REPORT OF MAYOR GIUSEPPE MIGLIORATI IN 1944

on the general situation of the Municipality which he sent to the Prefect of Perugia on 19 September 1944 with a letter bearing the Protocol number 999. It is of the utmost importance because it allows us to know the disastrous state in which the entire territory of the Municipality was immediately after the Liberation.

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Appointed on 15.8.1944 (1) Mayor of this Municipality by the Governor of the Allied Military Command, I fulfill the duty to submit to the EV this report on the general situation of the Municipality determined after the aerial bombardments suffered by this city, the withdrawal of the troops Germans and the consequent liberation by the allied troops.

I state that the situation of the Municipality, as will be demonstrated below, is one of the most critical and consequently I am interested in the EV to be pleased to resolve, in the best way, what is possible. I begin with the municipal offices.

MUNICIPAL OFFICES

The municipal offices, immediately after the bombing of 25 April in which 88 (2) people were killed and 20 wounded, were transported to the countryside and precisely in the word Brecce. Here they remained until 12 June, until the German troops ordered a subsequent move, which was carried out by transporting what was possible to save from the devastation of the German troops themselves, in the locality of Fontanelle and precisely in the Rinaldi house. After the war operations, all the employees abandoned the offices, the deeds and the furnishings they had been given. The German troops therefore carried out even better the removal of all that they considered useful and the destruction of all that their vandalism advised.

From a summary investigation in the process of greater investigations, it is removed or destroyed:

1. The ten typewriters and the calculator supplied to the offices. Now the municipality has no typewriter of its own.

2. The complete furnishings of the Mayor's Cabinet, the Secretary and other offices.

3. The technical tools of the Technical Office.

4. All prints, stationery, etc. supplied to the Offices.

5. Many documents of the Secretariat including all municipal regulations, tariffs, some volume of contract, etc.

6. Almost all the documents of the Bursar.

7. The following acts of the Civil Status:

• Much of the personal data (family statuses and personal data sheets);

• Migration practices defined relating to the years from 1937 to 1941;

• Various procedures defined and being defined relating to the current year;

• Files of marriage, birth and death certificates;

• The register of list of the poor with the relative file;

• Monthly statistics on the natural and migratory movement of the population;

• The register of collection of civil status rights, secretariat and urgency;

• 24 wooden boxes with automatic closing for the conservation of family statuses;

• Lists of the military conscription of the classes from 1913 to 1920.

8. All the existing material in the warehouses, consisting of wood of various kinds and species, pipes for aqueducts, water meters, wheelbarrows, shovels, picks, etc. for a significant value.

9. Two "Beretta" 7.65 caliber automatic pistols supplied with the guards.

10. Motterl rifles also supplied to the guards.

11. The sum of Lire 10,000 located in part at the Treasury Office (approximately Lire 2,500), partly at the Police Office and Lire 5,000 at the milk shop.

Much has been done in order to restore the offices to full efficiency, but much more needs to be done. It is necessary to equip them with the essential furniture, for which reason a contribution of at least 500,000 lire is requested from this Prefecture, with which they can buy the essential typewriters, a calculator, the tools for the Technical Office, the furniture for the decor of one room at least.

Many deficiencies were found in the internal functioning of the Offices. Among the main notes, the failure to review municipal taxes annually, the failure to collect the fee for drinking water granted to individuals, the regular and complete collection of the amount of the niches and cemetery areas, the failure to stipulate contracts for concessions the aforementioned, the failure to recover the hospitals by the wealthy, the total failure to collect the assets, the neglect in requesting the repayment of the sums advanced on behalf of the State, etc., shortcomings to which he attributes the disastrous financial situation of the Municipality and which currently it is summed up by a cash deficit of over 2,000,000.

I have already made provisions for the elimination of these serious drawbacks. Of course, the resolution of the same is subject to the needs of the reconstruction service based on the healthiest principles of almost all services.

STAFF

A first purge of staff was carried out and 16 elements were suspended among employees, salaried workers and health workers. The seats have been replaced with temporary staff, new to the services to which they have been entrusted. However, after the first period of adjustment, now almost everyone is doing quite well in the tasks entrusted to them. However, I would add that the purge has not finished and that investigations are being undertaken for other elements to ascertain their responsibilities.

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HOUSES

The damage caused to civilian buildings by air raids and war actions are significant. A survey carried out shows that about 50 per cent of the homes have been destroyed or reduced to a condition to be demolished. Two hundred and fifty families were damaged and 900 people left homeless. To regulate the return of the population to the capital, which after the air raids had spread a little everywhere, I set up a special office and a special commission that oversees the relevant services. Despite all the provisions adopted by the Municipality such as those of placing at least two people per room and requisitioning all possible premises, not excluding the placement of families with other families (as many as 2,000 people are currently accommodated in this way, as many as 250 people are now homeless and still provisionally placed in the countryside, in barns, huts and similar premises.

