Contone is a former municipality in the district of Locarno in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland.

[2] However, three tombs have been discovered in Contone, which can be dated earlier than the Early Middle Ages.

In the 16th century, the Commandry estates went to the hospital in Lugano and in 1811 to the Antognini family of Bellinzona.

[2] In 1104, the Lombard nobleman Wido Samarate built or rebuilt a church and presented it to the Benedictine monastery of S. Giorgio in Quartino.

[2] The inhabitants of Contone lived as herders and farmers, mostly on the lowest part of the slope of Mount Ceneri.

After 1850, the employment situation changed because of the decline of the port of Magadino and railway construction.

Many inhabitants emigrated abroad and found work as painters, plasterers and stove-makers.

After the correction of the Ticino river, the vast, formerly marshy plain became home to a number of commercial and industrial buildings.

[2] Contone has an area, as of 1997[update], of 2.32 square kilometers (0.90 sq mi).

[3] The village is located in the Locarno district, in the Magadino valley on the eastern edge of the Gambarogno region.

The blazon of the municipal coat of arms is Per pale azure and gules overall an eight-pointed cross argent.

As early as 1367 the Order of St John owned a commandery and a hospital which belonged to the Italian Langue.

The officiating pastor of Contone is, through his office, a chaplain of magistral grace of the Order of Malta.

[5] The age distribution, as of 2009[update], in Contone is; 72 children or 8.5% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old and 107 teenagers or 12.6% are between 10 and 19.

[9] About 44.8% of the total households were owner occupied, or in other words did not pay rent (though they may have a mortgage or a rent-to-own agreement).

[6] The historical population is given in the following table:[2] In the 2007 federal election the most popular party was the CVP which received 39.84% of the vote.

[13] In the 2007[update] Gran Consiglio election, there were a total of 455 registered voters in Contone, of which 273 or 60.0% voted.

[16] From the 2000 census[update], 598 or 85.1% were Roman Catholic, while 34 or 4.8% belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church.

In the lower secondary school system, students either attend a two-year middle school followed by a two-year pre-apprenticeship or they attend a four-year program to prepare for higher education.

The professional program lasts three years and prepares a student for a job in engineering, nursing, computer science, business, tourism and similar fields.