page_title: Airolo
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Airolo / History
caption_attribution_description: English: The image shows a pneumatic locomotive used during the construction of the Gotthard Rail Tunnel behind an archway or short tunnel of just a few meters. The original caption of the image translates to "Tunnel Entrance in Airolo", which probably indicates the approximate location of the shown arch, which is not the southern portal to the Gotthard Rail Tunnel itself. The shown pneumatic locomotive stored energy in the form of compressed air in the large pressure container up front. The released expanding air was used to operate the motor of the locomotive. Steam driven compressors were readily available at the time of the construction (1872-1880) and for example in use to drive pneumatic drills. Most probably these compressors were also used to load the pressure containers outside the tunnel. (The first DC motors were just being developed and the AC motor was patented by Tesla only in 1888.) In contrast to steam engines the pneumatic engines did not require additional ventilation of the tunnel during its construction. Even using pneumatic technology the tunnels were poorly ventilated adding to the poor work conditions. The original is a photograph by Adolphe Braun published in a probably small edition book "Photographische Ansichten der Gotthardbahn" (58 photographs (28x23 cm2) mounted on each single page plus one two-page panorama), published around 1875 or shortly thereafter. The exact date of publication is not clear. The original in the book was photographed at an angle and the resulting image was clipped to show central detail and to reestablish a rectangular frame. The resulting image is somewhat distorted with respect to the original photograph by Adolphe Braun and very much reduced in resolution. The German caption of the photo in the book reads "Tunneleingang in Airolo" (literally: Tunnel entrance in Airolo).
context_page_description: Airolo is a municipality in the district of Leventina in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland.
context_section_description: In the settlement of Madrano, Roman tombs from the 2nd and 3rd centuries AD were found.  They belonged to a Vicus, whose inhabitants probably collected crystal, which was processed in Locarno into glass.  The ruins of Stalvedro Castle are probably from a 13th-century Lombardy noble family.  Tradition and written sources confirm the existence of another castle, situated near the parish church tower.  Near Madrano was a small castle which was rebuilt in the late 13th century by the Anexia family.  Archaeological excavations conducted in 1995 inside the parish church of SS Nazaro Celso (first mentioned with a parish in 1224) discovered a construction history dating back to the 5th or 6th centuries. The present building was given its form in 1879, though the church tower dates from the Roman era.  At the train  station there is the famous high-relief carving by Vincenzo Vela, devoted to the construction workers who lost their lives digging the Gotthard Rail Tunnel.
  The modern municipality of Airolo is first mentioned in 1210 as Oriolo.  In German it was known as Eriels and in Romansh as Iriel, though these names are no longer official.
  The region of Airolo, which was politically tied to the fate of the Levantine valley, was divided into four Degagne; Madrano, Valle, Solario and Oro.  In the 13th and 14th century Airolo, which had always been the most populous village of the valley, supplied all the grain needed for the whole Levantine.  Due to traffic on the Gotthard Pass, the village became wealthy from trade and housing travelers.  There were four major hospices, of which two were on the pass.
  During the Sonderbund war of 1847, Federal troops moved quickly to gain control of key alpine passes and prevent the Sonderbund from uniting.  One of the key passes was the St. Gotthard, which led to the Battle of Airolo.  Even before the diet began its campaign, the men of Uri seized the St. Gotthard passes (3 November 1847).  They marched themselves across the Levantina valley and surprised three thousand Ticinese encamped at Airolo.  The Ticinese were quickly driven back as far as the Moesa bridge.  However, once the Uri soldiers arrived at this point, they found themselves face to face with Graubünden and Ticino militia, superior to them in number, who stopped their progress.  The expedition had no other result than holding back two thousand Federal troops from the places where decisive blows were to be struck.
  Between 1871 and 1881, Airolo was home to many workers on the Gotthard rail tunnel.  Construction was difficult due to financial, technical and geological issues, the latter leading to the death of around 200 workers (the exact number is not known) mainly due to water inrushes; many were also killed by the compressed air-driven trains carrying excavated material out of the tunnel. A strike of the workers in 1875 was crushed by the Swiss Army, killing four and wounding 13.
  Fires ravaged the village four times, the last times in 1736 and 1877.  After the landslide of Sasso Rosso on 28 December 1898, which destroyed part of the village, killed three people and destroyed the village forest, the great defensive wall was erected above the houses.  In the beginning of the 19th century, construction began on avalanche protection.  Then, after the avalanches of 1923 and 1951 (ten deaths) construction resumed and continued into modern times.  As early as 1890, Airolo had electric street lighting.  The power plant was built in the municipality in 1922.  Hydroelectric plants were built by both public and private agencies.  In 1958, the settlements of Brugnasco and Albinasca were connected by roads to Airolo.  In 1969 the first sewage treatment plant built in Canton, opened in Airolo.  In 1986, the town council approved comprehensive building and zoning regulations.
  Despite several natural disasters and the pollution and traffic from the Gotthard tunnel, Airolo has remained, since the beginning of the 20th century, a popular holiday resort.  Airolo was the first ski resort in Ticino and with the construction of the Pesciüm facility, re
caption: Compressed air-driven train entering the Gotthard tunnel during construction
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