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Decanato of Trento: Parishes, Curates and Parish Registers

Decanato of Trento: Parishes, Curates and Parish Registers

Inventory of the parish registers in the parishes and curates of the decanato (deanery) of the city of Trento. Part 4 of ‘Trentino Valleys, Parishes and People: A Guide for Genealogists’ by Lynn Serafinn.

LAST TIME in this special series on the valleys, parishes and genealogical records (parish registers) for the province of Trento, we looked at the various frazioni of the municipality of the city of Trento, as well as demographics (population, languages, occupations) and surnames of the people in that city in the year 1890.

If you haven’t yet read that article (or you would like to read it again), I invite you to check it out at https://trentinogenealogy.com/2020/04/trento-city-surnames-1600/ .

As you read today’s article, you might also find it useful to refer to the MAP of the frazioni of Trento I shared with you last time.

MORE READING:   Trento in the 1800s. Frazioni, Occupations, Surnames

WHAT I WILL DISCUSS IN THIS ARTICLE

TODAY, I want to shift away from looking at the city of Trento as a civil entity, and consider how it is organised into PARISHES.

As we do so, I will also give you an INVENTORY of the currently surviving parish registers for each PARISH, to help guide you in your genealogical research.

My primary resource for this information is the book Guida Storico – Archivistica del Trento by Dott. Albino Casetti (published 1961), which has been the ‘bible’ reference book for Trentino historians of all kinds (including family historians) for nearly 60 years.

This monumental work (over 1,100 pages), published only in Italian, is an inventory of ALL the archived materials in every comune and parish in the province of Trentino. As the focus of this blog is specifically Trentino Genealogy, I will be summarising ONLY the information that is most relevant to genealogists and family historians.

In this way, over the course of this series, I aim to provide you with a ‘go to guide’ of the available parish registers in all of the parishes in the diocese, adding my own insights when I happen to have worked with that parish.

ABOUT the PARISH RECORDS

  • Nearly all of the baptisms, marriages and death records for the entire DIOCESE of Trento were photographed by the LDS church (Latter Day Saints) and put on microfilm. Because of this, I have included the microfilm numbers/contents below (although they are in the process of digitising these).
  • The diocese of Trento digitised all these records about 10 years ago, and they are freely viewable at their Diocesan Archives in Trento. Most of the records that the LDS church missed have also since been digitised by the diocese (the parish of Andalo is one example); these are also available at the Diocesan Archives in Trento.
  • Confirmation is a Catholic sacrament, which can be delivered only by a Bishop. As such, ceremonies tended to be done in large groups, often for many parishes at once. The Italian word for ‘Confirmation’ is ‘cresima’ (plural = cresime). You may sometimes see the word ‘cresima’ and a date scribbled next to someone’s name in their baptismal record. Confirmation in the past was often combined with the sacrament of First Communion, and could sometimes take place when a child was quite young.
  • An ‘anagraph’ is a record for a family group, listing the head of household, wife (or wives), and their children. Typically it will include all birth, marriage and death dates of everyone in the family group, and sometimes Confirmation dates.
  • Although I have listed anagraphs and Confirmation records in the charts below, NEITHER of these is normally included in the LDS microfilms or digital images at the Trento Archives. However, in the case of the Duomo, being the seat of the bishopric, I did find many Confirmation records mixed in with the baptismal records in the 1500s (more about this shortly).
  • Most parishes also contain many other kinds of archived materials, such as pergamene (parchments, often of legal documents), taxes, inventory of goods, visits from the bishop, etc. I have not included those in these lists, as there are just too many of them, and they are not usually of much interest to family historians (except possibly some of the more experienced researchers).

REMINDER: This article is only about the CITY of Trento, NOT the rural parts of the province of Trento (also called ‘Trentino’). After we finish our discussion of the city, we’ll start our exploration of the many rural valleys and parishes of the province in detail, spread across at least 20 upcoming articles in this special series.

