From ship loader to port city. The case of Porto Empedocle (Da caricatore a città portuale. Il caso di Porto Empedocle)

Porto Empedocle was, for many centuries, the port of the nearby city of Agrigento, imposing itself for exceptional locational qualities as maritime crossroads between all the seaports on the south coast of Sicily, albeit with ups and downs. Thanks to its strategic location, facing the north African coast and connections to the inner areas, the simple warehouse and provisioner became crucial for the economy of the island so as to be called the "most active warehouse and provisioner of the kingdom". Were performed a series of measures aimed at achieving real port facilities which would transform the original glade in functional landing place for boats of any size. Due its history, Porto Empedocle has been awarded the designation of “City” that seems to crown a '"independence", de iure, long looked for and that, due to strong connections with Agrigento, de facto, there is not.