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Ferari Family History

The origins of the Ferari family of Coglio, Ticino canton, Switzerland, are still coming to light, but so far through parish records of the neighboring town of Giumaglio, where two daughters married and raised families.

Signorelli found in Prato (Prato-Sornico, 20 kilometers upriver from Giumaglio) that some family names reflected German naming conventions, including Ferrari (from the Italian ferraio, which means blacksmith), which he likened to Schmid (smith), and Sartori (from the Italian sarto, which means "tailor"), which he likened to Schneider (tailor).^{[Signorelli 186]} Records from the 1720s through 1740s give spellings of "Fere", "Ferere", and "Ferari." I have yet to see the modern spelling of "Ferrari," and likely won't.

Giovanni Giacomo FERARI¹ (-<1720)

1. Giovanni Giacomo Ferari¹ was likely born in Coglio, Ticino, Switzerland. He so far is only known through parish records of the neighboring town of Giumaglio, where two of his daughters married and raised families:

11.	Domenica Ferari	(1700-1701)	--	--
1X.	Maria Maddalena Ferari	--	--	--
13.	Maria Elisabetta Ferari2	(1707-1708)	--	--

Giovanni Giacomo Ferari died sometime before the birth of grandson Giovanni Francesco Pozzi in 1720.^{[Bap 1720]}

Domenica (FERARI) POZZI (~1701)

11. Domenica Ferari was likely born in Coglio, Ticino, Switzerland, in 1700 or 1701. She married Giovanni Antonio Pozzi of the neighboring town of Giumaglio and had as many as ten children there, including a pair of fraternal twins:^{[Cen 1741]}

11A.	Giovanni Francesco Pozzi	12 Nov 1720	(> 1769)	(> 48)
11B.	Maria Maddalena Pozzi	31 Dec 1721	(1751-1760)	(30s)
11C.	Giovanni Giacomo Pozzi	15 Jun 1723	(> 1769)	(> 45)
11D.	Maria Domenica Pozzi	15 Jun 1723	(11 Sep 1774)	(51)
11E.	Anna Maria Pozzi	6 Dec 1724	9 Feb 1765	(40)
11F.	Maria Teresa Pozzi	(17) Oct 1727	7 Nov 1747	(20)
11G.	Giuseppe Pozzi	8 Dec 1729	(Infancy)	(Infancy)
11H.	Giuseppe Antonio Pozzi	16 Aug 1733	(> 1769)	(> 35)
11I.	Apollonia Pozzi	20 Apr 1736	18 Dec 1765	(29)
11J.	Giovanni Antonio Pozzi (Jr.)	3 Jun 1740	(< 1748)	(< 8)

Antonio had previously been married to Giovanna Piezzi. Giovanna likely died after giving birth to son Giacomo in 1718. Antonio's apparent younger brother, Giovanni Pozzi (identifed as the son of Giovanni Giacomo Pozzi), was named as their son's godfather.^{[Bap 1718]}

Antonio, the son of Giovanni Giacomo Pozzi, was about 10 years older than Domenica. The Pozzi family was first enumerated together in the Giumaglio parish census of 1741. It counted nine children (less the first Giuseppe). Also living with the family was Antonio's younger sister Maria Antonia Pozzi.^{[Cen 1741]}

Domenica and Antonio chose the following godparents for their children:

1. Francesco: Giovanni Francesco Pozzi of Coglio and Maria Maddalena Ferari, Domenica's sister^{[Bap 1720]};
2. Maddalena: Giacomo Tomaso Pozzi and Mrs. Domenica Molinari^{[Bap 1721B]};
3. Giacomo: Giovanni [illegible] "Ferre" Pozzi and Mrs. Catterina (Cerini) Pedrotti^{[Bap 1723]};
4. Domenica: Giovanni Francesco Adami and Maria Pozzi^{[Bap 1723]};
5. Anna Maria: Carlo Marchese and Elisabetta Ferari², Domenica's younger sister^{[Bap 1724]};
6. Teresa: Giacomo Piezzi and Mrs. Domenica (Tomasini) Pozzi of Coglio^{[Bap 1727]};
7. Giuseppe: Giacomo Pietro Pozzi and Mrs. Catterina (Marchese) Sartori^{[Bap 1729]};
8. Giuseppe Antonio: Giovanni Sartori and Mrs. Maria Catterina Pedrotti^{[Bap 1733]};
9. Apollonia: Giacomina Cerini and Giovanni Pozzi^{[Bap 1736]}; and
10. Antonio: Giovanni Mazzini and Maria Catterina Pozzi.^{[Bap 1740]}

Domenica was named as the godmother to Maria Sartori, possibly her niece, in Giumaglio.^{[Bap 1732]} Antonio was named as godfather to Giacomo Antonio Delnotaro (Jr.) of Coglio^{[Bap 1721A]} and Pietro Stolfi^{[Bap 1722]} of Giumaglio.

Giovanni Antonio Pozzi died on September 4, 1747, at his home in Giumaglio following an unspecified accident. He was buried the following day in the cemetery of the Church of Santa Maria Assunta.^{[Dth 1747A]} Antonio was 56 years old.