The DECANATO of TRENTO

As a reminder, the Catholic Church organises its churches hierarchically like this:

Diocese –> Deanery –> Parish –> Curate

Or, in Italian:

Diocesi –> Decanato –> Parrocchia (Pieve) –> Curazia

All of the parishes we will explore in this series are in the DIOCESE of Trento. Technically, Trento is an ‘archdiocese’, which just means it covers a large area, including one urban centre, i.e. the city of Trento.

There are 25 decanati (deaneries) in the archdiocese of Trento. One of these deaneries is the CITY OF TRENTO itself.

Within the decanato of Trento, there are different parishes, and within each parish there are several ‘curates’ (curazie). Curates are like ‘satellite’ parishes, which are subordinate to the ‘mother’ parish church. Curates do not always have the authority to hold their own baptisms or maintain their own records. 

Presently, there are FIVE ‘mother’ parishes in the DECANATO of Trento, most with one or more curate parishes dependent upon them. According to Casetti (page 820), these are:

MOTHER PARISHCURATE PARISHES
Cathedral of San VigilioVillazzano
Santa Maria MaggioreMattarello; Sardagna; Vela
Santi Pietro e PaoloSanta Maria Maddalena; Gardolo, Cognola, Villa Montagna, Montevaccino, Garniga (see notes)
PiedicastelloRavina; Romagnano
Povo(None listed by Casetti)

ADDITIONAL NOTES:

Some of these parishes have changed their status over time.   For example, some curates have become parishes in their own right, while others have been  ‘incorporated’ into other parishes or deaneries.  I will point these variables out as we go along.

PARISH of TRENTO: Cathedral of San Vigilio (Duomo)

A ‘cathedral’ is not just a large church; it is a church associated with a resident bishop. Moreover, in ecclesiastical terms, for a place to be called a ‘city’ it had to have a cathedral.

This medieval Cathedral – or ‘duomo’ – of San Vigilio has long been the symbol of the bishopric of Trento, if not an icon of the province itself. San Vigilio (d. ca. 397 AD) was not only an early Christian martyr but the first bishop of the province. His tomb can be visited in the underground crypt beneath the Cathedral.

INVENTORY of Parish Registers for San Vigilio

REGISTERNO. OF VOLUMESSTARTING YEAR
BAPTISMS271565
MARRIAGES191565
DEATHS161620
CONFIRMATION8 (see notes)1759
ANAGRAPHS?1830; 1840

LDS Microfilms for Duomo of San Vigilio

MICROFILM NO.ITEMSCONTENTS
144830016-20Baptisms 1564-1685 (the start date they list is slightly from Casetti’s).
1448301entire filmBaptisms 1685-1824; Index of baptisms 1824-1879; Baptisms 1824-1883; Index of baptisms 1880-1921; Baptisms 1884-1886.
1448302entire filmBaptisms 1886-1923; Marriages 1565-1780; Index of marriages; 1813-1872; Marriages 1816-1923; Deaths 1620-1701.
14483241-15Deaths 1701-1780; Index of Deaths 1793-1828; Deaths 1780-1813; Index of Deaths 1810-1873; Deaths 1810-1887; Index of Deaths 1886-1921; Deaths 1887-1923.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

Here are a few things I noticed on the occasions I have worked with the records for this parish:

