The opera uses an Italian language libretto by Eugene Checchi which is based on Goffredo Cognetti's 1889 play O voto.

The work is widely considered Spinelli's greatest composition, and the prelude to the opera's third act has been programmed by numerous orchestras for performances in concert.

[1] A basso porto was first performed in England by the Carl Rosa Co. in March 1899 at Brighton, and by the Queen's Hall Orchestra on October 11, 1900, under Henry Wood.

[2] The work was staged on Broadway by Henry W. Savage's Castle Square Opera Company in an English-language production entitled At the Lower Harbor in 1900.

The musical forces were led by conductor Romualdo Sapio and the production starred Selma Kronold as Maria, William Pruette as Ciccillo, Mary Carrington as Sesella, Harry Davies as Luigino, Herman Brand as Pichillo, and Frank H. Belcher as Pascale.