The patron saint of Ladispoli is Saint Joseph, celebrated on 19 March. The town's very name tells its story: «Ladispoli» derives from Ladislao-polis, a contraction of its founder's name, Prince Ladislao Odescalchi, combined with the Greek word polis, «city».
The castle of Palo, built around the 12th century, was an Orsini fief from the 16th century and passed in 1693 to the Odescalchi family, who definitively reacquired it in 1870 after several changes of ownership. In 1884 Livio Odescalchi donated it to his son Ladislao, who took up residence there: a small village had meanwhile grown up around the manor, and to move its residents and holidaymakers away, the prince founded the new town on 30 May 1888, together with a seaside village, on a strip of land between the Vaccina and Sanguinara streams. Today Ladispoli is also known for the Sagra del Carciofo Romanesco (Roman Artichoke Festival), held annually since 1950 and elevated to Regional Fair status in 2000 and National Fair status in 2007, with stands from every Italian region and delegations from twinned towns.
