Locations

Premises of the Camporegio Society

At the time of its foundation, in 1880, the Society was based in rooms of the Contrada del Drago, but no documents are available on their exact location. On 2 July 1881 the Camporegio Society rented new premises in Via del Paradiso: just in time, since in August of that year the Drago won the Palio. In Via del Paradiso, then, for a full 130 years the Dragaioli lived their Contrada life intensely, until May 2011, when the new premises behind the Basilica of San Domenico were inaugurated.

In the years after the Second World War there were many debates about renting the premises to outside bodies, given the need to raise income. The solution came in May 1963, after the costly victory of 2 July 1962, awaited for a full 17 years: slot machines were installed, which greatly increased daily attendance at the Society. This immediate success made it possible to buy a new television and, some say, also the victory of August 1963. Still riding the wave of gambling, in 1969 the ritual of the tombola began, destined to end almost 30 years later, in 1995, when both the tombola players and the Dragaioli willing to cover the shifts dwindled. An era was ending. In January 1976, on the other hand, Camporegio hosted the first edition of “Diccelo!” (“Tell Us!”), the quiz game on Siena and the Palio created by Enrico Giannelli, which proved a great success. To this day the Society remains the official stage of the event, which for years has brought together under the same roof a packed and passionate audience of “experts” from various Contrade. Camporegio was also a place to eat, which for years attracted out-of-town students and soldiers, with the kitchen and bar run by people from outside the Contrada; but in the 1980s the conviction grew ever stronger that the Dragaioli could manage on their own. Today the Society is mostly lived by its members, who over time have kept or overturned many past traditions in order to create the perfect place to meet and feel part of a (big) family.