Depopulation
In the late 1950s, as people left Valle Piola to live in larger communities or to seek a less rural lifestyle, the town began to experience the effects of significant population decrease. This process continued unabated and by the 1970s the few remaining elderly townspeople were forced to leave altogether what had become a virtually abandoned village. Like the abandoned mining camps in the American west, those visiting Valle Piola encounter the ruins of a deserted but not totally forgotten hinterland. Memories of the taste and smell of traditional artisan foods made with the grain farro (spelt), the squeals of children's laughter as they played a game of chance 'aliossi' (the forerunner of today's dice games) await the traveler fortunate enough to visit this isolated and sparsely populated area.
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