Twenty-five percent of homes inhabited and crammed by people need roof repairs before the winter season and window and window repairs.

Such a situation cannot last long and this is also to avoid the occurrence of any epidemic diseases.

It is therefore necessary to address the resolution of the important problem for which I take the liberty of proposing:

1. to promote, favor and encourage the private initiative of the reconstruction of the destroyed houses, under the control of the Civil Engineers who will have to establish the amount of the damages suffered and which will have to be reimbursed by the State;

2. that the following materials be assigned to this Municipality:

a) at least 200,000 tiles; b) a suitable quantity of cement and other binders; c) at least 5,000 square meters of glass; d) timber for reinforcements and fixtures; e) that the necessary investigations to establish which buildings must be demolished and which can be restored are ordered to the Civil Engineering Office.

SUPPORT

Assistance was very neglected. In fact, only at the beginning of September it was possible to order the continuation of the displacement subsidy which had been suspended since 15 June 1944.

However, all services are now being normalized. However, it is necessary that an assignment of clothing, clothing, footwear, blankets, sheets, mattresses, etc. be made. to be distributed to the victims and who cannot be left in such conditions in the approaching winter.

POWER SUPPLY

Apart from the ration of bread and pasta, given in grain, this population had only 100 grams of sugar per person and 150 grams of salt. Contrary to what was practiced for the other municipalities, this population was not distributed the ration of pig fats for the entire year. These greases were in fact removed by the German troops from the local warehouses of the Municipality where they were still stored.

In consideration of this, the population of this Municipality, which following the bombings and the looting of the German troops has seen all the minimum stocks that any provident family could have had destroyed and removed, is in a state of real hardship. The EV is therefore interested in order for the distribution of the following genres to be urgently arranged in favor of this population:

• oil (he hasn't had any since January);

• pig fat (has not had any more since March);

• sugar;

• salt;

• pasta as a replacement for the flour it has been receiving in wheat for a few months.

Furthermore, given that the Municipality has no means of transport, it is necessary that a vehicle be assigned to transport the rationed goods.

Cade acconcio that you are speaking here of an initiative taken by the Municipality for the sale of rationed and quoted goods, an initiative that was imposed following the destruction of many shops in the capital and the failure to reopen the others by the owners, who are proving of complete absenteeism.

A Bottegone Comunale del Popolo has been established on which the distribution of rationed products, milk is made, which by the Municipality itself is collected from the collection centers where the various producers meet, and what else it is possible to have, to search on the site. This Bottegone will continue to function until normal commercial activity is resumed, unless the opportunity to transform it into a consumer cooperative appears. The Bottegone is currently managed by the members of the Board: Rometti Aspromonte for the technical-commercial part and Cerrini Tramaglino for the accounting part, who have taken care of its organization and operation. Bottegone himself does not affect the municipal budget in any way.

MILLS

Currently, given the lack of electricity, the grain is milled by means of the eleven mills operated partly by hydraulic power and partly by internal combustion engines. To ensure the functioning of the important service, however, it is necessary to ensure regular refueling.

PUBLIC HEALTH

Many cases of typhus have occurred and many are still ongoing among the population of this municipality. It is necessary for the EV to be assigned suitable medicines and disinfectants to prevent and fight such diseases. Two of the five doctors are in possession of a permit to circulate; however, it is necessary that the Municipality be made a monthly allocation of petrol to be allocated for this use.

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ROADS

A total of 16 bridges were destroyed by the German troops. The damages suffered for those on municipal roads exceed 5,000,000 lire. Practices have begun for the construction of a voluntary consortium between the interested parties for the construction of footbridges to replace said bridges, in order to ensure in some way the restoration of the viability. The financing of the expenditure, while waiting for the State to do so, will be done by the interested parties through the Municipality.

AQUEDUCTS

In addition to the aqueduct of the capital, those in the hamlets of Pierantonio, Preggio, Niccone, Cioccolanti, Santa Giuliana and Palazzetto Nese were also damaged, for the repair and efficiency of which is expected to cost around 400,000 lire.

