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History of Signa in the Province of Florence

The Roman origins of Signa seem certain in the ancient name of Exinea. The inhabited area at the joining point of the Arno and Bisenzio rivers is dominated by the ancient nucleus (the Castle) on the hill. The Castle was cited in 977, when perhaps, it belonged to the feudal Fabbroni family of Pistoia, before passing under the dominion of Florence.

In 1325, it was burned by the Ghibelline army leader Castracani, who also demolished the bridge on the Arno while escaping. The following year Florence had the castle, the city walls and then, the bridge rebuilt Apart from some isolated events, the area was never a location of wartime events.

At the end of the 1700’s, Signa was one of the richest and most populous centres of the Florentine countryside. Its water-mills were famous and the manufacture of straw and terracotta flourished. During that period, the territory of Signa was subdivided between the municipality of Gangalandi (Lastra a Signa), Signa and Lecore.

A Napoleonic decree dating back to 1808, made Signa a municipality on its own, but the present arrangement of the territory dates back to 1928, with the acquisition of part of the suppressed municipality of Brozzi.

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