Villalba (CL)
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Villalba ( Sicilian: ''Villarba'') is a ''
comune A (; : , ) is an administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions () and provinces (). The can also have the City status in Italy, titl ...
'' (municipality) in the
Province of Caltanissetta The province of Caltanissetta (; or ; officially ''libero consorzio comunale di Caltanissetta'') is a Provinces of Italy, province in the southern part of Sicily, Italy. Following the suppression of the Sicilian provinces, it was replaced in 20 ...
in the
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
region
Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...
, located about northwest of
Caltanissetta Caltanissetta (Sicilian language, Sicilian: ''Cartanissètta)'' is an Italian comune with a population of 58,012 inhabitants, serving as the capital of the Province of Caltanissetta, free municipal consortium of Caltanissetta in Sicily. The earl ...
, about southeast of
Palermo Palermo ( ; ; , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan province. The ...
and 68 km from
Agrigento Agrigento (; or ) is a city on the southern coast of Sicily, Italy and capital of the province of Agrigento. Founded around 582 BC by Greek colonists from Gela, Agrigento, then known as Akragas, was one of the leading cities during the golden ...
. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 1,852 and an area of .All demographics and other statistics: Italian statistical institute
Istat The Italian National Institute of Statistics (; Istat) is the primary source of official statistics in Italy. The institute conducts a variety of activities, including the census of population, economic censuses, and numerous social, economic, a ...
.
It rises over an internal hilly area, 620 metres above sea-level. The name Villalba has Spanish origins, and it means "the white city" because of the town's white houses. Villalba is known for the cultivation of cereals, grapes, vegetables, tomatoes, and lentils. The Sagra del Pomodoro (tomato festival) is held every year in the month of August. Villalba borders the following municipalities:
Cammarata Cammarata is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Agrigento in the Italian region Sicily, located about southeast of Palermo and about north of Agrigento on the eponymous mountain Mount Cammarata, which has an elevation above sea lev ...
, Castellana Sicula,
Marianopoli Marianopoli ( Sicilian: ''Manchi'') is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Caltanissetta in the Italian region Sicily, located about southeast of Palermo and about northwest of Caltanissetta. Marianopoli borders the following municip ...
,
Mussomeli Mussomeli (''Mussumeli'' in Sicilian language, Sicilian) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Caltanissetta, Sicily, Italy. History Mussomeli is claimed to have been founded in the 14th century by Chiaramonte, Manfredo III Chiaramonte wit ...
,
Petralia Sottana Petralia Sottana () is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Palermo, in the island of Sicily, Southern Italy. The main characters in Emanuele Crialese's 2006 film of Sicilian immigration to America, '' Nuovomondo'', come from the tow ...
,
Polizzi Generosa Polizzi Generosa ( Sicilian: ''Pulizzi'') is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Palermo on the island of Sicily, southern Italy. The town sits in the hills at above sea level. History The site of Polizzi shows signs of human o ...
, Vallelunga Pratameno.


History

Since the 17th century, the
fief A fief (; ) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form of feudal alle ...
was owned by the Miccichè family. In 1751, it was acquired by Nicolò Palmieri Calafato, who also obtained the approval to populate the area. The first houses were constructed in 1763. During the 18th century the town experienced a remarkable urban and architectural growth. There are various important monuments, such as the Chiesa Madre built in 1700, and the Chiesa della Concezione erected in 1795, preserving a statue by artist
Filippo Quattrocchi Filippo is an Italian male given name, which is the equivalent of the English name Philip, from the Greek ''Philippos'', meaning "horse lover".''Behind the Name''"Given Name Philip" Retrieved on 23 January 2016. The female variant is Filippa. T ...
(first half of the 18th century). Noteworthy is the Palace of baron Nicolò Palmieri Morillo, built during the 18th century.


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:6000 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:3353 bar:1871 from: 0 till:3580 bar:1881 from: 0 till:4181 bar:1901 from: 0 till:3426 bar:1911 from: 0 till:4113 bar:1921 from: 0 till:3505 bar:1931 from: 0 till:3924 bar:1936 from: 0 till:4392 bar:1951 from: 0 till:4932 bar:1961 from: 0 till:3737 bar:1971 from: 0 till:2408 bar:1981 from: 0 till:2307 bar:1991 from: 0 till:2152 bar:2001 from: 0 till:1916 PlotData= bar:1861 at:3353 fontsize:XS text: 3353 shift:(-8,5) bar:1871 at:3580 fontsize:XS text: 3580 shift:(-8,5) bar:1881 at:4181 fontsize:XS text: 4181 shift:(-8,5) bar:1901 at:3426 fontsize:XS text: 3426 shift:(-8,5) bar:1911 at:4113 fontsize:XS text: 4113 shift:(-8,5) bar:1921 at:3505 fontsize:XS text: 3505 shift:(-8,5) bar:1931 at:3924 fontsize:XS text: 3924 shift:(-8,5) bar:1936 at:4392 fontsize:XS text: 4392 shift:(-8,5) bar:1951 at:4932 fontsize:XS text: 4932 shift:(-8,5) bar:1961 at:3737 fontsize:XS text: 3737 shift:(-8,5) bar:1971 at:2408 fontsize:XS text: 2408 shift:(-8,5) bar:1981 at:2307 fontsize:XS text: 2307 shift:(-8,5) bar:1991 at:2152 fontsize:XS text: 2152 shift:(-8,5) bar:2001 at:1916 fontsize:XS text: 1916 shift:(-8,5) TextData= fontsize:S pos:(20,20) text:Data from ISTAT


