Alcamo (; ) is the fourth-largest town and municipality of the Province of Trapani, Sicily, with a population of 44,925 inhabitants. It is in the north-west of the island, on the border of the Metropolitan City of Palermo, about from Palermo and Trapani.
The current municipality covers an area of and it is the second most densely populated in the province of Trapani, after Erice.
Alcamo is bounded by the Tyrrhenian Sea on the north, Balestrate and Partinico on the east, Camporeale on the south and Calatafimi-Segesta and Castellammare del Golfo on the west. Its main hamlet is Alcamo Marina, about from the town centre. Together with other municipalities is a participant in the , the movement, the project, and Patto Territoriale Golfo di Castellammare.
Alcamo is situated in the middle of the Gulf of Castellammare, at above sea level at the foot of Mount Bonifato, a calcareous complex high. At an altitude of , near the "Funtanazza", there is the Nature Reserve of Monte Bonifato.
The territory of Alcamo includes Alcamo Marina, mainly used as a summer resort.
The climate is mild, with higher rainfall during winter than summer.
The average annual temperature is , with higher temperatures in August () and lower ones in February ().
The average annual rainfall is , driest in July () and wetter in December ().
There is no agreement about the etymology of the name "Alcamo". According to some scholars, it is derived from caccamu, a dialectal word referring to the plant Citrullus colocynthis.
Though there is little information about it, there are evidences that territory of Alcamo was inhabited in prehistoric times; in one of the most ancient sites, near Molinello (a country district), remains have been discovered dating back to the Mesolithic, approximately , with others dating back to the Neolithic found during the archaeological excavations by Paolo Orsi (1899) and the marquis Antonio De Gregorio (1917) near the river Fiume Freddo. An axe from the Neolithic is kept at the Museo archeologico regionale Paolo Orsi of Syracuse.
Lycophron describes an inhabited centre called "Longuro" on Mount Bonifato. Supposedly, this settlement was founded by Greeks who had escaped from the destruction of the town of Troy.
During the Roman period, the inhabitants of Longuro moved to Longaricum at the foot of the mountain to farm the surrounding area. The settlement's name appears in the Itinerary of Antoninus Pius () from in the 3rd century AD and coincides with the Latin name of Longuro.
It is possible that the two hillocks appearing on the gonfalon of Alcamo represent the two towns of Longaricum and Longuro.
The first document mentioning Alcamo dates from 1154, in a paper written by the Berber geographer Idrisi, who was given this task by Roger II of Sicily in order to get a collection of geographic maps. From over a mile away, the writer describes the position of Alcamo viewed from the Castle of Calatubo (visible today from the town) and defines it as a hamlet or a group of houses with rich soil and a flourishing market.
Alcamo was divided into four hamlets named San Vito, San Leonardo, Sant'Ippolito and San Nicolò del Vauso. but a series of revolts between 1221 and 1243 led Frederick II to move most of the population to a colony at Lucera, while Christians from Bonifato came to inhabit the town. The poet Ciullo or Cielo d'Alcamo was born in the town.
In 1340 Raimondo Peralta acquired the feud and barony of Alcamo from Peter II of Aragon. The barony passed to his son Guglielmo Peralta Sclafani, called "Guglielmone", then to the Ventimiglia family (up to 1397), Giaimo de Prades (1407), the Cabrera family, the Speciale family, Pietro Balsamo prince of Roccafiorita (1618) and finally to Giuseppe Alvarez (1777).
By the 14th century Alcamo had several thousand inhabitants; many immigrated from different parts of Sicily and Italy (in particular Pisa, Amalfi, Bologna, Calabria and Liguria), and some also from Spain. During this period, Antonello da Messina moved to Alcamo for three years (around 1438âÂÂ1441) to learn tanning techniques from the tanner master Guglielmo Adragna di Alcamo; the town was an important pole of development for commerce and handicraft. There was a considerable wheat and wine trade with nearby towns, with artisans such as bakers, blacksmiths, tanners and weavers. During this century Alcamo was an important centre for wheat storage and sorting. In the same period Giacomo Adragna transcribed and Pietro d'Alcamo many works from the library of San Martino.
