Mesocco Parish, Graubünden, Switzerland Genealogy

Description: Guide to Mesocco / Misox / Mesauc Parish, Graubünden, Switzerland, ancestry, family history, and genealogy: birth records, marriage records, death records, parish census, civil census, family history, area history, and military records.



Geography
The municipality of Mesocco (Romansh: Mesauc)(Lombard: Mesòch) is in the Moesa Region and the Graubünden canton. It is located in the northernmost municipality in the Misox valley and is one of the largest in the canton. It includes the secondary school for the area, the local district courts, and numerous government offices. Also included is the village of Mesocco with eleven sections, including the mountain village of San Bernardino. Mesocco (as of 2006) has an area of 164.8 km² (63.6 square miles). The land use is divided up as follows:
 * 20.1% - agricultural purposes
 * 20.1% - forested
 * 1.3% - settled (buildings or roads)
 * 58.6% - non-productive

History
In 1203, Mesocco was first mentioned by the name of Mesoco. In 1383, Mesocco was mentioned as Misogg. Mesocco (Romansh: Mesauc)(Lombard: Mesòch) is in the Moesa sub-district of the Mesocco district and the Graubünden canton. After 2017, Mesocco became part of the Moesa Region.

The population history of Mesocco is: 1701 - 1,013 inhabitants 1773 - 921 inhabitants 1802 - 862 inhabitants 1850 - 1,182 inhabitants 1900 - 1,173 inhabitants 1950 - 1,150 inhabitants 2000 - 1,201 inhabitants 2020 - 1,323 inhabitants

Per the 2000 census:
 * 91.0% were Roman Catholic
 * 3.1% were Swiss Reformed Church
 * 42% were Orthodox Church
 * 1.92% were Islamic

At the foot of the castle is the church of Santa Maria, recorded as early as 1219. The parish church of Santi Pietro e Paolo, recorded in 1219, was renovated in the 17th century and refurbished in 1959. The town has other religious buildings: the church of San Rocco which was documented in 1538 and various chapels, including San Giacomo, attested in 1419, San Giuseppe in Andergia, which served the Reformed as a place of worship during the Reformation, and San Giovanni Nepomuceno in Cebbia, destroyed by the 1978 flood and then rebuilt.

Church Records
Original church records are held in the local municipal archive or civil registration office. Microfilm copies are available at the Graubünden State Archives.

Catholic
Mesocco has been a parish since at least 1219. Church records begin in 1677. The following volumes are only available on microfilm at the Graubünden State Archives:
 * Baptisms, marriages 1701-1781; burials 1701-1774; Status animarum 1701, 1773
 * Marriages 1782-1837; burials 1790-1837
 * Baptisms 1785-1837
 * Baptisms 1838-1875
 * Marriages 1838-1875
 * Burials 1838-1875

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

The following censuses are available from FamilySearch for Mesocco:
 * 1835
 * 1838
 * 1848
 * 1850
 * 1850, form C

Civil Registration
Civil registration began in 1876.

Duplicate civil registration registers are located at the Graubünden State Archives. The following records are available:
 * Both A and B registers are available through 1916-1917 and are open without restriction.
 * Family registers are available from at latest 1860 through 1910; these records are viewable but require permission to access. For more information, contact the State Archive.

Surnames
The following surnames held citizenship in Mesocco prior to 1875:

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

Libraries and archives
State Archives of Graubünden

Societies
Rätische Vereinigung für Familienforschung (RVFF)

Società Genealogica della Svizzera italiana (SGSI)