  • CONFIRMATION RECORDS. Although Casetti says the register of Confirmations starts in the year 1759, in my own research I discovered that many pages of CONFIRMATION records from the mid to late 1500s are mixed in with volume 1 of the baptisms (1564-1577). As the Duomo in Trento was the home parish of the Bishop, some parents sent their children to be confirmed there, rather than waiting for the Bishop to come to their local parish/deanery. For example, I found several children from families who lived in my father’s PARISH of Bleggio in Val Giudicarie were confirmed at the Duomo in 1596. You might wish to check volume 1 of the baptisms to see if anyone in your own family tree had travelled to Trento to have their children confirmed at the Duomo, rather than wait for the bishop to come to their local parish/deanery.
  • BAPTISMAL REGISTERS VOLUMES 2 and 3 (and possibly others) are organised according to FIRST NAME of the child. For me, this is the WORST and most frustrating system of organisation because, unless you know exactually what you are looking for, it can be very difficult to find a particular record. For example, you might be looking for someone named ‘Antonio’, but he was actually baptised ‘Tommaso Giovanni Battista Antonio’; how would you KNOW to look under ‘T’?
  • SURNAMES IN EARLY BAPTISMAL RECORDS ARE OFTEN MISSING. I would estimate a good 60% of the baptismal records in Volume 2 at the Duomo don’t have a surname at all.  Instead, you’ll find things like   ‘Barbara, daughter of Valentino of Val di Sole’, ‘Gregorio of Rovereto’ or ‘Lorenzo of Arco’ (these are all examples I wrote down in my notes the last time I was perusing those records).
  • BUT…YOU MIGHT BE PLEASANTLY SURPRISED.  Despite the other frustrations,  if you are really patient (and a bit lucky), you just might stumble across random baptismal records for families from rural parishes who either had relocated to the city, or who were staying there temporarily. For example, amongst these registers, I found the baptismal records for many children of the noble Tommaso Crosina, a renowned medical doctor who had relocated from Balbido (in Val Giudicarie) to the city, as well as baptismal records for children of the Buratti family of Comano, and the Girardi family of Vigo Lomaso (both in Val Giudicarie).

CURATE of VILLAZZANO

Located in the southern part of the city of Trento, Villazzano is the site of two churches: a small church dedicated to San Stefano, already in existence by the year 1567, and a much older church dedicated to San Bartolomeo, which appears in documents as far back as 1183. Indeed, this whole neighbourhood of South Trento is called ‘San Bartolomeo’, and there is also a train station of the same name not far from Villazzano.

After many demolitions and reconstructions, the present curate church is San Stefano, and the old church of San Bartolomeo is solely a cemetery church.

Despite its long history, Villazzano was not elevated to the position of a parish until 1907.

INVENTORY of Parish Registers for Villazzano

REGISTERNO. OF VOLUMESSTARTING YEAR
BAPTISMS71804
MARRIAGES81620
DEATHS71714
CONFIRMATION?1827
ANAGRAPHS?1895

LDS Microfilms for Villazzano

MICROFILM NO.ITEMSCONTENTS
144829930Baptisms 1825-1852.
14483001-15Baptisms 1852-1923; Marriages 1620-1923; Deaths 1714-1923.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

  • I cannot explain the disparity between the start year of the baptisms (1804) as cited by Casetti and the start year cited on the Family Search website, as I haven’t personally worked with this parish. I know there are some volumes (in various parishes) that the LDS didn’t photograph when they made their microfilms; most of these have since been digitised by the diocese of Trento, and are thus viewable only through their archives, not through the Family History Centres.
  • Casetti doesn’t specify the number volumes of for Confirmation records or anagraphs; I assume  there is a single volume of each, but I have put a ‘?’ as I don’t know.
  • While I have not done research in this parish, I would PRESUME earlier records for Villazzano will be found in its ‘mother parish’ of the Duomo of San Vigilio.

PARISH of TRENTO: Santa Maria Maggiore

Not far from the Duomo is the church of Santa Maria Maggiore, a parish which has been documented back to the year 1147. In the 19th century, Monsignor Giovanni Battista Zanella (the parroco at the time) put the archives for the parish in order and created an inventory for them. But due to events sustained during the First World War, the archives were again put in disarray. Casetti says the current parroco is again putting the archives in order; I would assume progress has been made since he made this comment some years ago.

INVENTORY of Parish Registers for Santa Maria Maggiore

REGISTERNO. OF VOLUMESSTARTING YEAR
BAPTISMS271548
MARRIAGES161581
DEATHS171620
CONFIRMATION131825
ANAGRAPHS31828; 1857; 1951

LDS MICROFILMS for Santa Maria Maggiore

MICROFILM NO.ITEMSCONTENTS
144832416-22Baptisms 1548-1630.
1448325entire filmBaptisms 1630-1832.
1448326entire filmBaptisms 1833-1923; Marriages 1581-1836.
1448327entire filmMarriages 1836-1923; Deaths 1620-1847.
14483281-4Deaths 1847-1923.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

Casetti says the parish archives also contain many ‘urbari’ (collection of taxes) from the 1600s onwards, as well as many diplomas of doctorates and diplomas of nobility, but I have no details on these.

