Calogero Sabella's Ancestors

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Translations provided by members of the GenAG - Genealogie Agrigentine and the Italian Genealogical Records Facebook groups.

Note that the Latin months September thru December are often written in numbers, 7ber, 8ber, 9ber and 10ber, respectively.

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Sebastiano Sabella was baptized on January 8, 1576, at the mother church in Sciacca, Agrigento, Sicilia, Italy, with the middle name of Calogero. He is one of two known children of Angela Benfari and her husband Democrito Magnifico Sabella, but he also had five older half sisters. His baptism record is clearly written, but with several misspellings, which makes reading his entire given name difficult. (Mouse over and click on his Latin baptism record image right to enlarge it in a new window or tab.)   

In Sciacca in about 1594, Sebastiano married first a woman named Leonarda, surname unknown. They had at least eleven children all baptized at the St. Michele church in Sciacca on the dates shown — Filippa Dorothea on October 4, 1595; Antonino Francesco on October 21, 1596; Vincenzo Antonino on October 15, 1598; Angelica Calogera on January 8, 1600; Angelica Virginea on December 3, 1602; Michael Vito on February 28, 1604; Angela Domenica on August 3, 1605; Maria Juilia on January 8, 1608;  Giovanni, just 11 months later on November 5, 1608; Michele on March 17, 1610, who died at 6 months old on October 4, 1610; and another Michele on September 11, 1611, who married Antonella Mancuso at the St. Vito church in Sciacca on October 29, 1628. Sebastiano’s wife Leonarda died on December 27, 1618, and was buried at the St. Michele church. Less than 2 months later Sebastiano remarried.

On February 11, 1619, at St. Michele’s church in Sciacca, he married Caterina Catena, the daughter of Pietro Catena and his wife Giovanna, whose surname is unknown. (Mouse over and click on their church marriage record image left to enlarge it in a new window or tab.) Sebastiano and Caterina had at least five more children, all baptized at the St. Michele church in Sciacca on the dates shown — Thomas Joseph on December 22, 1619; Vito Gaspare on June 3, 1626; ancestor Calogero; Pietro Joannes on June 25, 1629, who was probably named after his mother’s father; and Michele, who was baptized as Michael Isadori Petrius on September 29, 1634.

All that is known about Caterina’s parents is that her father and mother were deceased on the day she was married. It is not known when Sebastiano and Caterina died. Unfortunately, nothing else is known about Sebastiano, Caterina and her parents Pietro and Giovanni.

Democrito Sabella was baptized in Sciacca, Agrigento, Sicilia, Italy, in May of 1537, the son of Valentiana Ferraro and her husband Antonino Sabella. The actual baptism date is unknown as the only record is an index of it. His given name is spelled several different ways, as on the Latin baptism index (pictured left) it is spelled Demortra. Some of the records spell his surname differently, as in his first marriage, which is recorded as “Democrito Isabella, son of Antonio, and Valentiana Isabella Ferrario,” married first Nunzia Perollo on August 17, 1559, in Sciacca. They had at least five daughters and one son together, all born and baptized at the mother church in Sciacca. These baptism records are very hard to read, so their names are uncertain. They are as follows — Marcella Andriana on March 4, 1560; Angelica Andreina on December 9, 1562; Maria Petra on October 21, 1565; Marietta Lucrezia on December 12, 1568; Marta on February 26, 1572; and within a year later, Antoni Alferi, who was born sometime between November of 1572 and late January of 1573, but wasn’t baptized until October 9, 1573, after his father remarried. He was the first son, so he was named after his paternal grandfather. On his baptism record and his 1592 marriage to Brigida Saluto document, Nunzia is listed as his mother. Nunzia probably died giving birth to him, but death records for this time period are not available for research. Democrito was left with six children, the eldest being 13 years old, and with the chaos of losing a wife and finding someone to take care of his children, he probably forgot to get his son baptized. Within a short period of time, on February 3, 1573, Democrito entered into a notarial contract to marry Angela Benfari. (Mouse over and click on the first page of their marriage contract image left to enlarge it in a new window or tab.) She was probably also from Sciacca, the daughter of  Nicolò Benfari and his wife Giulia Cutrona. Democrito and Angela married at the mother church in Sciacca on March 1, 1573. (Mouse over and click on their Latin church marriage/engagement record image right to enlarge it in a new window or tab.) A short statement that looks like an engagement record is only one line, but there is a 10 page dowry document that is extremely hard to read, where his surname is spelled Ysabella. Being 10 pages long may indicate that both families were somewhat wealthy.

Besides ancestor Sebastiano, Democrito and Angela had at least three other children born in Sciacca. The first two were baptized at the mother church there and the last one at St. Vito’s, as follows — Tommaso Vincenzo, who was baptized as Masi Vinco Mazio on September 5, 1579; daughter Filippa Giacoma who was baptized as Pha Jaca, on December 7, 1581, but listed on the index as Pha Jacoba; and Antonino Thomas on June 7, 1588. They may have had other children, but these are the only ones with baptism records found so far. Angela probably was the only mother known to Nunzia’s last three children.

