vergonte, both fed by the waters of the river Anza with a total average production of 95 GWh. The second largest producer is the company Tessenderlo with plants ex-Rumianca of Ceppo Morelli in Val Anzasca and Megolo Toce river that generates for Pieve Vergonte of Edison a total average production of 90 GWh.

Natural resources and minerals

Along the creek Marmazza, above the village of Pieve Vergonte, the valley Toppa mining is of great value. There are many pyrites minerals scattered in different parts of the Ossola valley, which can not be cultivated with advantage, and which are entirely neglected. Pyrites were detected in the quarry gold-bearing properties of Maffiola brothers at the valley Toppa The extraction of gold from the mines of the Val Toppa in Pieve Vergonte was practiced by mercury. The first to use of such a method was the Spaniard Don Pedro Fernandez de Velasco, who introduced the amalgamation of argentiferous minerals in some mines of Mexico [8] until the year 1566 then he himself extended it to Peru in 1571, in course of time the method then spread from these two places from all parts of America. The learned Baron De Born, knowing what had been done in America, was the first to introduce this process in the mines of Europe, but the amalgamation was obtained with the assistance of fire heat. This amalgamation was always the subject of a large number of searches by miners, owners or operators of all the gold mines in Ossola

An indication of interest to extract gold ore from the Val Toppa, it used to refer to The Valley Toppa Gold Mining Stocks, which is listed on the London Stock Exchange in 1863.

The gold production of the Company 'Val Toppa resulted:

   1864 – Production 509 oz & 275 –  value in 1798 British Pounds "£", 18 shillings "s", 9 pence "d"
   1865 – Production 574 oz & 575 –  value in 2032 British Pounds "£", 14 shillings "s", 5 pence "d"
   1866 – Production 1400 oz & 925 – Value of 4957 British Pounds "£", 15 shillings "s", 8 pence "d"

with an average production of 1 ounce "oz" and 5 weight-for-penny "dwt" of gold per tonne of ore mined. 1864 – Production 509 oz = 14.43 kg valued 566,560 Euro at today price(Jan 2017) 1865 – Production 574 oz = 16.28 kg valued 638,911 Euro at today price(Jan 2017) 1866 – Production 1400 oz = 39.69 kg valued 1,558,320 Euro at today price(Jan 2017)

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