Palagnedra facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Palagnedra
Former municipality of Switzerland
Palagnedra village
Coat of arms
Palagnedra Location in Switzerland Show map of Switzerland Palagnedra Location in Canton of Ticino Show map of Canton of Ticino
Country	Switzerland
Canton	Ticino
District	Locarno
Area
• Total	16.38 km2 (6.32 sq mi)
Elevation	652 m (2,139 ft)
Population  (December 2004)
• Total	119
• Density	7.26/km2 (18.82/sq mi)
Postal code	6657
Surrounded by	Brissago, Cannobio (IT-VB), Valle Cannobina (IT-VB), Intragna, Re (IT-VB)

Palagnedra is a village and a locality part of the municipality of Centovalli in the district of Locarno in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland. Lago di Palagnedra is located below the village, on the Melezza river.

Lago di Palagnedra

History

Interior of San Michele

Palagnedra is first mentioned in 1379 as Pallagnidrio.

During the Middle Ages, Palagnedra was the administrative and religious center in the 13th-century Centovalli valley community. In the 16th century it became part of the Locarno and Ascona region, followed by the bailiwick of Locarno. In 1864 the village became independent.

The church of San Michele was built between 1640-1732 and renovated in 1964-66 and again between 1999 and 2001. It was the mother church of the Centovalli valley and contains the best preserved late gothic cycle of frescoes by Antonio da Tradate.

Traditionally the local economy was based around agriculture and grazing. Starting in the 16th century some of the income came from the seasonal migration to Italy. Initially, most of the seasonal workers were laborers. This changed in the 19th century to cooks going to Tuscany. Until the 1950s, the vicinity of the Italian Swiss border encouraged smuggling. In 1950-52 a hydroelectric dam was built. In 2005 about a third of the jobs in Palagnedra related to the agricultural sector.

On 25 October 2009 the municipalities of Borgnone, Intragna and Palagnedra merged into the municipality of Centovalli.

A large part of the community of Palagnedra is formed by the notorious family name "Mazzi"

Location

Aerial view (1953)

The former municipality is located in the Locarno district on a terrace on the southern slope of the Centovalli. It includes various districts, including Bordei, Bolade and Crup.

Historic population

The historical population is given in the following table: