RICCIONE ... how it was born
The oldest archaeological finds in Riccione date back to the 2nd century BC. and are located in the City Museum.
The Riccione area was vital thanks to its position along the Via Flaminia, a very important road linking the routes towards Ravenna and towards Piacenza and Milan.
At the time of the Romans, the first inhabited area was located in the San Lorenzo district, where the archaeological site (open excavation under the pharmacy) is located and can be visited, whose name is Vicus Popilius; a short distance away there is a Roman bridge over the Rio Melo.
The Rio Melo descended from the hills and with its mouth formed the port of Riccione, which still lacked the bridge connecting the two banks, so there was a ferry.
Only in 1924 was the bridge over the Marano river built to connect Rimini and Riccione along the coastal road.
In 1260 the Florentine family of the Agolanti settled in Riccione, of which remain the remains of the homonymous castle on the hills.
A few old, contiguous, rundown houses, arranged along the main road, formed the town which was 1 km away from the seaside area, called Colonia.
The name Colonia came from an old building used as a boarding school which in the summer housed children in need of effective marine treatments for some forms of rickets.
On the beach the children played freely, shaded by tents fixed to poles in the sand.
The beach was limited between the villa of the Soleri Martinelli counts and the canal port, abandoned to nature and covered in wild vegetation.
In the 1800s it was decided to use the beach, proposing to use part of the beach as fields for rice fields, a project that was then successfully opposed by those who intended to use the coast for tourism purposes.
The origins of tourism date back to the end of the 19th century, when various houses began to be built in the city used by wealthy people who arrived thanks to the Bologna - Ancona railway line.
Some improvised innkeepers with their restaurants or even hoteliers.
Bold were those inexperienced Riccionesi who, thanks to sacrifices and bills of exchange, built their houses and businesses with a great will to do and continuously improve themselves, to meet the needs of "foreigners", who have always recognized and appreciated our cordiality and hospitality.
In 1906 more than five thousand tourists from Veneto, Lombardy and Emilia came to spend the summer holidays, they began to build villas, spas and marine colonies for frail children.
![Riccione: statua della Ceccarini nel sottopasso? Ermeti:]()
A decisive imprint for the development of the city is owed to the Ceccarini spouses, in particular to his wife Maria Boorman. Boorman, of American origin, widow of her doctor husband, made an important financial contribution to the construction of the hospital, named after her, and to other important social initiatives.
In honor of her, a statue created by the Cesena sculptor Leonardo Lucch was installed on 9 October 2012 in Viale Ceccarini
During the First World War, Riccione suffered a strong seismic swarm, which ended with the terrible earthquake of August 16, 1916 which devastated the town.
The birth of the Municipality of Riccione is connected to that of fascism:
Rimini was closely linked to the Vatican and was the seat of the archiepiscopal diocese. The Archbishop ordered that the Israelite ghetto be located in the hamlet of Riccione;
from 1907 to 1922 the inhabitants of Riccione fought, finding full support in the Duce, to no longer be subjects of the Municipality of Rimini which feared competition in terms of tourism. Riccione until 1922 was a fraction of the Municipality of Rimini, 10km away.
In 1921 Riccione had over 5,000 inhabitants (at least 4,000 were needed to become a municipality);
today it has reached 35,259, there are about 150 bathing establishments and 460 hotels.
In one century it has seen its inhabitants multiply sevenfold!
In 1926 Riccione obtained the recognition of "Care and stay station" and the Mussolini family decided to move from Cattolica to Riccione for their holidays, becoming their summer residence for ten years, because they considered Riccione more suitable for the ideas of the regime, being born as a municipality thanks to a fascist provision.
1927 the Rimini-Riccione tram line was inaugurated.
In the 1930s the first connections to the electricity, water and gas networks were made.
The Romagna Riviera is now the beach of the wealthiest Italians and their Duce.
In the late 1920s and early 1930s, tourist numbers doubled.
The films of the regime show Riccione with sports initiatives, tennis, sailing, motorcycling, pigeon shooting competitions, which are part of the fascist culture.
At the seaside, for the first time, the body is exhibited on the beach, as the myth of the new, healthy and strong man.
In 1928 the civil airport of Miramare di Rimini was inaugurated and in 1929 the Grand Hotel in Riccione owned by Gaetano Ceschina and was the grandest hotel on the Romagna coast: 155 rooms, 265 beds, 25 en-suite bathrooms, telephone, garage, 3 tennis courts, miniature golf.
In 1938 the first Palazzo del Turismo on the Adriatic coast was inaugurated in Riccione and the newsreel Luce defines Riccione as "one of the most beautiful and popular beaches in Italy", in the 1930s pensions, accommodation facilities and hotels exceeded private accommodation.
The first air raid on Riccione during World War II was on 10 June 1944 and the Allies did more damage than the Germans.
The legendary 60s were the years of the Italian economic boom and the great transformation of society from rural to manufacturing and the birth of new myths: sportsmen, singers and fashion.
Riccione during that decade was able to become one of the major "fashionable" places in Italy: a meeting point and meeting place for "beautiful society", hosting the best national and international artists in its premises.
On 8 June 1964, in the late afternoon, a hurricane hit the Romagna coast from Cesenatico to Cattolica.
It is estimated that the damage amounted to around two billion lire at the time and unfortunately there were also some dead, the fury of the hurricane on the Romagna coast only ended around 10pm. From the day following the hurricane, German tourists went to the beach at help the lifeguards, who, out of gratitude, made big discounts at the time of their departure.
June 8, 1964: a date to remember!!! Precisely for this reason, every year since 1965, on June 8, the lifeguards of Riccione organize the lifeguard party, in honor of the guests who helped bring everything back to normal in just 2 days and all the tourists who were close to us in those terrible moments.