Around 1500, Alcamo was under the jurisdiction of captain of justice Ferdinando Vega, who fought against raiding Turkish pirates. The town was surrounded by defensive embattled walls provided with four gates:
During this period, the town was divided into four-quarters, each one associated with the name of the main church in its area:
The division between these quarters coincided with the main streets of the town, now the present Corso 6 Aprile and Via Rossotti and its continuation Via dei Baroni Emanuele di San Giuseppe (called incorrectly "Via Barone di San Giuseppe").
In 1535, with the visit of the emperor Charles V coming back from Tunisia, the old Porta Trapani was closed and four gates were opened:
During the 16th century education in Alcamo improved with the construction of new schools and employment of expert teachers, in particular the poet and scholar Sebastiano Bagolino (1562âÂÂ1604). In 1547 the Madonna appeared to some women of the people and an image of Madonna Fons Misericordiae was discovered and worshipped as "Our Lady of Miracles".
In the late 16th century, the population was decimated by an infectious disease. The victims were buried in the cemetery of Saint Ippolito.
In 1667 Mariano Ballo ordered the construction of a theatre, called "teatro Ferrigno". It was later demolished, but rebuilt during the 1960s when it was named "cine-teatro Euro", later "Teatro Cielo d'Alcamo".
During the 18th century, pestilence and popular rebellions occurred in Alcamo again. On the other hand, this age was important for art because of the construction of the Basilica of Our Lady of the Assumption (1699), designed by the architects Angelo Italia and Giuseppe Diamante. Its interior was decorated with 38 frescoes from 1736 to 1737 by the Flemish painter Guglielmo Borremans. In the same period the Church of Saint Olivia was renovated, Saint Paul and Bartholomew's Church was rebuilt (1689), and the Church of the Holy Crucifix (or saint Francis of Paola) was completed (1699) together with the monumental church of College some decades later in 1767.
Between 1752 and 1780, Ignazio De Blasi, an Alcamese nobleman, wrote the first book on Alcamo's history, entitled .
The population of the town gradually recovered from earlier pestilence and had increased to 13,000 by 1798.
In 1812, Alcamo's feudal status was abolished and the town became a direct royal possession.
The archpriests Stefano Triolo Galifi and Giuseppe Virgilio, together with the baron Felice Pastore, were members of the Sicilian Parliament as representatives of Alcamo. In 1820, during a revolt, there were different murders, sacks, releases of criminals from prison and a fire in the municipal archives. In 1829 many people died of cholera. In 1843 the construction of the present town hall started, on land owned by baron Felice Pastore.
On 6 April 1860, Stefano and Giuseppe Triolo let the Italian Tricolour wave on the town hall, creating groups of volunteers to help Giuseppe Garibaldi in the battle of Calatafimi, and from Alcamo some edicts on Victor Emmanuel II's behalf were issued. Some time later Francesco Crispi prepared the constitution for lands set free. To commemorate this event, Corso Imperiale was named Corso 6 Aprile.
In 1860, during the Unification of Italy the brothers Triolo of Sant'Anna and Giuseppe Coppola of Monte San Giuliano enlisted many citizens to fight with the "Garibaldians".
At the end of the 19th century, in 1897, public lighting was inaugurated in Alcamo during the traditional feast of Our Lady of Miracles. Giuseppe Rizzo, a priest, founded the "Cassa Rurale e Artigiana Don Rizzo" bank in 1902.
At the beginning of the 20th century (1901âÂÂ1911) the number of citizens in Alcamo diminished abruptly, partially because of the emigration of a recorded 36,718 Sicilians abroad, in particular to the United States, although an unreliable census makes the figure questionable. In the same period cultivation in the territory of Alcamo were affected by phylloxera, and two banks ("Cooperativa" and "Segestana") went bankrupt with subsequent economic difficulties for its citizens.
