town, Lombardia ( Lombardy) region, northern Italy. Voghera is located on the Staffora River, just southwest of Pavia. Probably the site of Iria, a Roman colony, it was fortified by the Visconti family, whose castle there dates from 1372. The 17th-century church of S. Lorenzo and the unused Romanesque church of S. Ilario (Chiesa Rossa, or Red Church, from its red-brick construction) are also notable. Voghera is an important agricultural market, with an agricultural training school, and has textile, mechanical, and food industries and a hydroelectric plant. Pop. (2006 est.) mun., 38,374.