1911 Encyclopædia Britannica/Torre del Greco

TORRE DEL GRECO, a seaport of Campania, Italy, in the province of Naples, 71/2 m. S.E. of that city by rail. Pop. (1901), 35,328. It lies at the south-west foot of Vesuvius, on the shore of the Bay of Naples. It is built chiefly of lava, and stands on the lava stream of 1631, which destroyed two-thirds of the older town. Great damage was done by the eruptions of 1737 and 1794; the earthquake of 1857 and the eruption of the 8th of December 1861 were even more destructive. After each disaster the people returned, the advantage of the rich volcanic land overcoming apprehensions of danger. In the outskirts are many beautiful villas and gardens. The town has shipbuilding yards and lava quarries. The inhabitants take part in the coral and sponge fishing off the African and Sicilian coasts, and coral is worked in the town. There is also fishing for tunny, sardines and oysters; hemp is woven, and the neighbourhood is famed for its fruit and wine. In June the great popular festival “Dei Quattro Altari” is annually celebrated here in commemoration of the abolition of the feudal dominion in 1700. Remains of ancient villas and baths have been found here.