LERCARA
FRIDDI
Lercara
Friddi stretches between the slopes of the Pizzo Lanzone at about
660m altitude, on a hilly area that separates the Platani and Torto
rivers. It was founded in 1605 by the Noble Spaniard Baldassarre
Gomez de Amescua within the fief of Friddi. The subsequent lords
of Lercara Friddi were Benedetto de Mayada, the Villalbas, the Ventimiglias,
the Scamaccas and the Gravinas.
A
remarkable economic growth was recorded in the 19th century thanks
to the flourishing sulphur and other mining industries that sadly
declined at the end of the Second World War much owed to a fierce
competion from other Sicilian areas and lack of infrastructures.
The
1700’s Chiesa Madre dedicated to Saint Joseph with the adjacent
Collegio di Maria, the 1700’s Chiesa di San Matteo or del
Purgatorio, and several noble palazzi built between the 18th and
19th century are worth-visiting.
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