Events linked to the Mafia, such as the murder of Gaspare Cottone, a carter (1899) and the death of the 19-years-old Benedetto Guastella during an armed conflict with carabinieri in 1900 became notable. As the Mafia took power in the districts of Trapani and Alcamo, the commissary Cesare Mori intervened with a series of arrests and charges against the suspects and finally they arrested brothers Vincenzo and Michele Tedesco and Baldassare Adragna, considered the heads of the gangs in Trapani's territory.
During the First World War, four hundred citizens from Alcamo died. The following period was characterized by poverty caused by monetary inflation and banditry. In 1918 about five hundred people died from Spanish flu. In the Second World War 213 citizens from Alcamo died or were lost. In 1927, Don Vincenzo Giovenco (1880âÂÂ1954) operated and opened the first cinema in Alcamo, "Cinema Marconi". It closed less than ten years after opening after a fire.
The foundation of SocietÃÂ Elettrotecnica Palermitana, whose name was changed to SocietÃÂ Generale Electrica della Sicilia (SGES), which installed an electric workroom in the district of Saint Augustine in Alcamo, dates back to the 1920s. Jobs inside the company were sought after: it was the only firm in Trapani Province which had a health insurance fund and granted holidays. The electric workroom existed until 1963, when it was acquired by Enel and demolished. During the years in which SGES operated, there was an improvement in the electric services in Alcamo's territory, contributed to by the construction of several artificial lakes.
During the Italian Fascism period, citizens asked the government to appoint Alcamo as the capital of the province (1930), but this request was denied.
On 19 August 1937, fascist leader Benito Mussolini visited the town, crossing Corso 6 Aprile in an open car and parading through the crowd of his supporters. The visit marked the inauguration of the railway line between Trapani and Alcamo, completed in the same year. Some weeks later, prince Umberto visited Alcamo.
On 21 July 1943 American troops entered Alcamo without any opposition, freeing the town from Italian Fascism. On 18 December 1944, with economic and social disruption, the citizens rose up, occupied the town hall and set its archives on fire. Since 1960 the town has expanded, particularly at the foot of Mount Bonifato, with the construction of Viale Europa, a main street in Alcamo.
From the end of the 1980s and into the 1990s there was a bloody Mafia war between the Greco clan (related to the Rimi family) and members of the emergent Mafia of Corleone, led by Vincenzo Milazzo in the territory of Alcamo. Vincenzo Milazzo received orders from Totò Riina to eliminate members of the old Mafia (in particular the member of the clan Greco) and put only his trusted men in command. The threat to the Greco clan from the Cosa Nostra led to five years of bloody conflict and resulted in tens of victims. The new Corleone Mafia prevailed, but came at the cost of a large number of its members' lives. During the same period of armed clashes between the Mafia families, the biggest heroin refinery in Sicily was discovered at contrada Virgini in Alcamo. (1985)
While the crimes of the Mafia went on and tens of people disappeared as victims of "lupara bianca", there was a religious revival which led to the birth of several Catholic associations such as Rinnovamento nello Spirito Santo, Neocatechumenal Way and the movement of Comunione e Liberazione. From the latter came the parish community of the Church of Jesus Christ the Redeemer, originating in the district of Sant'Anna (2006). This religious revival was followed by a new interest in the town's old traditions, mentioned in the works of Roberto Calia and Carlo Cataldo, historians from Alcamo. Carlo Cataldo has been recognized several times both for his historical works and for his dialectal poems of Alcamo's folklore.
In the 21st century there was a renovation of Alcamo's architecture, thanks to the restoration of some important historical buildings such as the Castle of the Counts of Modica, the Theatre Cielo d'Alcamo, the Cine-Theatre Marconi, the Ex Jesuits' College, the Cuba delle rose (in 2013), the church of College (in 2014), the façade of Badia Nuova (in 2014) and the old Arab fountain (in 2016). Restoration of the Castle of Calatubo is planned with the support of Fondo Ambiente Italiano; its chapel and the path leading to the castle have already been cleaned by the volunteers' association "Salviamo il Castello di Calatubo" (in 2015).