Daughter Teresa died about November 7, 1747, just two months after her father. She was only 20 years old and was buried the following day in the cemetery of the Church of Santa Maria Assunta.^{[Dth 1747B]}

Domenica (Ferari) Pozzi also died sometime before 1748.^{[Cen 1748]} She was likely in her late 40s.

After Domenica's and Antonio's deaths, their three youngest surviving children, Giacomo, Giuseppe Antonio, and Apollonia (ages 12 to 25) lived with eldest son Francesco and his wife. Elder daughters Maddalena and Anna Maria, and perhaps Domenica, all had married and started their own families by 1748.^{[Cen 1748]}

Maria Maddalena FERARI

1X. Maria Maddalena Ferari was probably born in Coglio, Ticino, Switzerland. She was named as the godmother to nephew Giovanni Francesco Pozzi in 1720.^{[Bap 1720]}

Maria Elisabetta (FERARI) CERINI² (~1708-1744)

13. Maria Elisabetta Ferari² was born about 1707 or 1708, probably in Coglio, Ticino, Switzerland. Elisabetta was first married to Antonio Sartori in 1731 at the Church of Santa Maria Assunta in the neighboring town of Giumaglio.^{[Mar 1731]} They had one daughter together the following year and Antonio died another year later. and Elisabetta remarried to Giovanni Antonio Cerini (IV)⁴ from Giumaglio on September 19, 1736, at the Church of Santa Maria Assunta.^{[Mar 1736]} She was about five years his senior.^{[Cen 1741]} They had at least four children before Elisabetta's early death in 1744:

131.	Maria Sartori	19 May 1732	--	--
132.	Antonio Cerini	(29) Jan 1737	(Infancy)	(Infancy)
133.	Antonio Cerini (V)5	12 Mar 1738	(1802-1805)	(64-67)
134.	Maria Cerini	1 Feb 1740	7 Jan 1780	(39)
135.	Giovanna Maria Cerini	3 Mar 1744	(< 1748)	(< 4)

Elisabetta and Antonio Sartori were married in 1731 at the Church of Santa Maria Assunta in Giumaglio, but no day or month were recorded. They were, however, found to have been related to the fourth degree of consanguinity (i.e., third cousins) and obtained dispensation from the Nuncio Apostolic in Lucerne.^{[Mar 1731]}

Elisabetta and Antonio chose Giovanni Bartolomeo Marchese and Mrs. Domenica (Ferari) Pozzi, Elisabetta's elder sister, as godparents for daughter Maria.^{[Bap 1732]}

Antonio Sartori, died on November 27, 1733. He was recorded to be "about 60 years" old and was buried in the cemetery of the Church of Santa Maria Assunta.^{[Dth 1733]} This Antonio would have been about 35 years older than Elisabetta.

Elisabetta remarried to Antonio Cerini on September 19, 1736, at the Church of Santa Maria Assunta, and obtained dispensation to forgo the traditional three marriage declarations beforehand, apparently because Elisabetta was already pregnant with their first son, who arrived four months later. Recorded witnesses to their marriage were Giovanni Antonio and Domenica Pozzi, Elisabetta's brother-in-law and sister.^{[Mar 1736]}

Antonio, Elisabetta, and their two young children lived with Antonio's parents and two younger sisters in 1741.^{[Cen 1741]} Youngest daughter Giovanna came later, but apparently died young and was not counted in the parish census of 1748.^{[Cen 1748]}

Elisabetta and Antonio chose the following godparents for their children:

1. Antonio (elder): Giovanni Pietro Cerini and Giovanna Maria Gasparini (Pozzi)
2. Antonio⁴ (younger): Francesco Pozzi, Elisabetta's nephew, and Giacomina Pozzi (Pedrotti)^{[Bap 1738]};
3. Maria: Giovanni Bartolomeo Marchese and Giovanna Maria Cerini (Piezzi), apparently her aunt^{[Bap 1740]}; and
4. Giovanna: Domenico Piezzi (husband of paternal aunt Giovanna (Cerini) Piezzi) and Domenica Pozzi (sister of Francesco).^{[Bap 1744]}

Elisabetta was named as the godmother to niece Anna Maria Pozzi.^{[Bap 1724]} Antonio was named as godfather to Pietro Pedrotti, the son of Giacomina (Pozzi) Pedrotti who later became godmother to Antonio's son Antonio⁴.^{[Bap 1736]}

Maria Elisabetta Cerini died at the family home in Giumaglio on May 11, 1744, just two months after the birth of daughter Giovanna. She was buried the following day at the cemetery of the Church of Santa Maria Assunta.^{[Dth 1744A]} Elisabetta was in her late 30s.

After Elisabetta's death, Antonio remarried to Giacomina (Tognini) Marchese, the widow of Carlo Marchese.

Giovanni Antonio Cerini died on July 22, 1758, at his home in Giumaglio. He had apparently survived an unspecified malady that took the lives of six parishioners between February and April, but three months later died at the age of 45. He apparently had taken severly ill and all the last rites were administered on the 19th. He was buried two days after his death at the cemetery of the Church of Santa Maria Assunta.^{[Dth 1758]}