ABSTRACT
A precocious urban sprawl characterised Rome’s development in 1920. Particularly in the east and southeast quarters, the boundary between city and countryside was disappearing. There, a migratory flux was attracted by means of the ways that water access, distribution, and use were being configured between 1870 and 1922. The conflictual coexistence between industrial, civic, and agricultural water uses was exacerbated by these factors. Indeed, the multiple appropriations of water were a determinant factor in shifting the frontier of urban expansion, particularly where control over water was not clear and its use poorly delineated. As a result, rural areas were turned into mixed popular housing and industrial suburbs.