At the port, the statue of the "Madonna del Mare" protects the fishermen who have been sailing from the port of Riccione for centuries.
The Riccione area was vital thanks to its position along the Via Flaminia, a very important road linking the routes towards Ravenna and towards Piacenza and Milan.
At the time of the Romans, the first inhabited area was located in the San Lorenzo district, where the archaeological site (open excavation under the pharmacy) is located and can be visited, whose name is Vicus Popilius; a short distance away there is a Roman bridge over the Rio Melo.
The Rio Melo descended from the hills and with its mouth formed the port of Riccione, which still lacked the bridge connecting the two banks, so there was a ferry.
Only in 1924 was the bridge over the Marano river built to connect Rimini and Riccione along the coastal road.
In 1260 the Florentine family of the Agolanti settled in Riccione, of which remain the remains of the homonymous castle on the hills.
A few old, contiguous, rundown houses, arranged along the main road, formed the town which was 1 km away from the seaside area, called Colonia.
The name Colonia came from an old building used as a boarding school which in the summer housed children in need of effective marine treatments for some forms of rickets.
On the beach the children played freely, shaded by tents fixed to poles in the sand.
The beach was limited between the villa of the Soleri Martinelli counts and the canal port, abandoned to nature and covered in wild vegetation.
In the 1800s it was decided to use the beach, proposing to use part of the beach as fields for rice fields, a project that was then successfully opposed by those who intended to use the coast for tourism purposes.
The origins of tourism date back to the end of the 19th century, when various houses began to be built in the city used by wealthy people who arrived thanks to the Bologna - Ancona railway line.
Some improvised innkeepers with their restaurants or even hoteliers.
Bold were those inexperienced Riccionesi who, thanks to sacrifices and bills of exchange, built their houses and businesses with a great will to do and continuously improve themselves, to meet the needs of "foreigners", who have always recognized and appreciated our cordiality and hospitality.
In 1906 more than five thousand tourists from Veneto, Lombardy and Emilia came to spend the summer holidays, they began to build villas, spas and marine colonies for frail children.
A decisive imprint for the development of the city is owed to the Ceccarini spouses, in particular to his wife Maria Boorman. Boorman, of American origin, widow of her doctor husband, made an important financial contribution to the construction of the hospital, named after her, and to other important social initiatives.
In honor of her, a statue created by the Cesena sculptor Leonardo Lucch was installed on 9 October 2012 in Viale Ceccarini
During the First World War, Riccione suffered a strong seismic swarm, which ended with the terrible earthquake of August 16, 1916 which devastated the town.
The birth of the Municipality of Riccione is connected to that of fascism:
Rimini was closely linked to the Vatican and was the seat of the archiepiscopal diocese. The Archbishop ordered that the Israelite ghetto be located in the hamlet of Riccione;
from 1907 to 1922 the inhabitants of Riccione fought, finding full support in the Duce, to no longer be subjects of the Municipality of Rimini which feared competition in terms of tourism. Riccione until 1922 was a fraction of the Municipality of Rimini, 10km away.
In 1921 Riccione had over 5,000 inhabitants (at least 4,000 were needed to become a municipality);
today it has reached 35,259, there are about 150 bathing establishments and 460 hotels.
In one century it has seen its inhabitants multiply sevenfold!
In 1926 Riccione obtained the recognition of "Care and stay station" and the Mussolini family decided to move from Cattolica to Riccione for their holidays, becoming their summer residence for ten years, because they considered Riccione more suitable for the ideas of the regime, being born as a municipality thanks to a fascist provision.
1927 the Rimini-Riccione tram line was inaugurated.
In the 1930s the first connections to the electricity, water and gas networks were made.
The Romagna Riviera is now the beach of the wealthiest Italians and their Duce.
In the late 1920s and early 1930s, tourist numbers doubled.
The films of the regime show Riccione with sports initiatives, tennis, sailing, motorcycling, pigeon shooting competitions, which are part of the fascist culture.
At the seaside, for the first time, the body is exhibited on the beach, as the myth of the new, healthy and strong man.
In 1928 the civil airport of Miramare di Rimini was inaugurated and in 1929 the Grand Hotel in Riccione owned by Gaetano Ceschina and was the grandest hotel on the Romagna coast: 155 rooms, 265 beds, 25 en-suite bathrooms, telephone, garage, 3 tennis courts, miniature golf.
In 1938 the first Palazzo del Turismo on the Adriatic coast was inaugurated in Riccione and the newsreel Luce defines Riccione as "one of the most beautiful and popular beaches in Italy", in the 1930s pensions, accommodation facilities and hotels exceeded private accommodation.
The first air raid on Riccione during World War II was on 10 June 1944 and the Allies did more damage than the Germans.
The legendary 60s were the years of the Italian economic boom and the great transformation of society from rural to manufacturing and the birth of new myths: sportsmen, singers and fashion.
Riccione during that decade was able to become one of the major "fashionable" places in Italy: a meeting point and meeting place for "beautiful society", hosting the best national and international artists in its premises.
On 8 June 1964, in the late afternoon, a hurricane hit the Romagna coast from Cesenatico to Cattolica.
It is estimated that the damage amounted to around two billion lire at the time and unfortunately there were also some dead, the fury of the hurricane on the Romagna coast only ended around 10pm. From the day following the hurricane, German tourists went to the beach at help the lifeguards, who, out of gratitude, made big discounts at the time of their departure.
June 8, 1964: a date to remember!!! Precisely for this reason, every year since 1965, on June 8, the lifeguards of Riccione organize the lifeguard party, in honor of the guests who helped bring everything back to normal in just 2 days and all the tourists who were close to us in those terrible moments.
At the port, the statue of the "Madonna del Mare" protects the fishermen who have been sailing from the port of Riccione for centuries.