Crespi d’Adda is an example of industrial archaeology classified in December 1995 as aUNESCO World Heritage Site. It is an exceptional working-class village in a perfect state of preservation with an exemplary urban layout. Learn about the history of the Crespi family and immerse yourself in the life of the last century.
History of the Crespi and the birth of the village
The Crespi family of weavers began their business here in 1878, knowing that there was plenty of available labor in the area and seeing the possibility of building an industrial canal along the Adda to harness its hydraulic power. Thus Cristoforo Crespi, the founder. He built the so-called ‘palasòcc,’ but it was with the arrival of his son Silvio, educated in England, that a plan was made for the entire village. The principle was to provide everyone with a small villa, with a garden and vegetable garden, and to provide the necessary services, from the public baths to the school, from the church to the sports field, from the recreation center to the small hospital. And then the theater, the food store, the fire department, the wash house, the band corps, the summer camp, the home economics class. All governed by Silvio Crespi himself, an outstanding entrepreneur and stubborn politician. The urban scheme is simple: along the river is the factory with its very tall chimneys and next to it the villa-castle of the owners. The workers’ cottages are arranged on several parallel streets; to the south is a group of later villas for employees and executives. At the beginning of the village is the church and next to it is the school.
A plunge into the past
What is striking about Crespi d’Adda, a unique testimony in the world of an industrial village of the late 1800s, is the exceptional state of preservation of its buildings and urban layout and its location within the middle course of the Adda River – the cradle of the Italian industrial revolution – which is very rich in historical and artistic evidence. Above all, however, it is striking that, unlike all other similar villages in Italy and around the world, it has maintained, along with the integrity of the buildings, its social and productive functions, in fact housing a living community, with the factory in operation until 2004. A day in Crespi d’Adda is not only a cultural visit, but is above all a plunge into the last century and an opportunity to immerse oneself in the life and customs of the past.