Sementina Parish, Ticino, Switzerland Genealogy

Description: Guide to Sementina 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, Sementina has an area of 8.02 square kilometers (3.10 sq mi). The municipality is situated in the Bellinzona district, at the entrance to the Valle Morobbia. It includes the village of Pianezzo and the hamlets of Paudo.

The land use is divided up as follows:
 * 5.6% - agricultural purposes
 * 89.7% - forested
 * 4.0% - settled (buildings or roads)
 * 1.0% - rivers or lakes
 * 2.1% - unproductive land

History
The first mention of Sementina was in 1382 as Planezio.

The municipalities of Giubiasco and Pianezzo are considering a merger where Pianezzo will be absorbed into Giubiasco, sometime in the future.

On 2 April 2017, these former neighboring municipalities merged into Bellinzona:
 * Camorino
 * Claro
 * Giubiasco
 * Gnosca
 * Gorduno
 * Gudo
 * Moleno
 * Monte Carasso
 * Pianezzo
 * Preonzo
 * Sant'Antonio
 * Sementina

The population history of Sementina is: 1671 - 202 inhabitants 1769 - 197 inhabitants 1850 - 328 inhabitants 1900 - 342 inhabitants 1950 - 278 inhabitants 1990 - 76 inhabitants 2000 - 489 inhabitants

In the 15th Century, the Church of S. Pietro in Bellinzona owned vineyards and farmsteads in Pianezzo. In the Middle Ages, portions of the village formed part of the settlement of Vallemorobbia. In 1803, this settlement became the political municipality of Vallemorobbia. In 1831, it became independent after the old municipality was separated into three new municipalities; Pianezzo, Sant'Antonio and Vallemorobbia in Piano. Until 1600, the village church was under the Mother Church in Bellinzona and then followed by the Church of SS Giacomo e Filippo. In the 16th Century, a new church was constructed on the ruins of an earlier church and then it was renovated in 1960–1970 and 2002–2003. In 1680, Pianezzo became an separate parish. Some of the tower houses in the village still have the typical construction of rural houses in the Valle Morobbia.

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

The 1808 Ticino census for Sementina can be accessed here.

Surnames
The following surnames held citizenship in Sementina 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)