A Short History of the Comune di Sassano

The human prescence in Sassano begins far back in time. At Pino Cave, an area half way between Silla and the town center, archaeologists from the University of Naples, Frederick II, have dated human habitation to at least 2000 BC. This date will be extended further into antiquity as the lower levels are excavated. Circumstantial evidence of the settlement of Sassano in pre-Roman times can be found in the local dialect. There are terms which derive from the language of the Italic tribe known as the Oscans. The expression "ERO" in the dialect of Sassano is from the Greek term "ieron", which is an expression of surprise at" an unexpected or unforeseen event." The name Sassano was originally thought to derive from the words Sassa, stone in Italian, and Sano, which means healthy. More recent research shows that the name Sassano comes from the name of the Roman era landholder of the area. The name" Praedia Soxsiani " is found in Roman era documents .This name eventually changed to "Sossiano" and then to Sassano in the local dialect.
Physical evidence of Roman era occupation can be found in the section of town known as Pantano, where the remains of villas have been found. "The tomb of the Princess", is a sarcophagus dated from an inscription to the 2nd century AD. It was actually commissioned by a Roman landlord for his brother. The Peglio bridge ,still in good condition, can be seen in the mountains close to Sassano.
Sassano is first mentioned in a questionable document dating to 937 AD. It tells of a pastoral visit by a bishop from Rome after the Church took possession of land in the Vallo Di Diano, where Sassano is located. The first undisputed reference to Sassano is contained in a document dating to 1131 AD in which King Roger II gives possession of lands at Rofrano and St Zacharia to the Basilian Monks, a Greek Rite order. The Basilian monks were an order dedicated to farming and herding in addition to administering the sacraments and maintaining monasteries. They were very influential in the founding of Sassano where the first settlements were located in the lower section of town known as "Fontana" because of the many springs found there. Layer settlements were further up in elevation. Most farming took place in the mountains because of flooding in the valley. The Basilians were superceded by the Certosini monks. The powerful Sanseverino family were patrons of the Certosini. By the 1500's the Basilians had sold off most of their lands in the area to Sassanese and the Certosini monks.
Sassano is located in an area known as the Vallo Di Diano. This area at one time was part of a state known by the same name. This state consisted of the neighboring towns of San Rufo, San Giacomo, Sant'Arsenio, San Pietro, and Teggiano where the Sanseverino family built their castle. The Caracciola and Cala' families followed the Sanseverino in power up until the ending of feudal right in 1806.Documents show that the last feudal landlord was a Count Schippani who married a member of the Cala' family. The families Sabini, Ferri, DeBenedictus were also very influential after the 1600's. Sassano slowly gained some autonomy over the years but remained under the control of the State of Diano. In a lawsuit pertaining to disputed possession of farmland in the mountain area of Sassano, the town was mentioned to have a mayor and a town council. In this case the mayor of Teggiano represented Sassano. On January 25,1537, Sassano was represented by its own mayor in a similar lawsuit.
Although most of the contadini of Sassano made a very modest living off the land ,those involve in shepherding and cheese making fared much better. Attesting to this is the fact that an important animal fair was held in the area of Silla, in the 1600's,gathering many from the surrounding towns. There were herds of up to 5000 , which were taken as far as Puglia for winter pasturage. A customs document shows that Sassano was a leading user of salt for the preservation of forage. The cheese makers of Sassano were another successful group. After the main church burned down in the 1400's, destroying all the town records back to the 1300's, the families involved in this industry offered to rebuild it.
The patron Saint of Sassano is Saint John the Baptist, however the church rebuilt after the fire, was dedicated to Saint John the Evangelist in 1607.After the fire of the 1400's many chapels were built. The first ,though not documented , was dedicated to Saint Vito, and was built on the border with San Giacomo. The Chapel of the Madonna del Loreto, built by the Femminella family was the first to be recorded. In addition chapels were built in honor of Saint Annunziata, the Madonna delle Grazie, Saint Michael, Saint Rocco, and the Madonna del Carmine. These chapels were built on the heights surrounding Sassano forming a sort of spiritual fortress believed by many to have protected the inhabitants from bad luck and pestilence.
The 1800's brought political turbulence to Sassano as well as the rest of Southern Italy. Wealthy families continued to dominate the poor folk who worked the land. Salvatore Brigante, a brigand, captured the imagination of the Sassanese and was regarded as a protector of the downtrodden and supporter of justice, similar to Robin Hood.
A secret society is reported to have been formed in the year 1859,with the purpose of labor organizing .An oath had to be taken to join the society pledging loyalty in the goals of bettering the living conditions of the workers of Sassano. The police became aware of this organization, which they considered subversive and communist. The annexation by Northern Italy of the Kingdom of Naples and the South prevented the members of this secret societies from being jailed and persecuted.
Emigration took its toll on Sassano. At first people left for Brazil and Argentina, only later going to America. .Poverty was such that entire families left, as can be attested to by the fact that whole surnames disappeared from the town rolls.

Prof. Pasquale Petrizzo and Adapted by John A Stavola as found here and here