CURATE of MATTARELLO

Located about 4 miles south of the city centre, the curate church of Mattarello, dedicated to San Lorenzo, was built in 1454. After centuries of being a curate parish under Santa Maria Maggiore, it was elevated to the status of a parish on 21 November 1906.

INVENTORY of Parish Registers for Mattarello

REGISTERNO. OF VOLUMESSTARTING YEAR
BAPTISMS111657
MARRIAGES91657
DEATHS51657
CONFIRMATION11840
ANAGRAPHS1?

LDS MICROFILMS for Mattarello

MICROFILM NO.ITEMSCONTENTS
144825936-37Index of Baptisms 1657-1805; Baptisms 1657-1665.
14482601-22Baptisms 1665-1923; Marriages 1657-1923; Deaths 1657-1805, 1845-1923.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

  • Apparently, there are some additional marriages and deaths from between the years 1682-1684 amongst the first volume of baptisms.
  • Casetti says there are ‘recent anagraphs’ but gives no date.
  • Casetti actually says the marriage records start in 1748, with the exception of a few from the 1680s; the LDS index says the marriages start in 1657, however. I asked the archivist in Trento , and they confirmed they do indeed start  in 1657.
  • There is a gap in the death records between 1806-1844.

CURATE of SARDAGNA

Across the River Adige directly west of Trent city centre,  Sardagna is a tiny village perched on top of Monte Bondone. Dedicated to Saints Filippo and Giacomo, the curate church of Sardagna was opened on 10 November 1679. It was elevated to the status of a parish on 11 February 1910, under the deanery of Trento.

INVENTORY of Parish Registers for Sardagna

REGISTERNO. OF VOLUMESSTARTING YEAR
BAPTISMS61788
MARRIAGES71742
DEATHS61742
CONFIRMATION21859
ANAGRAPHS?1747
BIRTHS, MARRIAGES AND DEATHS ALL'ESTERO?1892-1926

LDS MICROFILM for Sardagna

MICROFILM NO.ITEMSCONTENTS
144836812-33Index of Baptisms 1788-1922; Baptisms 1788-1923; Index of Marriages 1742-1921; Marriages 1742-1923; Index of Deaths 1742-1923; Death 1742-1923.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

  • Sadly, Casetti tells us that all of Sardagna’s older documents were destroyed by a fire caused by lightning that hit the church in 1724. I do not know if any duplicates were kept in the mother parish of Santa Maria Maggiore.
  • Note that there is a register of births, marriages and deaths ‘all’estero’, i.e. events that occurred outside the parish, particularly those of families who emigrated outside the province (such as to the Americas, etc.). LDS does NOT list them on the inventory for their microfilms. As of this writing, I do not know if they have since been digitised at the Diocesan Archives in Trento.

CURATE of VELA

North of Sardagna, and northwest of  the city centre, is the curate of Vela. Dedicated to Saints Cosma and Damiano, the church at Vela is relatively new compared to many others in Trento (1794), and it did not have permission to perform baptisms until 1833. Before then, all events would have been recorded in the registry of its mother parish of Santa Maria Maggiore. It was elevated to the rank of parish on 24 Sept 1942, under the deanery of Trento.

INVENTORY of Parish Registers for Vela

REGISTERNO. OF VOLUMESSTARTING YEAR
BAPTISMS41834
MARRIAGES21904
DEATHS31844
CONFIRMATION11924
ANAGRAPHS?1884; 1905

LDS MICROFILMS for Vela

MICROFILM NO.ITEMSCONTENTS
14483682-7Baptisms 1834-1923; Marriages 1904-1923; Deaths 1834-1923.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

I haven’t worked personally with these records, so I cannot comment on the discrepancy in the dates of the death records (LDS says they start in 1834, while Casetti says 1844).