Urban areas have been improved, including the restoration of Piazza Ciullo by the architect Gae Aulenti (1996) and the construction of an underground car park in Piazza Bagolino, together with the creation of the near suburban park San Francesco. Environmentally, Alcamo has been considered an example to be followed for the results between 2010 and 2013 in the waste sorting (raccolta differenziata).
The Coat of arms of Alcamo, used since the kingdom of Frederick II of Swabia, is a black flying Eagle, crowned by Gold in a Silver range, with three hills below and two Golden Oaks.
A sculpture of the coat of arms is on a side wall of the Church of Saint Francis of Assisi, near Porta Palermo.
There are several historical civil buildings in Alcamo:
Military buildings in Alcamo include:
In the territory of Alcamo there are several and interesting archaeological sites:
Among the areas of naturalistic interest near Alcamo there are the beaches of Alcamo Marina, the Nature Reserve Bosco di Alcamo on Mount Bonifato and the Segestan thermal baths. The hot springs are produced by the reclimbing of water of meteoric origin which meets the water of Fiume Caldo. They are seven kilometres far from Alcamo and next to the boundary with the territory of Castellammare del Golfo, a small town which shares this naturalistic attraction with Alcamo. According to the narration given by Diodorus Siculus, they were created by the nymphs to favour Eracle's rest during his trip from Piloro to Erice.
The surrounding areas include interesting touristic and historical locations like Segesta and Gibellina. The old fishing village of Scopello, from Alcamo, has been referred to as having a remarkable seaside. Another small town considered worth visiting is Castellammare del Golfo which is between these two places.
According to the ISTAT data of 1 January 2013, the foreign people resident in Alcamo were 1,258 people corresponding to the 2.58% of the residing population. The most represented nationalities, according to the percentage on the total residing population, were:
The poet Cielo d'Alcamo (known also as "Ciullo d'Alcamo") was the author of the contrasto "Rosa fresca aulentissima". He wrote in vernacular in the 12th century and was from Alcamo. Many important places of the town, such as the main square, the theatre and the Classical Lyceum founded in 1862, have been named after the famous poet.
From the cultural point of view, in the following centuries Alcamo saw the rise of activities connected with arts such as the construction of churches and buildings, first in the baroque and then Renaissance style, with the coming of several artists of international level: painters (like Guglielmo Borremans and the very talented Pietro Novelli from Monreale), sculptors (Antonello Gagini and Giacomo Serpotta) and other various artists who embellished the town's image.
Inside the Castle of the Counts of Modica there is a puppet theatre: it has born again thanks to the engagement of Salvatore Oliveri, the grandson of the puppet master Gaspare Canino, who worked in Alcamo for about 50 years, continuing the work of Luigi, his father. They often give performances inside the castles or in the square.
It is also noteworthy the activity of Compagnia Piccolo Teatro, a theatre company founded in 1976, which has seen the rise (and success) of some actors and theatre directors.
During the feasts in Alcamo there are often streets entertainers and pedlars selling sweets, dried fruit and different objects in their stands called "baracchelle".
Inside Alcamo churches there are several artistic works. Apart from foreign artists, there were painters Giuseppe Renda and Gino Patti; among the living artists Turi Simeti, Vito Bongiorno and Gisella Giovenco; sculptors were Giuseppe Bambina, Pietro Montana and Nicola Rubino.
There is a local radio, Radio Alcamo Centrale, which operates in the territory since 1976.
The oldest periodical in Alcamo is "Il Bonifato".
The networks in Alcamo are Alpa Uno (since 1976) and Video Sicilia (since 1987).
There are various musical associations in Alcamo:
There are different school dances in Alcamo, such as:
The local market in Alcamo (called "mercatino") takes place every Wednesday morning in Via Tre Santi, near Viale Italia.
Some specialities of cuisine of Alcamo are:
Alcamo is one of the most important centres in Sicily for wine production, especially Bianco Alcamo D.O.C., produced from vineyards in the western Sicilian Val di Mazara wine region, using espalier or "tendone" structures and using white common or bright catarratto vines, eventually associated with damaschino, grecanico and trebbiano.