Notable people

* Don Nicolò Vincenzo Palmeri Baron of Michiche Marquis Villalba d. 1914 NYC, NY) http://milioto.com/roots/historyOFvillalba.htm *
Dennis Farina Donaldo Gugliermo "Dennis" Farina (February 29, 1944 – July 22, 2013) was an American actor and Chicago police detective. Known for his roles as mobsters or police officers, his involvement in the entertainment industry began through his asso ...
American film actor and former police detective whose father was from Villalba. *
Angelo Bruno Angelo Bruno (born Angelo Annaloro, ; May 21, 1910 – March 21, 1980) was a Sicilian-American mobster who was boss of the Philadelphia crime family for two decades until his assassination. Bruno was known as "The Docile Don" due to his prefere ...
(1910–80), Sicilian-American mobster born in Villalba who ran the
Philadelphia crime family The Philadelphia crime family, also known as the Bruno–Scarfo crime family,< ...
for two decades. * Michele Pantaleone (1911–2002), journalist and expert on the
Sicilian Mafia The Sicilian Mafia or Cosa Nostra (, ; "our thing"), also referred to as simply Mafia, is a secret society, criminal society and criminal organization originating on the island of Sicily and dates back to the mid-19th century. Emerging as a form of ...
and one of the first to shed light on the links between organized crime and political power. *
Joe Plumeri Joseph J. Plumeri II (born July 7, 1943) is vice chairman of the First Data Board of Directors. He was the chairman and CEO of Willis Group Holdings (Willis), a New York Stock Exchange-listed insurance broker, until July 2013. The company has 1 ...
(born 1944), the Chairman & CEO of
Willis Group Holdings Willis Group Holdings plc was a multinational risk advisor, insurance brokerage and reinsurance brokerage company headquartered in the Willis Building in London. It was the third-largest insurance broker worldwide by revenues. In 2016, the com ...
and the owner of the
Trenton Thunder The Trenton Thunder are a collegiate summer baseball team of the MLB Draft League. They are located in Trenton, New Jersey, and play their home games at Trenton Thunder Ballpark. From 1994 to 2020, it was a Minor League Baseball team of the D ...
, is the descendant of grandparents who emigrated to the U.S. from Villalba * Patricia F. Russo Pat Russo (born June 12, 1952 in Trenton, New Jersey) is an American businessperson most widely known for having served as chief executive officer of Lucent Technologies and its successor, Alcatel-Lucent, a large communications equipment manufacturer. She currently serves on the board of directors of HP, General Motors, Merck & Co. and ALCOA, Inc. She serves as chairman of the nonprofit organization Partnership at Drugfree.org Forbes magazine rated Russo as the tenth on its list of the most powerful women in 2006. Pat's great-grandparents and grandparents emigrated from Villalba to the United States. *
Calogero Vizzini Calogero Vizzini (; 24 July 1877 – 10 July 1954), also commonly known as "Don Calò", was a Sicilian Mafia boss of Villalba, Sicily, Villalba in the province of Caltanissetta, Sicily. He was considered to be one of the most influential and leg ...
(1877–1954),
Mafia boss A crime boss, also known as a crime lord, mafia don, mob boss, kingpin, or godfather is the leader of a criminal organization. Description A crime boss has absolute or nearly absolute control over the other members of the organization and is ...
considered to be one of the most influential bosses after World War II until his death. In the media he was often depicted as the "boss of bosses"–though such a position does not officially exist in the structure of
Cosa Nostra The Sicilian Mafia or Cosa Nostra (, ; "our thing"), also referred to as simply Mafia, is a criminal society and criminal organization originating on the island of Sicily and dates back to the mid-19th century. Emerging as a form of local protect ...
.


References


External links

*
Comune di Villalba


*

{{DEFAULTSORT:Villalba (Cl) Cities and towns in Sicily Populated places established in 1751 1751 establishments in Italy