Lagoon, Nature, Flavors
These are two questions that have always intrigued many of us and that have prompted us to search for our origins.
The first answers came to us from the stories of our parents and grandparents who, since we were children, encouraged us go with our imagination to imagine situations, good or bad, from distant times.
They, too, drew on information from their elders. It was really fascinating to listen to them and finally to know our history.
After all, these are the reasons that intrigued me and prompted me to support Piero Santostefano when he informed me that the register of baptisms, marriages and funerals held in Lio Piccolo until the beginning of the last century and kept in the rectory of Torcello, were in a state deterioration and had to urgently provide for a restoration.
We went to view this important document and with the utmost caution we were allowed to consult it.
It was exciting when I saw the names of my ancestors transcribed and officially documented dates and episodes that until then I had only heard about.
Thanks to the help of some friends, it was possible to proceed with the restoration of this very important book, which was the starting point from which Piero Santostefano was able to reconstruct the history of many families of Lio Piccolo and Mesole.
Currently the community is very small, but if we go back to the fifties of the last century it had more than five hundred people distributed in the two strips of land of Lio Piccolo and Mesole.
We all knew each other, there was a lot of social life and solidarity, regardless of the degree of kinship or closeness.
School mates were like brothers and sisters and still today it's nice to meet and share those past times.
Armando Ballarin of Lio Piccolo's Rabiati
Located in the wonderful Venice lagoon, the area that includes Lio Piccolo, Mesole, Lio Maggiore, Saccagnana and Treporti is a must-visit destination for those looking for natural beauty, ancient traditions, and relaxing atmospheres.
Here you can discover unique landscapes, ancient villages, tourist activities, and high-quality gastronomic products. Each locality has its own charm and peculiarities. If you love nature, culture, and good food, you cannot miss the area of Lio Piccolo, Mesole, Lio Maggiore, Saccagnana, and Treporti, gems of the North Venice Lagoon.
It is the Contrada with the most ancient origins, dating back at least to the Roman imperial era, as evidenced by the archaeological finds of two large emporium-houses dating back to that era.
In the pretty little square there is a beautiful manor house from the end of the eighteenth century, and the little church from the same period. In the logo there is the small church dedicated to the Madonna della Neve with the typical bell tower.
It is a Contrada of ancient origins, its most characteristic building, the "Convent" with round fireplaces, also reproduced in the logo, in fact at the end of the fourteenth century.
It is a thin strip of land that can be reached by passing through the island of Saccagnana. Its name derives from that of "Mensula", the middle island, that is, being between the island of Lio Piccolo and the coast.
It is located at the end of a narrow spit of land which, starting just north of Jesolo village, extends towards the southwest among the marshes of the Venice Lagoon. Today almost uninhabited, in the past it hosted an important center included in the Duchy of Venice.
The importance that Lio Maggiore assumed during the Middle Ages is proven by the establishment of the Venetian podestà with jurisdiction also over Lio Piccolo, Equilio and the lido del Pineto. If the chronicle attributed to Pietro Giustinian fixes the arrival of the first podestà of Lio Maggiore in 1270, the documentary evidence shows that the governor was already present at least since 1241. While recognizing the Venetian statutes, the center could also enjoy a certain legislative autonomy, of which, however, only a few testimonies remain.
The island of Saccagnana delimits the municipal area to the north, and hosts the important water terminal of Treporti", where the motor ships leave for Burano-Murano -Torcello and Venice.
Here is the old customs building built in the 19th century. The island owes its name to the medieval one of "Sacca Magna".
This Contrada has always been dedicated to agriculture. In the small square of the "Prà'" there is a small sixteenth-century Venetian villa in the countryside with a small church dedicated to the Madonna del Carmine, a group of buildings arranged in a quadrilateral, to form a characteristic country courtyard. The typical agricultural products are now mainly vegetables, with a delicious flavor that derives from the quality of the soil. The Pra' "Palazzetto" is reproduced in the logo.
This Contrada is formed by the island of Portosecco and the island of the Church, and is connected to the Cavallino coast by the Pordelìo bridge.
It owes its name to that of Porto dei Tre Porti with which the nearby port mouth was still called in medieval times.
These three ports were those of the ancient islands of Ammiana, now disappeared, Torcello and Mazzorbo Burano. Of historical importance, the beautiful church of S.S. Trinity, dating back to the end of the 17th century, reproduced in the logo
KNOW, LOVE, KEEP