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PARISH of TRENTO: Santi Pietro e Paolo

Located in the heart of the city centre, this church is dedicated to the Apostles Peter and Paul. Although its records go back to the mid-1500s, Santi Pietro e Paolo  is relatively ‘new’ a parish,  as it was originally a curate of the Cathedral of San Vigilio.

INVENTORY of Parish Registers for Santi Pietro e Paolo

REGISTERNO. OF VOLUMESSTARTING YEAR
BAPTISMS251548
MARRIAGES171630
DEATHS121598
CONFIRMATION41825
BAPTISMS ALL'ESTERO31883
MARRIAGES ALL'ESTERO21883
DEATHS ALL'ESTERO21883
ANAGRAPHS?"Recent"

LDS MICROFILMS for Santi Pietro e Paolo

MICROFILM NO.ITEMSCONTENTS
144832815-16Baptisms 1548-1617.
1448353entire film1617-1871
1448354entire filmBaptisms 1872-1923; Marriages 1630-1843.
1448355entire filmMarriages 1843-1923; Deaths 1598-1893.
14483561-5Deaths 1894-1923; ALL'ESTERO: Baptisms 1883-1895; Deaths 1883-1918; Marriages 1883-1916; Baptisms 1858-1923; Deaths 1890-1918; Marriages 1891-1923; Baptisms 1871-1923.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

Again, the term ‘all’estero’ refers to events that took place outside the province, typically referring to families who emigrated outside the province at the end of the 19th century and early 20th century. Casetti does not say what years are covered for these records, but we find them listed in the catalogue for the LDS microfilms (which, happily, means they HAVE been photographed/digitised, which is not always the case).

Casetti does not give the years for the anagraphs, saying only they are ‘recent’.

CURATE of Santa Maria Maddalena

Operating since 1500S, the curate parish of Santa Maria Maddalena was incorporated into the parish of Santi Pietro e Paolo in 1808. Thus, the mother parish of Santi Pietro e Paolo will have all records for Santa Maria Maddalena since that date.

INVENTORY of Parish Registers for Santa Maria Maddalena

REGISTERNO. OF VOLUMESYEARS
BAPTISMS41580-1798
MARRIAGES31581-1808
DEATHS21650-1808

LDS MICROFILM for Santa Maria Maddalena

MICROFILM NO.ITEMSCONTENTS
1448328Items 5-14Baptisms; 1580-1808; Marriages; 1581-1807; Deaths 1650-1808

ADDITIONAL NOTES

I cannot explain why Casetti says the baptisms end in 1798, whereas the LDS catalogue says they go to 1808, as I am unfamiliar with the records for this parish.

CURATE of GARDOLO

Situated north of the main city, and dedicated to the Visitation of the Virgin Mary by Saint Elisabeth, the present-day church at Gardolo, was opened in 1722. The curate was elevated to the status of a parish in 1897.

INVENTORY of Parish Registers for Gardolo

REGISTERNO. OF VOLUMESSTARTING YEAR
BAPTISMS111722
MARRIAGES101704
DEATHS81704
CONFIRMATION11837
ANAGRAPHS219th century

LDS MICROFILMS for Gardolo

MICROFILM NO.ITEMSCONTENTS
14483566-28Baptisms 1722-1923; Marriages 1704-1923; Deaths 1805-1909.
14483671Deaths 1909-1923.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

Earlier records for this curate should be found in the ‘mother’ parish of Santi Pietro e Paolo. Regarding anagraphs, Casetti simply says they are from the 19th and 20th centuries, without any specific years.

CURATE of COGNOLA

Built in 1633 and dedicated to Saints Vito, Modesto e Crescenzia, the curate of Cognola, northeast of the main city centre, was granted permission to have its own baptismal font on 29 January 1677.

