Cristoforo Benigno Crespi

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The ‘Castle’: the Crespi residence at Crespi d’Adda pictured from across the river Adda

Cristoforo Benigno Crespi (Busto Arsizio, 18 October 1833 – Milan, 5 January 1920) was an Italian entrepreneur. In 1897 a cotton textile industry was created in the province of Milan and his factory and its worker village, called Crespi d’Adda was built on the left bank of the river Adda between the towns of Capriate San Gervasio and Canonica d’Adda where the flow of water provided hydro electric energy to power the cotton looms. It was in full production until the economic crash of 1929 when the family went bankrupt but was still producing in limited output up until its closure in 2004. Descendants of the original workers still live in the village. It has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1995. His son, Silvio Benigno Crespi, was among the world's most powerful men at the time and signed the Treaty of Versailles at the end of the First World War on behalf of Italy.[1]

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