Chiesa di Santa Maria Assunta in Turro

Did you know that the Chiesa di Santa Maria Assunta in Turro almost didn’t exist? The current church, a neoclassical beauty, wasn’t the first to grace this spot. Imagine Turro in the late 19th century. The old church, commissioned by Archbishop Gaspare Visconti centuries earlier, was falling apart. The local priest, Don Davide Sesia, called it “low, dilapidated, filthy.” He dreamed of a grand new church for his growing parish. He wasn’t alone. Nearby Gorla and Precotto were also planning new churches. Precotto’s arrived in 1866, Gorla’s San Bartolomeo in 1896. Don Sesia, a man of action, began fundraising for the Chiesa di Santa Maria Assunta in Turro. He convinced the city to donate 20,000 bricks. He secured donations, including a substantial contribution from the Gnecchi family, owners of the local silk mill. In 1885, the old church was demolished. The new Chiesa di Santa Maria Assunta in Turro, with its three grand naves, was completed in 1886. The historian Don Carlo Ponzoni praised its design. In 1926, the facade got a neoclassical makeover. But the Chiesa di Santa Maria Assunta in Turro wasn’t finished evolving. In the 1950s, architect Ottavio Cabiati transformed the apse into a transept and added two smaller apses. Mosaics by Luigi Filocamo, depicting the Assumption and the Crucifixion, now adorn the church. Inside, a crucifix from 1523 provides a tangible link to the church’s past. Next to the Chiesa di Santa Maria Assunta in Turro is the Oratory. It offers ample space, both indoors and outdoors. A new chapel dedicated to Saint Joseph the Worker, built in 2010, occupies the site of the old Oratory. The Chiesa di Santa Maria Assunta in Turro stands as a testament to the vision of Don Sesia. It is a symbol of the community’s faith and resilience. It’s a place where history and art intertwine.