INVENTORY of Parish Registers for Cognola

REGISTERNO. OF VOLUMESSTARTING YEAR
BAPTISMS101659; 1677
MARRIAGES71637
DEATHS71654
CONFIRMATION11850
ANAGRAPHS11852

LDS MICROFILMS for Cognola

MICROFILM NO.ITEMSCONTENTS
144829819-23Baptisms 1659-1838 (see notes)
14482991-17Baptisms 1838-1923; Marriages 1637-1923; Deaths 1704-1923.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

Regarding the baptismal records, Casetti says there are only 4 records from the year 1659; otherwise, they start in the year 1677.

CURATE of VILLA MONTAGNA

About 3 miles northeast of the city centre, this curate was founded in 1672, but only started keeping its own registers in 1775. The church is dedicated to Saints Fabiano and Sebastiano. It was elevated to the status of parish in 1919. It is sometimes seen written as a single word, i.e. ‘Villamontagna’ or even ‘Vilamontanja’.

INVENTORY of Parish Registers for Villa Montagna

REGISTERNO. OF VOLUMESSTARTING YEAR
BAPTISMS41775
MARRIAGES31775
DEATHS41775
CONFIRMATION11833
ANAGRAPHS21885; 1911

LDS MICROFILM for Villa Montagna

MICROFILM NO.ITEMSCONTENTS
144829921-29Baptism 1775-1923; Marriages 1775-1923; Deaths 1775-1923

ADDITIONAL NOTES

I would presume that records prior to 1775 would be found in the mother church of Santi Pietro e Paolo.

CURATE of MONTEVACCINO

In the north-eastern outskirts of the city, the frazione of Montevaccino was incorporated into the comune of Cognola in 1900. The church, dedicated to San Leonardo, was erected in 1742 (although the baptismal records appear to have started a bit earlier). The curate of Montevaccino was elevated to the status of parish in 1919.

INVENTORY of Parish Registers for Montevaccino

REGISTERNO. OF VOLUMESSTARTING YEAR
BAPTISMS41740
MARRIAGES41743
DEATHS41742
CONFIRMATION11894
ANAGRAPHS11900

LDS MICROFILM for Montevaccino

MICROFILM NO.ITEMSCONTENTS
144829918-20Baptisms 1741-1821; Deaths 1742-1822; Marriages 1743-1822; Baptisms 1821-1870; Deaths 1821-1870; Marriages 1821-1870; Baptisms 1871-1923; Marriages 1872-1922; Deaths 1871-1923.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

Again, I would presume that records prior to 1740 would be found in the mother church of Santi Pietro e Paolo. I cannot comment on the slight discrepancy in the start dates between Casetti’s inventory and the LDS catalogue.

CURATE of GARNIGA

West of Mattarello, well south of the city centre, is the curate of Garniga. An ancient parish dedicated to Sant’Osvaldo, it had a long history as a curate under the mother parish of Santa Maria Maddalena. A century ago, on 26 January 1920, it was finally elevated to the rank of parish, from which point it was transferred to the decanato of Villa Lagarina (which we explore in a future article).

As it came under the banner of the decanato of Trento for most of its history, I will list its inventory here.

INVENTORY of Parish Registers for Garniga

REGISTERNO. OF VOLUMESSTARTING YEAR
BAPTISMS61614
MARRIAGES51615
DEATHS41635
CONFIRMATION11827

LDS MICROFILMS for Garniga

MICROFILM NO.ITEMSCONTENTS
144827020-23Baptisms 1614-1824; Index of Baptisms 1817-1886; Baptisms 1817-1854.
14482711-11Baptisms 1854-1923; Marriages 1615-1822; Index of Marriages 1817-1873; Marriages 1818-1923; Deaths 1817-1890; Index of Deaths 1635-1890; Deaths 1891-1923.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

Casetti says there are also ‘legati pii’ (i.e. ‘legacy’ gifts donated to the parish as part of someone’s Last Will and Testament) from the year 1646. He also mentions the Confraternity of the Most Holy Sacrament from 1792, but he doesn’t say what specifically this includes (minutes of their meetings, lists of members, etc).

