Torregrotta

Torregrotta (IPA: [tɔrre'grɔtta]; Turri in Sicilian) is an Italian town of 7,297 inhabitants in the metropolitan city of Messina in Sicily. The town, located 44 meters above sea level in the Niceto valley, lies between the Tyrrhenian Sea and the first Peloritani hills. Initially built in medieval times as a hamlet of the fief of Santa Maria della Scala, after a period of abandonment, it was rebuilt starting in 1526. At the beginning of the 19th century it became a sub-municipality of Roccavaldina, from which it obtained administrative autonomy in 1923. The 16th-century center expanded mainly from the second half of the 19th century onward. A center historically linked to agriculture, the place of origin of the sbergia, it has lost its traditional agricultural role in favor of the tertiary sector. The clay extraction and processing industry had a certain boost in the 20th century, but almost completely ceased to exist in the 2000s. Medium and small artisan businesses predominate.