Democrito was called a Magnifico, like his father. This title translates to magnificent. They “were called the jurors of the time who were the administrators of the city (mayor, councilors of today). Today the title in Italy is held by the dean or rector of universities.”  

It is not known when Democrito and Angela died, but they both were alive when their last child was born in 1588 and deceased by the time their son Antoni was married on January 27, 1592. So they both died sometime within that four year span, but death records are not available to confirm this. Unfortunately, nothing else is known about Democrito and Angela.

Antonino Sabella was probably born in Sciacca, Agrigento, Sicilia, Italy, the son of Margarita Chiravulu and her husband Giuliano Sabella. Like his son, he was called Magnifico, an administrator of the city. Antonino married Valentiana Ferraro on December 2, 1533, in Sciacca. (Mouse over and click on their marriage index image right to enlarge it in a new window or tab.) Their full marriage document no longer exists. This marriage date is taken from a “manuscript containing the indices of the dowries and testaments of the notaries of Sciacca.” Valentiana is the only known daughter of three children born to Andriana Medico and her husband Geronimo Ferraro.

Five mother church baptism records have been found that are most likely the children of  Antonino and Valentiana. There are no detail register records before September of 1543, so the first four are index records only. These index records only list the father’s name and month and year of the baptism. The fifth child has an incomplete detail record with an incorrect surname on the index record. The given names of these children all seem to be in line with ancestor Democrito’s name. They are as follows — Marta Antonia Agrippa in August of 1535; ancestor Democrito; Pamfilia Margarita, was given the middle name of her paternal grandmother in December of 1542; Giulia Caterina, who was named the female version of her paternal grandfather’s name in January of 1543; and Gioanella Angeletta on April 14, 1544. Unfortunately, nothing else is known about Antonino and Valentiana.

Nicolò Benfari was the son of Antonio Benfari, but it is not known when and where he was born or raised. What is known is that he lived at least part of his adult life in Sciacca, Agrigento, Sicilia, Italy, and raised a family there. On February 12, 1529, Nicolò entered into a notarial marriage contract in Sciacca to marry Giulia Cutrona. (Mouse over and click on their marriage contract image right to enlarge it in a new window or tab.) She was the daughter of Aleonora Benfari and her husband Baldassare Cutrona. Unfortunately, church marriage documents are not available for research for this time period, but they probably married soon after the contract was completed.

Seven Sciacca mother church baptism records have been found for the children of Cola Benfari. The full register records begin in September of 1543, but the index begins in 1528. The available register baptism records for these children are extremely hard to read. Although the indices are clearer, they only list the month and year of the baptism. They all state the father’s name as Cola, which is what he is called on ancestor Angela’s marriage document. The mother’s name is not mentioned in either the indices or the register records. The baptism info for these seven children is as follows —Mirolea in September of 1530; Margarita in March of 1539; Antonino Joseph Giuseppe in March of 1542; Nicolia in February of 1544; Vita Carmilla in August of 1545; Spuria Benvenuta Novella in August of 1546; and Sebastiano Antonio on January 12, 1548. A baptism record for Angela’s name has not been found. It is possible that she is one of the daughters mentioned above, but using the name Angela.

Nothing is known about Nicolò’s father, only his name Antonio, is mentioned in Nicolò’s marriage contract. It is also not known when Nicolò and Giulia died, but he was deceased and she was still alive when their daughter ancestor Angela was married on March 3, 1573. For now nothing else is known about them.

Giuliano Sabella and Margarita Chiravulu’s ancestries are unknown, but they lived in Sciacca, Agrigento, Sicilia, Italy. It is estimated that Giuliano was born around 1480. What we know of them comes from their marriage, which is documented in the book, Andrea Randazzo un notaio storico Volume Primo. The author Pellegrino Mortillaro, organized the data, including marriages, from the beginning of the 15^th century to the 1700’s that was compiled by the notary Andrea Randazzo, who lived in Sciacca between 1726 and 1756. Mortillaro translated the Latin records into Italian, preserving the data and making it easier to research. It doesn’t give details of the events, just the basic information, but it is a wonderful tool for researchers.

Giuliano and Margarita were married on October 12, 1509, in Sciacca. (Mouse over and click on their marriage contract listing image left to enlarge it in a new window or tab.) The pictured image is from a dowry deed written by notary Vincenzo Perniciaro, and “is taken from a manuscript containing the indices of the dowries and testaments of the notaries of Sciacca from about 1434 to 1680.” It should be noted that in both documents Giuliano’s surname is spelled Isabella. Their only known child was ancestor Antonino. Unfortunately, nothing else is known about them, so our Sabella line ends with them.

Geronimo Ferraro is the only known son of Caterina and Baldassare Ferraro. Although his given name was said to be as Girolamo, it is recorded as Geronimo in several places in both volumes of Pellegrino Mortillaro’s book, Andrea Randazzo un notaio storico. There are no records that call him Girolamo. It turns out that Geronimo is the Italian form of the Latin name Hieronymus, meaning holy name, which is of Greek origin. Gerolamo is the Italian form of the Latin name Hieronymus, meaning holy name and Girolamo is a variant spelling of the Italian name Gerolamo, again meaning holy name. So today he would be called Girolamo.

