Alba Adriatica, Province of Teramo, Abruzzo

Anciently, the area occupied today by the lively center of Alba Adriatica was an inhospitable marsh, formed through the centuries after the withdrawal of the sea with which reached once up to the hills. And it is on the hills that the early human settlements rose, as witnessed by the many archaeological findings common when excavating foundations of new buildings.

Ager Praetutianus, Hardianus, Palmensis, Castrum Truentinum, Castrum Novum, Alba Picena, Suino and Servio are the names of the towns of the Piceni that were destroyed during the invasions of the early centuries of the Christian Era. Along the coasts anciently the Romans established many "navali", small ports more for military use than for fishing and sometimes used in sea trade. One of these Navali might have been in the territory of Alba Adriatica, near the junction Via Mazzini - Via Roma.

Only in the 16th century the first buildings appeared along the coast: they were towers with the purpose to defend the territory from the landings of Turks and Saracens. An important turning point for Alba was the inauguration in 1863 of the small railway station TORTORETO - NERETO - CONTROGUERRA: several centers rose along the line and the hinterland started to show interest for that Adriatic coast which had been neglected for centuries. The first buildings of a certain beauty however rose only after 1900: Villa Flajani, Villa Tonelli, Villa Ranalli, Villa Ricci and Villa Crescenzi. Avenues Vittoria and Margherita were opened in the 1930's. The only important road was the current Via Roma. Up to 1956 the sea front was only a white gravely street. Then the first hotels appeared, and little by little in the last decades Alba has become one of the favorite seaside resorts for Italians and foreign tourists, thanks to the wide, clean sand beaches, the game parks for children and teenagers, the glamorous night life.