Sile River Natural Park Historical Timeline

Origins

The Sile does not come from the mountains. It rises from the ground in the fascia delle risorgive, the resurgence belt where water that sank into gravel beds nearer the Alps returns to the surface.

Turning points

The river was a working waterway for centuries, carrying goods between Treviso and the lagoon, and the Restera is the towpath along which barges were hauled.

Influential people

Mills, tanneries and paper works lined it, and their remains -- weirs, races, buildings -- are still visible along the banks.

Cultural evolution

Commercial traffic ended in the twentieth century. The regional park was established in 1991, largely to protect the springs and the wetlands around them.

Present-day significance

It is now Treviso's outdoor space and one of the more important wetland habitats in the eastern Po plain, with a stretch of half-sunken barges near Casier that has become an unlikely landmark.