Camignolo, Ticino, Switzerland Genealogy

Description: Guide to Camignolo, 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, Camignolo has an area of 4.53 square kilometers (1.75 sq mi). The village is located in the Lugano district, around a bridge over the Vedeggio river at the end of the Valle d'Isone. The municipality extends from the left side of the valley to Gola di Lago and includes the mountain pasture of Santa Maria in Lago.

The land use is divided up as follows:
 * 9.7% - agricultural purposes
 * 71.7% - forested
 * 7.3% - settled (buildings or roads)
 * 1.3% - rivers or lakes
 * 7.1% - unproductive land

The following municipalities merged on 21 November 2010 into the new municipality of Monteceneri:
 * Bironico
 * Camignolo
 * Medeglia
 * Rivera
 * Sigirino

History
The first mention of Camignolo is in 1296 as Camigiollo.

The population history of Camignolo is: 1692 - 260 inhabitants 1801 - 160 inhabitants 1850 - 258 inhabitants 1900 - 238 inhabitants 1950 - 319 inhabitants 2000 - 596 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 Parish was first dependent on the diocese and then on the city of Como for spiritual needs. The existence of the castle Saint-Ambroise is mentioned in 1348; it was perhaps already in ruins at the beginning of the 16th century, when the Swiss domination began. Camignolo was a vice-parish from 1670 and became a parish in 1809. The church of Saints-Pierre-et-Paul is mentioned in the 15th century, but transformations were carried out around 1670. The 10th-century chapel of Saint Ambrogio, added to in 1348, is rich in late Romanesque and 15th-century frescoes and was restored 1976-79.

According to records from 1571, Camignolo 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 Camignolo can be accessed here.

Surnames
The following surnames held citizenship in Camignolo prior to 1900, 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)