Stabio

History

Stabio is first mentioned in 1067 as Stabio. Excavations in the area around S. Pietro have found evidence of continuous settlements from about 400 BC to the 7th century AD. There are burial grounds from the Iron Age followed by a burial ground and patrician residential structures from the Roman era, traces of the cult of Mercury and numerous Lombards graves. In 1999, the rich grave goods of a Lombard warrior were discovered. In 1181, the Orelli family of Locarno gained the tithe rights in the region from the Bishop of Como. In 1275, both the monastery of S. Abbondio in Como and the Benedictine abbey of Sant'Ambrogio in Milan owned property and rights in Stabio. On 22 October 1876 a serious clash between conservatives and liberals in Stabio claimed three lives, which led to a Federal mediation between the two sides. Religiously, Stabio belonged to the Vicariate of Mendrisio, from which it separated itself in 1575. The old parish church of SS. Pietro e Lucia, dates back to the 7th century, and was rebuilt in the 12th and 13th centuries. The current parish church of SS. Giacomo e Cristoforo martire is first mentioned in 1275. It was rebuilt at the end of the 16th century and expanded in the 18th and 20th centuries. Traditionally, the main occupations were agriculture, livestock tending, and viticulture. Due to limited farming land, there was some emigration of artisans and artists, first to the cities of northern Italy and central Italy, and later overseas. In the 19th century, the silk and later the tobacco industry developed in the municipality. The first factory in Stabio was the Realini shirt factory which was founded in 1902. It was acquired in 1976 by the Ermenegildo Zegna Group; in 2005 it had 900 employees. The hot springs were discovered in 1850…

Geography

Stabio has an area, , of . Of this area, or 51.7% is used for agricultural purposes, while or 31.2% is forested. Of the rest of the land, or 29.1% is settled (buildings or roads), or 0.2% is either rivers or lakes and or 1.3% is unproductive land. Of the built up area, industrial buildings made up 8.3% of the total area while housing and buildings made up 13.2% and transportation infrastructure made up 5.0%. Power and water infrastructure as well as other special developed areas made up 2.1% of the area Out of the forested land, 26.2% of the total land area is heavily forested and 5.0% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 32.0% is used for growing crops, while 6.5% is used for orchards or vine crops and 13.2% is used for alpine pastures. All the water in the municipality is flowing water. The municipality is located in the Mendrisio district, on the Italian border. It consists of the village of Stabio with the settlements of San Pietro and Gaggiolo.

Most-observed species

• Hooded Crow

  Corvus cornix Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  2,158
• European Robin

  Erithacus rubecula (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,856
• Eurasian Blackbird

  Turdus merula Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  1,748
• Common Chaffinch

  Fringilla coelebs Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  1,633
• Mallard

  Anas platyrhynchos Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  1,613
• Butterfly-bush

  Buddleja davidii Franch. · Magnoliopsida
  1,585
• Great Tit

  Parus major Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  1,507
• Great Cormorant/European Shag

  Phalacrocorax carbo (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,466

Most recent

• M 3 — 2025-10-03
  1 km SE of Montescano, Italy
• M 4.5 — 2021-12-18
  1 km WNW of Dalmine, Italy
• M 4.1 — 2020-12-17
  0 km SW of Opera, Italy
• M 3 — 2015-11-28
  1 km ESE of Aviatico, Italy
• M 3.3 — 2010-05-11
  1 km WNW of Albino, Italy
• M 2.5 — 2008-08-25
  2 km N of Piangaiano, Italy