Since the Middle Ages, a bridge near Cappiano has been written about, when the Via Francigena passed the Gusciana canal, emissary of the Padule of Fucecchio. It was a fortified bridge with attached fisheries and a mill, used in the early 1400s by the Republic of Florence as a lock to regulate the runoff of the waters of the Padule.

In 1550 Cosimo I had the Bridge rebuilt and the annexes by important workers, which also included David Fortini and Nicolò Pericoli called the Tribolo. The result was a monument of great complexity: in addition to a fortified bridge with two towers there were also two openings, called ‘calle’,’ used to regulate the water level for fishing and the passage of ships. The bridge also became a water-exploitation machine as a driving force for several manufacturers and eventually the administrative centre of a farm that was established during the 1500s.