Montedoro

Montedoro ( Sicilian: ''Muntidoru'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Caltanissetta in the Italian region Sicily, located about southeast of Palermo and about west of Caltanissetta. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 1,751 and an area of .All demographics and other statistics: Italian statistical institute Istat.

Montedoro borders the following municipalities: Bompensiere, Canicattì, Mussomeli, Racalmuto, Serradifalco.

History

The location of Montedoro has been inhabited by Sicani and then by Siculi. There are stone cave tombs ("tombe a forno") in the districts of Monte Ottavio, Mulinello, Palombaro, Fontana Grande and Fra Diego. A tomb in Tholos, called "Gruttu di li rimitu", on Mount Ottavio, testifies to the Mycenaean presence.

In the "Marcello" district have been found finds of pottery, bricks and various objects of feminine decoration, ceramic from Arezzo.

From the Berbers and the Arabs the locality was called "El Minzar" (which means panorama) and its stream "Ued dur" (river that surrounds).

In 1232 Frederick II granted the Minzarum to the bishop Ursone of Agrigento.

On March 29, 1635 Prince Don Diego Aragona Cortez Tagliavia obtained the concession to establish a village on the feudal lands ("licentia populandi") and founded Montedoro in the fiefdom Balatazza.

For about two centuries the area has based its economy on mining work. From 1815 to 1975 in the territory of Montedoro, several sulfur mines were cultivated: Nadurello, Stazzone Sociale, Grottazze, Gibellini. From 1957 to 1980 in the vicinity of Montedoro there was the cultivation of potash salts.

The rise and fall of the sulfur market in 1896 began emigration flows to the United States of America, principally to the coal mining area centered around Pittston, Pennsylvania, and from 1946 to the European countries and industrial cities of northern Italy.

Today the area has an economy mainly consisting of agriculture and the service sector. Its main crops are: almond, olive trees and vineyards. The local confectionery is also renowned.

Demographic evolution

Colors=
id:lightgrey value:gray(0.9)
id:darkgrey value:gray(0.8)
id:sfondo value:rgb(1,1,1)
id:barra value:rgb(0.6,0.7,0.8)

ImageSize = width:455 height:303
PlotArea = left:50 bottom:50 top:30 right:30
DateFormat = x.y
Period = from:0 till:4000
TimeAxis = orientation:vertical
AlignBars = justify
ScaleMajor = gridcolor:darkgrey increment:1000 start:0
ScaleMinor = gridcolor:lightgrey increment:200 start:0
BackgroundColors = canvas:sfondo

BarData=
bar:1861 text:1861
bar:1871 text:1871
bar:1881 text:1881
bar:1901 text:1901
bar:1911 text:1911
bar:1921 text:1921
bar:1931 text:1931
bar:1936 text:1936
bar:1951 text:1951
bar:1961 text:1961
bar:1971 text:1971
bar:1981 text:1981
bar:1991 text:1991
bar:2001 text:2001

PlotData=
color:barra width:20 align:left

bar:1861 from: 0 till:2151
bar:1871 from: 0 till:2372
bar:1881 from: 0 till:2796
bar:1901 from: 0 till:3551
bar:1911 from: 0 till:3585
bar:1921 from: 0 till:2937
bar:1931 from: 0 till:3150
bar:1936 from: 0 till:3434
bar:1951 from: 0 till:3747
bar:1961 from: 0 till:3291
bar:1971 from: 0 till:2619
bar:1981 from: 0 till:2021
bar:1991 from: 0 till:2010
bar:2001 from: 0 till:1780

PlotData=

bar:1861 at:2151 fontsize:XS text: 2151 shift:(-8,5)
bar:1871 at:2372 fontsize:XS text: 2372 shift:(-8,5)
bar:1881 at:2796 fontsize:XS text: 2796 shift:(-8,5)
bar:1901 at:3551 fontsize:XS text: 3551 shift:(-8,5)
bar:1911 at:3585 fontsize:XS text: 3585 shift:(-8,5)
bar:1921 at:2937 fontsize:XS text: 2937 shift:(-8,5)
bar:1931 at:3150 fontsize:XS text: 3150 shift:(-8,5)
bar:1936 at:3434 fontsize:XS text: 3434 shift:(-8,5)
bar:1951 at:3747 fontsize:XS text: 3747 shift:(-8,5)
bar:1961 at:3291 fontsize:XS text: 3291 shift:(-8,5)
bar:1971 at:2619 fontsize:XS text: 2619 shift:(-8,5)
bar:1981 at:2021 fontsize:XS text: 2021 shift:(-8,5)
bar:1991 at:2010 fontsize:XS text: 2010 shift:(-8,5)
bar:2001 at:1780 fontsize:XS text: 1780 shift:(-8,5)

TextData=
fontsize:S pos:(20,20)
text:Data from ISTAT

Culture

StarGeo
center, includes a Planetarium, Astronomical Observatory, Museum of Sulfur Mines, and House Museums.
* Nuova Teatro Comunale, the new community theater

Notable People

* Giuseppe Bufalino, president of the province and of the CRI, preside higher institutes.
* Russell Bufalino, former boss of the Bufalino crime family.
* Louise Hamilton Caico, writer and photographer
* Giuseppe Guarino (1827-1897), archbishop of Syracuse, cardinal archbishop of Messina.
* John C. Montana, Italian-American gangster and politician
* Salvatore Paruzzo , bishop of Ourinhos.
* Angelo Petix, writer.
* Salvatore Piccillo, priest, professor of philosophy, director of the Scarabelli Library.
* Angelo Rizzo (1926-2009), bishop of Ragusa.
* Giovanni Rizzo (1890-1980), archbishop of Rossano.
* Angelo Tulumello, priest, Jesuit, publicist.
* Calogero Volpe (1910-1976), doctor, specialist in obstetrics and gynecology, radiologist, constituent, deputy and undersecretary of state, president Ente Zolfi Italiani, mayor of Montedoro.

Sister Cities

* Saint-Nicolas, Liège
* Vaulx-en-Velin
* Meyzieu

References

{{authority control

Cities and towns in Sicily