Villa Cortese

The name Villa Cortese the union between the words Vicus (Villa) indicating the very first settlement and Curtis (Cortese) that refers to the bordering settlements. The toponym has later on evolved to Vilcortex, Vilacortexia and lastly Villa Cortese.

The discovery of a Roman sarcophagus dating back to the 1st century AD testifies to a settlement on the territory since the Roman era; the sarcophagus is now in the Guido Sutermeister Civic Museum in Legnano. The first document in which the town is mentioned is an act of 1261, with which the Provost and the Canons of the Convent of San Giorgio (which was located where the Visconteo Castle in Legnano now stands) certify the assets they hold between the Olona river, Villa Cortese and the Strada Dairasca which connected Legnano with Dairago. Also in the thirteenth century, Goffredo da Bussero in the Liber Notitiae Sanctorum Mediolani lists an altar dedicated to St. Victor martyr in the Villa Cortese site.

A parchment dated 1312 mentions the Scazzosi family, powerful in the area and also having properties in the surrounding areas; an Ambrogio Scazzosi appears in the list of Merchants of fine wool with brand and registration number, dated 9 November 1403, living in Villa Cortese and dependent on the Parish of Olgiate Olona, in the Duchy of Milan. Suppressed by Napoleon who annexed it to Dairago, the Municipality of Villa Cortese was restored by the Austrians, but again abolished in 1868 by Victor Emmanuel II with the Royal decree 5192, which this time united it with Busto Garolfo, a neighboring and rival town. Municipal autonomy was finally restored almost a century later, on 13 October 1966. Villa Cortese was the birthplace of the comedian Giacomo Poretti of the trio Aldo, Giovanni e Giacomo, the well-known industrialist Franco Tosi and the painter Piero Giunni.

The connection with neighboring municipalities is made by Movibus bus lines. Among the first Italian recycling municipalities, for years it has stabilized its separate collection at around 70%. The municipal building is equipped with a photovoltaic system for the production of electricity and hot water, as well as the middle and elementary schools. Any type of disposal is possible at the municipal platform. It has eight well-equipped public parks and a day of cleaning the woods is organized by the municipal administration. The traditional fair takes place at the end of September, while the characteristic Christmas markets are held in mid-December.^[3]

Historical population
Year Pop. ±% 1861 820 —     1871 869 +6.0% 1881 971 +11.7% 1901 1,098 +13.1% 1911 1,540 +40.3% 1921 1,769 +14.9% 1931 2,164 +22.3% 1936 2,251 +4.0%	Year Pop. ±% 1951 2,250 −0.0% 1961 3,609 +60.4% 1971 4,352 +20.6% 1981 5,195 +19.4% 1991 5,765 +11.0% 2001 6,113 +6.0% 2011 6,150 +0.6%
Source: [4]

• Kindergarten
• Primary School Giuseppe Pinciroli
• Middle School Papa Giovanni XXIII
• Technical institute (i.e. High School) Gregorio Mendel