Garbagna Novarese farmsteads

Given the predominantly rural nature of the village Garbagna Novarese until the first half of the 20th century, its territory is dotted with farmsteads, economy nerve centers that arose throughout its history. This feature is evident throughout the entire Lower Novarese.

The farmsteads located outside the town were considered in the past to be actual hamlets of the municipality, while today (2024) they are indicated as simple agglomerations by the municipal statute. They are Marijna, Belvedere, Brusattina, Moncucco, Buzzoletto Nuovo, Buzzoletto Vecchio and Cascinetta. The only farmstead inside the town centre is Borghetto.

The Novara scholar Angelo Luigi Stoppa, going through the history of Lower Novarese, sees in farmsteads the same historical and artistic relevance of ricetti (small fortified areas used in villages for storing agricultural products, livestock, and working tools), churches and devotional oratories, both in the case of spontaneous and studied architecture. He is also sure the oldest farmsteads, developed around courtyards, evolved directly from ancient Roman rustic villas. From an artistic point of view, finally, he states that the central buildings of some farmsteads (including Moncucco, Buzzoletto Vecchio and Buzzoletto Nuovo) feature such architectural nobility that they are comparable to the much more famous Venetian villas, making their preservation as necessary as the latter.