PUBLIC BUILDINGS

Almost all public buildings have suffered significant damage. These buildings are:

Town Hall             damages suffered approximately 200,000 lire

Center school buildings      damages suffered approximately 225,000 lire

Rural school buildings           damage suffered about lire   80,000

Start-up building          damages suffered approximately 225,000 lire

Kindergarten                damage suffered about lire   45,000

Municipal warehouses            damage suffered about lire   35,000

Slaughterhouse                     damage suffered about lire   28,000

Washhouse                      damage suffered about lire   30,000

Public latrines              damage suffered about lire   21,000

Public hospital                damages suffered approximately 100,000 lire

Unable to work hospitalizations         damage suffered about lire  30,000

                             Total          1,019,000 lire

For the removal of the rubble of the streets and squares of the capital, for the reactivation of the aqueducts, for the clearing of the rubble from the bridges, from the riverbeds, an estimate was compiled by the Technical Office which rises to 1,141,000 lire. This estimate has already been sent to the Civil Engineering Office for approval and to give the authorization to continue the work and the assurance that the same Office will reimburse the expenses that this Municipality will sustain for this reason.

UNEMPLOYMENT

It is essential that the Civil Engineers assign the aforementioned sum not only for the execution of the urgent and deferrable works for the recovery, albeit minimal, of the normality of the Municipality, also to eliminate the unemployment that is currently relevant. No less than three hundred workers and over fifty employees of different categories (potters, railway workers, etc.) are unemployed.

As for the materials necessary for the aforementioned works, since there are two brick kilns in the Municipality, this could ensure the needs if they are assigned the necessary fuel, which is being partially provided with the help of the Allied Military Governor. In order to guarantee the supply of the indispensable materials, this Municipality blocked all the production of the aforementioned two furnaces. The materials themselves are assigned to the owners of buildings following the division of the Technical Office, which in advance checks the requests one by one.

I therefore strongly interest the EV because it wants to arrange for the Civil Engineers to assign the requested sum of 1,141,000 lire to the Municipality.

PUBLIC SERVICES

Currently no public service works. Only the postal service works partially. This Municipality is proceeding so that it can have the premises necessary for the disengagement of the services, but it is not easy to solve the problem given that the Umbrian Central Management, the only owner of suitable premises, puts forward many reasons not to sell them. The electric light doesn't work either.

The Unione Esercizi Elettrici has been assured that in a month it will be able to reactivate the supply of electricity to a limited extent and in turn.

SCHOOLS

Almost all the furniture of the schools, both elementary and secondary, has been removed and destroyed. In order for them to resume their activities, it is necessary that the Municipality be assigned a suitable sum that cannot be less than 1,000,000 lire. It is also essential that all schools be reopened. In this regard, given the serious housing situation and therefore in consideration of the housing difficulties of the teachers who are not resident here, the opportunity arises that professors and teachers resident in this municipality are in charge of teaching, who, both in terms of number and by capacity, they are able to ensure smooth operation.

AGRICULTURE

The harvest of wheat, maize and secondary products was good and there was no significant damage from the war events. The wine, although promising very well, has recently been very damaged by iodine and therefore will be scarce and of poor quality. The olive harvest, on the other hand, promises very well. The placing of the grain in storage was very satisfactory. Over 30,000 quintals are already piled up. It is essential that provision is made for the assignment of carbon sulphide in order to prevent both the stored grain and that stored in their warehouses by the producers from going bad. It is also essential, given the approach of the sowing season, that both nitrogen fertilizers and fungicides are assigned. It is also necessary that it be arranged for the concession of electricity for oil mills in consideration of the approaching period of processing.

CONCLUSION

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I conclude this report by insisting on the following essential points:

1. that at least the sum of 500,000 lire is assigned for the arrangement and reorganization of the Offices;

2. that the sum of 1,141,000 necessary for the removal of the rubble be assigned;

3. that the sum of 1,000,000 lire be assigned for the construction of school furnishings;

4. that the building materials are assigned:

• 200,000 tiles;

• cement and binding materials;

• timber for reinforcement and window frames;

• at least sqm. 5,000 glasses;

5. that fuel be assigned for the grain mills, brick kilns and municipal health services;

6. that carbide and oil are assigned for lighting;

7. that fats and oil are assigned for the population.

I trust in the interest of the EV and I am sure that with this valid help I will be able to do some good to this population so tried by the pains of war.

                                                                                     MAYOR

                                                                                     G. Improve

Note:

1. There is an inaccuracy in the date. The post of mayor was formally assumed on 3 September. Perhaps Migliorati refers to the interview with the Allied Military Governor who communicated the purpose of the appointment and which may have occurred on August 15, 1944.

2. Here, too, Migliorati runs into an easily explainable inaccuracy. The dead were 70, but another 14 people had fled the country without reporting it and it was feared that they were buried under the rubble still to be cleared.

Sources:

"Umbertide in the XX Century 1900 - 1946" by Roberto Sciurpa - Municipality of Umbertide, Gesp - January 2006