Besides the wine activity there are cattle and sheep breeding, olive growing (for the extraction of extra virgin olive oil), cereals (particularly wheat) and the typical oval melon, with a green wrinkled peel, locally called "miluni purceddu", which has the peculiarity that can be kept longer than other kinds of melon.
In the primary sector it is also significant quarrying (of different marbles and mostly travertino), though the tertiary sector (more or less advanced) has however got the majority of employed people.
There are two motorway junctions from A29 motorway Palermo-Mazara del Vallo: Alcamo Est and Alcamo Ovest, apart the junction of Castellammare del Golfo which links up with the north entrance to Alcamo. Another motorway junction is from Alcamo Ovest (A29 motorway, diramazione Alcamo-Trapani). Alcamo is crossed by two National Roads: strada statale 113, connecting Trapani with Messina, and strada statale 119, connecting Alcamo with Castelvetrano. The Railway line doesn't pass through the town centre but along the coast, then inland on the west side. The railway station of Alcamo Diramazione is located near the motorway junction of Alcamo Ovest and the station of Castellammare del Golfo is situated in the territory of Alcamo, precisely at Alcamo Marina.
These State Highways (or National Roads) pass through Alcamo:
These Regional Roads (SR) of Sicily:
And also these Provincial Roads (SP) of the province of Trapani pass through Alcamo:
In the area of Alcamo there are also the following draining roads of the province of Trapani:
Along the National Road Palermo-Sciacca (SS 624) there is the exit "Alcamo" in both directions and is about 30 km from on the south-west side of the town. This exit, wholly located in the territory of Poggioreale, connects with the National Road of Gibellina (SS 119) near the ex railway station and motorway junction of Gallitello through the Provincial road SP9 (of the series n.182 Macchia-Sella-Bonfalco) and the SB0 (a local link road of Gibellina), to the border between the territories of Poggioreale and Monreale.
Alcamo is about 40 km from the airport "Falcone-Borsellino Airport" of Palermo-Punta Raisi and about 50 km from the "Vincenzo Florio Airport" of Trapani-Birgi.
The most popular and practised sport in Alcamo, as in most Italian towns, has always been soccer; the greatest team is the Alcamo team, which was in the past a protagonist in some football seasons in League C (Italian Serie C), for its victories against Bari and Crotone, and in League D. Apart various regional trophies, it has won the Coppa Italia Dilettanti in 1996 and the subsequent Supercoppa Italiana Dilettanti. Together with the golden period in League C, these were the most notable pages of the football history in Alcamo. A recent society crisis has caused bankruptcy and the team which played in League D had to restart from the First Category League. Today it competes in the regional Eccellenza championship following the 2010 refoundation. The activity of juvenile soccer is very active, and the Adelkam football school emerges among the various youth teams because it has launched different football players and has won a lot of national and international competitions. Alcamo is also the principal centre of the Costa Gaia International Trophy, a youth football kermess in which a lot of titled teams take part and where many great players of the bigger championships have been the protagonists.
Basketball is also popular, today with better results than football anyway. The female team Basket Alcamo (Gea Magazzini) which has obtained important results in its history (a long participation in A1 League and the final match in the Ronchetti Cup), has played in the A2 League for eleven years, and has regained the major league in the season 2011âÂÂ2012. The male team has also obtained good results, but not at the same levels.
The local handball team, Pallamano Alcamo plays its home matches at the Palasport Enzo D'Angelo.
The town has several sports facilities, the most important are the stadium Lelio Catella (with a capacity of about 10,000 people) for football and athletics, the Palazzetto dello Sport (sports hall) Tre Santi for Basket and the Palasport Enzo D'Angelo (an indoor stadium) for handball.
There is a private swimming pool open to public use (La Fenice) where young boys (who have won National prizes) train regularly. In the same facility there is an ice-skating rink. When Alcamo football team played in League C, the home matches were played at stadium Don Rizzo, which together with Sant'Ippolito stadium, is now used by juvenile and minor teams.