PARISH of TRENTO: Piedicastello (Sant’Apollinare)

Dedicated to Sant’Apollinare, the ancient parish of Piedicastello is mentioned in documents back to the year 1183. If I understand Casetti properly, he says it was traditionally used as the residence of the parish priest of the Cathedral (not the Bishop). Located just across the bridge from the city centre on the opposite bank of the River Adige, Piedicastello was occasionally used as a place to quarantine plague victims during outbreaks, so as to isolate the disease from the main part of the city.

INVENTORY of Parish Registers for Piedicastello

REGISTERNO. OF VOLUMESSTARTING YEAR
BAPTISMS121577
MARRIAGES51586
DEATHS71639
CONFIRMATION21825

LDS MICROFILMS for Piedicastello

MICROFILM NO.ITEMSCONTENTS
14483672-24Baptisms 1577-1923; Marriages 1586-1923; Deaths 1639-1895.
14483681Deaths 1895-1923.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

Again, Casetti says there are also ‘legati pii’ (i.e. ‘legacy’ gifts donated to the parish as part of someone’s Last Will and Testament) from the years 1833 and 1877, and reportedly another from 1769.

CURATE of RAVINA

Erected in 1794, and dedicated to Santa Marina, the curate of Ravina was a curate of the parish of Piedicastello until it was elevated to the rank of parish in 1944. It is situated on the western side of the River Adige, southwest of the city centre.

INVENTORY of Parish Registers for Ravina

REGISTERNO. OF VOLUMESSTARTING YEAR
BAPTISMS51795
MARRIAGES51819
DEATHS21819
CONFIRMATION11850
ANAGRAPHS11882

LDS MICROFILMS for Ravina

MICROFILM NO.ITEMSCONTENTS
144827112-18Baptisms 1795-1923; Marriages 1819-1923; Deaths 1819-1923.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

As these records start quite late, I would assume earlier documents will be found in Piedicastello. As with some of the previously mentioned parishes, Casetti says some ‘legacy gifts’ via Last Wills and Testaments can before here from the year 1700.

CURATE of ROMAGNANO

South of Ravina lies the curate of Romagnano. Its church, dedicated to Saint Brigid of Scotland, was built in 1711. Historically a curate of Piedicastello, it was granted permission to perform baptisms in 1728 (when its baptismal registers begin) and was eventually elevated to the position of a parish in 1920.

INVENTORY of Parish Registers for Romagnano

REGISTERNO. OF VOLUMESSTARTING YEAR
BAPTISMS51728
MARRIAGES41819
DEATHS41756
CONFIRMATION21874
ANAGRAPHS11850

LDS MICROFILMS for Romagnano

MICROFILM NO.ITEMSCONTENTS
425654719-25Baptisms 1728-1923; Marriages 1819-1923; Deaths 1756-1781.
14482721-3Deaths 1781-1823, 1854-1923.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

Again, for earlier records, I would assume they will be found in Piedicastello.

Note there is apparently a GAP in the death records 1824-1853.

PARISH of POVO

East of Trento city centre, the sprawling suburban comune of Povo, which includes many frazioni mentioned in the last article, is also an ancient parish whose name appears in records dating back to the year 1131. Often seen written as ‘Paho’ in older records, the parish church here is dedicated to Saints Peter and Andrea (Santi Pietro e Andrea).

INVENTORY of Parish Registers for Povo

REGISTERNO. OF VOLUMESSTARTING YEAR
BAPTISMS111612
MARRIAGES81629
DEATHS71723
CONFIRMATION31832
BAPTISMS ALL'ESTERO?1785-1913
MARRIAGES ALL'ESTERO?1862-1915
DEATHS ALL'ESTERO?1877-1916

LDS MICROFILMS for Povo

MICROFILM NO.ITEMSCONTENTS
1448273Aug-16Baptisms 1612-1869
1448298Jan-18Baptisms 1869-1923; Marriages 1629-1923; Deaths 1723-1923; Baptisms (all'estero) 1785-1913; Marriages (all'estero) 1862-1915; Deaths (all'estero) 1877-1916.