On April 13, 1505, in Sciacca, Agrigento, Sicilia, Italy, Geronimo married Andriana Medico, daughter of Antonella Siragusis and her husband Baldassare Medico. (Mouse over and click on their marriage contract listing image right to enlarge it in a new window or tab.) Geronimo and Andriana had at least three children together, but their birth dates are unknown. They are listed here in the order that they married in Sciacca— Baldassare, named after his grandfathers who was probably the eldest, was married to Laurea Xarrino on February 9, 1521, and after she died married Margarita Graffeo on April 24, 1544; son Giacomo was married to Carmixina Anselmo on September 4, 1549; and lastly ancestor Valentiana. It is almost certain that they had other children, but no documentation has been found for them yet.

Volume 1 of Mortillaro’s book, states that on November 26, 1511, an “agreement between Geronimo Ferraro, and Antonino Medico” was made. This is six years after he married into the Medico family, so this is probably our ancestor. Antonino may be his wife’s brother. Four years later on October 7, 1515, there is an entry which roughly translates to “Return of the dowries from Geronimo to Andreana Ferrario.” Also of interest is a statement for the sale of the Territ. by Carbollaci, where a Gio. Filippo Ferraro is made one of the heirs of Geronimo Ferraro. There are also two inventory entries for the name of Geronimo Ferraro, one dated July 31, 1534, and the other November 27, 1592. It is unknown if these last three statements are for our ancestor or even if they are for the same person. Unfortunately, this is all that’s known about Geronimo, and his wife Andriana.

Baldassare Cutrona was the son of Giovanni Cutrona and his unnamed wife. It is assumed he was born and raised in Sciacca, Agrigento, Sicilia, Italy. On March 19, 1511, notary Marco Perniciaro issued a dowry contract for Baldassare to marry Aleonora Benfari. (Mouse over and click on their marriage contract listing image right to enlarge it in a new window or tab.) She was also probably from Sciacca, the daughter of Pietro Benfari and his unnamed wife. They probably married soon after this contract was completed, but church records do not exist for this time period. Their only known child was ancestor Giulia.

Little is known about Baldassare and Aleonora, but their fathers were both Sciacca notaries. Giovanni served as a notary in Sciacca from 1489 to 1534 and Pietro served in 1482, 1483 and again from 1492 to 1497. Being that Giovanni served for 43 years, it is likely he died soon after he retired. It is not known when Baldassare and Aleonora died, but there is a marriage contract dated May 4, 1525, for an Aleonora Benfari and Pietro Falco that was issued by notary Giovanni Cutrona. Being that 14 years past since Aleonora married Baldassare, it could be that he died and she remarried or it could be just a coincidence! Unfortunately, nothing else is known about them.

Caterina and Baldassare Ferraro’s ancestries are unknown, but they lived in Sciacca, Agrigento, Sicilia, Italy. What we know of them comes from both volumes of Pellegrino Mortillaro’s book, Andrea Randazzo un notaio storico. Caterina’s surname is not given in any of the records. There is a statement dated January 15, 1494, in volume 2 of Mortillaro’s book that translates to “Testament of the magn. Caterina Ferraro wife of Baldassare Ferraro in said Notary.”  (Mouse over and click on their marriage contract statement image right to enlarge it in a new window or tab.) The abbreviation magn. stands for Magnifico, which means that he was an official of Sciacca. At that time the wives took the same title as their husbands, so Baldassare was some sort of administrator of the city. Giving a testamento meant, that she wrote her will and had it notarized.

Caterina and Baldassare had at least two children who both married in Sciacca — ancestor Geronimo; and his sister Nicolosa, who entered into a marriage contract with Antonio Panormo on January 3, 1497, which is documented in volume 1 of Pellegrino Mortillaro’s book. Caterina and Baldassare probably had other children, but no records of them have been found.

It is not known when Caterina and Baldassare died, but the fact that Caterina was alive when she wrote her will and she is listed as the wife, not the widow of Baldassare, they both died sometime after January 15, 1494. This is all we know about them, so our Ferraro line ends with them.

Baldassare Medico and Antonella Siragusis’ ancestries are unknown. What we know of them comes from the first volume of Pellegrino Mortillaro’s book, Andrea Randazzo un notaio storico. Baldassare and Antonella lived in Sciacca, Agrigento, Sicilia, Italy, and they are the documented parents of ancestor Andriana and two other children. Their children’s birthdates are not known, but they both entered into Sciacca notarial marriage contracts as follows — daughter Autilla married twice, the first contract was to marry Giovanni Antonio Panormo on March 21, 1501, and after he died she was contracted to marry Raimundo Peralta on January 5, 1507; ancestor Andriana was contracted to marry next; and lastly, son Filippo was contracted to marry Giulia Maringo on November 20, 1506. Baldassare and Antonella probably had other children, but no documentation has been found for them. This is all we know about them, so our Medico line ends with them.