been inhabited since the Paleolithic, as is shown by the discovery of about thirty dolmen burials which can be dated to the 13th to the 12th centuries BCE, of the types: gallery dolmen tomb, dolmen tumulus with rectangular cell, and pseudo-dolmen cell. At Murgia San Francesco is La Castelluccia, a settlement of the Peucetii dating back to the 6th century BCE; it flourished in the Hellenistic period and declined in the Roman period. The frazione was formally established by the Commune of Gioia del Colle in 1958, but in reality wealthy landowners had established farms there since the 18th century, and following the unification of Italy and the subsequent agrarian reform, this part of the countryside of Gioia had become densely populated, as is shown by the rural schools and the now disused Montursi post office, as well as the great farms, the so-called casini (country lodges), the dry stone walls, the conical-roofed trulli and casedde, and the stone church of Santa Maria at Masseria del Porto. The wooded areas near Montursi were a hiding place and area of activity for Sergeant Romano, one of the participants in the brigandage in Southern Italy. On 12 October 1957, the Prefect Commissioner of Gioia del Colle decided to make a free grant of land owned by the comune for the construction of a parish church, parish house and parish infrastructure in Montursi. At that time approximately 3,000 people resided there and some parts of the area had become somewhat reforested. In February 1959, Prefect Commissioner Emanuele Loperfido assigned a contribution of ₤ 300,000 for the erection of the church of Saint Joseph the Worker. On 22 June 1959, the final plans for the construction of the civil government building in Murgia were approved. In the Montursi pine woods a monument has been placed in honour of the fallen citizens of Montursi who gave their lives in the First World War. Economy The economy is still primarily based on cattle rearing and on dairy farming, supporting the cheese industry of Gioia del Colle in the production of its famous mozzarella. Although cultivation is predominantly for forage, cultivation of olives, almonds and cherries is typical. There is also tourism, especially in the summer season; there are numerous second homes, some bed and breakfasts and pizzerias. Festivals and feast days 1 May — Feast of St. Joseph the Worker: attended every year by thousands of