ADDITIONAL NOTES

Casetti does not mention the ‘all’estero’ registers (i.e. those that took place outside the province); I have gleaned the information from the LDS inventory, but I don’t know how many volumes these registers span.

Note that the baptisms abroad start very early, in the year 1785. I haven’t studied those registers, but I am sure they would make for some very interesting reading.

Sadly, Casetti tells us that the Povo registers are fraught with irregularities, with many gaps and duplicates. Apparently, many of the marriage were copied over from earlier registers.

NEWER PARISHES IN THE CITY OF TRENTO

Additionally, there are many newer parishes in Trento, all established in the 20th century. I mention them here only for the sake of thoroughness, but they are less likely to be relevant to the genealogical research of most readers:

  • Trento: San Giuseppe – founded in 1943.
  • Trento: Cristo Re –founded in 1953.
  • Trento: S. Antonio da Padova – in Bolghera, founded in 1955.
  • Trento: Sacratissimo Cuore di Gesù – in San Bartolomeo, founded in 1957.
  • Trento: Santi Martiri Anauniesi Sisinio, Martirio e Alessandro (The Holy Martyrs Sisinio, Martirio e Alessandro of Val di Non) in Solteri, founded in 1955.
  • Trento: Sposalizio di Maria Vergine – founded in 1960.

About the PARISH of MEANO

Although part of the civil municipality of the city of Trento since 1926, the PARISH of Meano has never been part of the decanato of Trento. Rather, it has part of the decanato of LAVIS since 1901, and before that date it was part of the decanato of CIVEZZANO. Thus, I will discuss Meano in a later article when I look at the deanery of Civezzano.

CLOSING THOUGHTS AND COMING UP NEXT TIME…

I hope those of you who have ancestors who came from within the municipality of the city of Trento found this article useful to your research.

I much confess, of ALL the parishes in the province I have researched, those within the city of Trento are probably the LEAST familiar to me. This is because the majority of my clients are descended from families from the rural valleys, not the city. For that reason, I not been able to offer much in the way of personal commentary in this particular article.

I hope to change next time, when we shift directions and move our eyes northwards, when we begin our exploration of…

VAL DI NON!

A significant percentage of my clients came from Val di Non families, so I have had the opportunity to work with many of its parishes. Thus, I hope to go a bit deeper into the subject, sharing what I have learned from using those records.

Over the next few articles, we will explore:

  • The physical layout of the comuni in Val di Non
  • The frazioni within each comune
  • The deaneries, parishes and curates in the valley
  • The inventory of the parish registers in these parishes
  • Some of the most common surnames appearing in the various parishes.

I hope you are as excited as I am to get going on this rather substantial ‘stop’ on our tour of the province.

To be sure to receive the next article in this series ‘Trentino Valleys, Parishes and People: A Guide for Genealogists’ – and ALL future articles from Trentino Genealogy –  just subscribe to this blog using the form below.

Until next time!

Lynn Serafinn, genealogist at Trentino Genealogy

Warm wishes,
Lynn Serafinn
11 July 2020

P.S. As you probably know, my spring trip to Trento was cancelled due to COVID-19 lockdowns. I am also not sure when I will be back in Trento (hopefully by October 2020, but who knows?). 

However, I do have  resources to do a fair bit of research for many clients from home, and I now have some openings for a few new client projects starting around the end of August  2020.

If you would like to book a time to discuss having me do research for you, I invite you to read my ‘Genealogy Services’ page, and then drop me a line using the Contact form on this site. Then, we can set up a free 30-minute chat to discuss your project.

Join our Trentino Genealogy Group on Facebook: http://facebook.com/groups/TrentinoGenealogy

Lynn on Twitter: http://twitter.com/LynnSerafinn

View my Santa Croce del Bleggio Family Tree on Ancestry:
https://trentinogenealogy.com/my-tree/

REFERENCES

CASETTI, Albino. 1961. Guida Storico – Archivistica del Trento.

FAMILY SEARCH.  List of all Trento parishes available  on microfilm via LDS Family History Centres:  https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/results?count=20&query=%2Bauthor_id%3A858191

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