Along the road leading to Piazza Sant'Antonio al Capo, on the left, what appears today as a shapeless stony heap is what remains of the Torre Longa (also known in the past as Torre del Campanaro or Torre di Patti).
Quadrangular in shape, about 8 metres on a side, it was built with local stones (not only simple quarry stones, but also light beige-coloured fossil limestones from the quaternary fossil beaches of Capo Milazzo) on a rocky base, about 50 metres above sea level, to control the sea and in particular the entire west coast, with a frontal view of the city of Patti (hence one of its names).
Longa Tower
Probably built towards the end of the 16th century to reinforce the defences of the peninsula, it managed to remain intact until the 1970s, as is documented by photographs that, together with 19th-century drawings, provide insight into its original architecture.
In the 1980s, the widening of the road to Capo Milazzo threatened to destroy the remains of the ruined tower. They were saved thanks to the tenacity of cultural and environmental associations, led by the WWF of Milazzo, and the subsequent intervention of the Superintendency of Cultural Heritage. Today its 'heap of stones' constitutes one of the testimonies of our Promontory's past.
Fulco C., Picciolo L., Le torri di Milazzo - 2. Il Capo, in Milazzo Nostra