The Rebirth of the Spa Tradition after 1883

A new season

In the summer of 1883 Casamicciola was one of the most popular spa resorts in Europe. After 1883 the town went through a long season of renewal that changed its face and gradually brought it towards the sea.

Rules for rebuilding

On 15 September 1883 the Ministry of Public Works set up the Commission for building regulations on the island of Ischia. Its recommendations were incorporated into the Building Code for the island's municipalities, in force from 15 September 1884, which presented itself as the first Italian anti-seismic study. New buildings were preferably to stand on level ground, away from the hills; buildings were not to exceed two storeys; for public buildings, “baraccate” structures in timber or iron were recommended. Extradosed vaults, loggias and domes disappeared, replaced by pitched roofs on trusses.

The town moves towards the sea

The Marina was built up with new buildings and districts, following the town plan drawn up by Domenico Lo Gatto in November 1883. The most important buildings were reborn further down: the parish church became the new basilica of Santa Maria Maddalena (1896), and the Pio Monte built its new thermal hospice on the seafront, opened in 1895, away from the Gurgitello spring that had fed its baths for almost three centuries. The town centre settled permanently around Piazza Marina, while Piazza Maio and Piazza Bagni remained the historic quarters of the upper town and of the spas.

The Piazza Bagni establishments

In Piazza Bagni the spas carried on working. The Bourbon Gurgitello establishment, now the Antiche Terme Belliazzi, according to its company history came through those years unscathed. Among the owners of the establishments on the square was Gioconda Gallinari in Manzi, from whom the Antiche Terme Manzi descend. The square, transformed and enlarged, did however become somewhat out of the way for the new tourist flows.

A patient recovery

The town grew again patiently: Casamicciola once more exceeded 4,000 inhabitants in the 1936 census. Those years also brought a new scientific focus: the building code suggested setting up an observatory in Casamicciola, later built at the Grande Sentinella, today's Geophysical Observatory. In the 20th century the spa vocation remained the town's identity, and in 1956 it added “Terme” to its name.

Further reading

The rebirth of the spas and hotels is told in Belle Époque Spas and Hotels and the story of the hospice in The Pio Monte and Thermal Care for the Poor. The town's urban transformation is the focus of Casamicciola after 1883: the rebirth.