Isone Parish, Ticino, Switzerland Genealogy

Description: Guide to Isone Parish, Ticino, Switzerland, ancestry, family history, and genealogy: birth records, marriage records, death records, parish census, civil census, family history, area history, and military records.



Geography
As of 1997, Isone has an area of 12.82 square kilometers (4.95 sq mi). The municipality is situated in the Bellinzona district, in the upper Vedeggio Valley.

The land use is divided up as follows:
 * 4.3% - agricultural purposes
 * 64.7% - forested
 * 2.1% - settled (buildings or roads)
 * 0.5% - rivers or lakes
 * 10.6% - unproductive land

History
The first mention of Isone is in 1237 as Yxono.

The population history of Isone is: 1591 - 440 inhabitants 1709 - 617 inhabitants 1801 - 608 inhabitants 1850 - 789 inhabitants 1900 - 750 inhabitants 1950 - 682 inhabitants 1980 - 371 inhabitants 2000 - 353 inhabitants

It is assumed that around the year one thousand, Bironico was the civil and religious center of Carvina, a community that included the localities of the middle and upper valley of the Vedeggio, which were part of the former parish of Bironico:
 * Camignolo
 * Isone
 * Medeglia
 * Mezzovico-Vira
 * Rivera
 * Robasacco
 * Sigirino

During the High Middle Ages, Bironico was first dependent on the diocese and then on the city of Como for spiritual needs. The chapter of Como is mentioned there as early as 1296 as the owner of pastures. In 1466 Isone, which was part of the pieve of Agno, separated from the mother church of Bironico and became its own parish. In 1501-1503, Isone and Medeglia separated from the community of Lugano and put themselves under Bellinzona. From the original, Saint Lorenz, only the Roman bell tower and remains of the wall (probably from the 12th century) can be seen in the current building. The church was rebuilt and enlarged in the 17th and 20th centuries.

Isone is mainly known for being the site of the grenadier school (Grenadierschule) of the Swiss Army. The Grenadiers are a division of the infantry corps, and have been trained in Isone since 1970. Prior to 1970, training had taken place in Losone.

According to records from 1571, Isone Parish was part of the Agno Pieve. The Pieve was formed from the following parishes: In Swiss territory -

In what is now Italian territory. With the exception of Cremenaga, all these parishes were separated from Agno by 1633.

Census
(See here for information regarding Ticino census records.)

The 1808 Ticino census for Isone can be accessed here.

Surnames
The following surnames held citizenship in Isone prior to 1875, along with any known soprannomi. For more information about soprannomi, click here.

Related sources
The town's website (in Italian) can be found here.

Libraries and archives
State Archives of Ticino

Societies
Società Genealogica della Svizzera Italiana (SGSI)