Caccamo (Palermo Province), 50 km. from Palermo, alt. 521 m., on a western spur of Monte San Calogero, in the San Leonardo Valley, area 187.8 sq. km., pop. over 8,600, post-code 90012, tel. 091. Economy: agriculture (cereals, olives, almonds, grapes), livestock breeding.
The town has ancient origins. The name, which is derived from caccabe (horse-heads), may have been given by the Carthaginians who took refuge here after their defeat at Himera in 480 BC. The Arabs promoted its growth in the 9th century, and the Normans built the castle that made it one of the major strategic points in Sicily. It later became a fief of the Chiaromonte family (14th century), the Cabreras (1420-1480), the Henriquez (17th century) and the Despuches.
Of interest is the Norman Castle.
Events: the Castellana di Caccamo, a representation in contemporary costume of the various lords of the castle, is held in the middle of August.
Churches (Palermo Diocese) include the following:
Families researched in these records include the following:
Links to other sites about Caccamo include:
My latest book on CD is titled Sicily - A Reference for Researchers and is now available. With a file for each town (plus many other files), it relates the history of Sicily as reflected in the photos, records and festivals of its towns. It contains over 2500 text and photo files and can be ordered at CD order.
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