Chiesa di Santa Margherita

The oldest church seems to date back to 1300, a period that coincides with the presence of the Cimbri. In Santa Margherita, in the Romanesque church documented as early as the year 1000, we find the statue of the Saint, typical of Cimbrian craftsmanship, and a very particular baptismal font made of marble and wood.

The ancient community that referred to the church of Santa Margherita was called Cos-talberto: the first document mentioning it dates back to 1264. Certainly, before 1300, there was a church built by woodcutters, charcoal burners, and shepherds of German origin, likely Cimbri. In a parchment document dating back to around 1534, which described the course of rivers and streams in the Vicenza area, the Church of S. Margherita is marked for the first time. It is also found on topographic maps of Veneto from the Vatican Gallery, created by Ignazio Danti between 1580 and 1583. The church has a rectangular base, with thick lower walls that taper upward, made of local basalt with poor mortar.

Over the centuries, as the population decreased, Santa Margherita lost the title of parish, and the faithful were assisted by the church of Roncà. Around the years 1930/1940, there were changes: the population increased and the various districts of the town requested the bishop for the presence of a priest, with the possibility of restoring the parish status for Santa Margherita. The bishop began to consider the problem of finding a priest for what was merely a “curacy,” meaning a church where a priest would occasionally celebrate Mass.

In 1944, several events occurred that were the first concrete steps towards the establishment of the parish of S. Margherita: Luigia Costi donated to the Bishop for the newly established parish of Santa Margherita eight fields, and on May 27, 1944, the Bishop sent the priest in the person of Don Fabiano Dal Cengio, with permission to perform baptisms, communions, funerals, marriages, and house blessings. When Don Fabiano arrived in S. Margherita in 1944, he saw that it was insufficient, and in a short time he managed to find assistance to add the two lateral aisles that can still be seen today. The fresco on the right wall depicts the Saint triumphing over the dragon.

The Church was inaugurated on July 20, 1946, and on the same day, the first stone of the new Church of Santa Margherita was blessed. On September 12, 1964, the Church of Santa Margherita, which was assisted by the Church of Roncà, regained its status as a parish with the first Economic Vicar and parish priest Don Fabiano Dal Cengio.