pestilence and increased to 13,000 in 1798. Contemporary age At the beginning of the 19th century Alcamo's feudal status was abolished (1812) and the town became a direct royal possession. The archpriests Stefano Triolo Galifi and Giuseppe Virgilio, together with the baron Felice Pastore were members of the Sicilian Parliament as representatives of Alcamo. In 1820, during a revolt, there were different murders, sacks, release of criminals from prison and a fire in the municipal archives. and in 1829 many people died of cholera. In 1843 the construction of the present Town Hall started, on a land of the baron Felice Pastore. On 6 April 1860, Stefano and Giuseppe Triolo let the Italian Tricolour wave on the town hall, creating groups of volunteers in order to help Giuseppe Garibaldi in the battle of Calatafimi and from Alcamo some dictatorial edicts on Victor Emmanuel II's behalf were issued. Some time later Francesco Crispi prepared the Constitution for the lands set free. Further to this event, Corso Imperiale was named Corso 6 Aprile, in memory of 6 April, in which the volunteers started to be enlisted in Alcamo. During the Unification of Italy the brothers Triolo of Sant'Anna and Giuseppe Coppola of Monte San Giuliano enlisted many citizens to fight with the Garibaldians in 1860. At the end of the 19th century, in 1897, public lighting was inaugurated in Alcamo during the traditional feast of Our Lady of Miracles. Among the most important people of this period we have to remind Don Giuseppe Rizzo, a priest who founded the bank called "Cassa Rurale e Artigiana Don Rizzo" (1902). At the beginning of the 20th century (1901–1911) the number of citizens in Alcamo diminished abruptly, partially because of the emigration of 36,718 Sicilians abroad and in particular to the United States, but it is possible that the statistics about this year and the previous years were not reliable because the census was carried out without following certain criteria. In the same period the cultivations in the territory of Alcamo were affected by phylloxera and two banks ("Cooperativa" and "Segestana") went bankrupt with subsequent economic difficulties for its citizens. There were also some events linked to the Mafia, such as the murder of Gaspare Cottone, a carter (1899) and the death of the 19-years-old Benedetto Guastella during a fire conflict with carabinieri in 1900. As the Mafia had taken power in the districts of