The legend has it that when the lake of Vagli is emptied and the ghost village re-emerges, the ancient inhabitants finally return to their homes.
Don’t worry, we are not talking about a science-fiction film. This is the story of the medieval village submerged in the lake of Vagli, located in Garfagnana, among the beautiful Apuan Alps. Here the Fabbriche di Careggine village “disappeared” beneath the waters of the Lago di Vagli between 1947 and 1953, when the SELT-Valdarno electric power company (today ENEL) created the hydroelectric dam. The town was founded in the 13th century by a group of blacksmiths, who made it famous for the production of iron. In the 19th century, due to a decline in the iron industry, the residents of Fabbriche di Careggine were forced to change their jobs, becoming farmers and shepherds. In the 20th century, the economy recovered thanks to the exploitation of the marble quarries near Vagli. For this reason the Edron Stream was blocked and the village was drowned in 1947, for hydroelectric production. Its residents moved to new homes in Vagli Sotto.
The Lago di Vagli was drained for maintenance work in 1958, 1974, 1983 and 1994.
On these occasions it was possible to witness the re-emergence of the Fabbriche of Careggine with its stone houses, the bridge, the cemetery and the Church of San Teodoro still standing.
This year, in 2021, the lake will be emptied again after 27 years. It will definitely be an unmissable and suggestive event.
We will certainly not miss the opportunity to walk along the streets of a submerged village, and you?