:: CASAMAZZAGNO ::
"Fraction" of the comune
Of Comelico Superiore
BELLUNO
ITALY
:: Dolomites ::
:: Dolomites ::| Casamazzagno
3965 ft :: Population Approx: 2500. Snow covered 8 months of
the year. It is approximately 30 kilometers south of the Austrian
border and one of several villages which make up the area known
as Comelico Superiore. There is a ski lift in the valley and
in winter Comelico is crowded with locals and tourists skiing
.The Comune is very wealthy. It owns and manages over 1000 Acres of natural pine forests extenting west from the town. Some families own small blocks of forest in their own right: ( My Zio Nino Tavan was one ). It controls the felling of tinber on the principles of selective logging and sustainable forestry. The comune provides free to all registered born, the necessary lumber for building a family home, and distributes free precut fire wood to all families for the winter. In 1851 there was a major fire through the village and many homes were destroyed. In 1855 at a meeting of the Comune and families who lost their homes the Comune set in motion a plan to build 30 houses for the 43 families affected my the fire. One of the families that lost their home were two of my Great Grand uncles Giacomo Antonio Zanderigo.Iona b. 1 1 1809 and Giovanni Antonio Zanderigo.Iona b. 2 2 1814 During high summer the comune provides a generous subsidy to the Anziani/elderly to chaperon and bus them down to a Rimini beach resort for a week including accommodation and meals. It also provides trained nursing staff to visit those elderly who are unable to care for them selves, and in rare cases of need, arranges free hot midday meals. Beautiful clear clean fresh water flows freely down several small mountain streams thru the village, and thru spring and summer the fields are alive with wild flowers. In season with luck one can return from a days walk in the mountains with a basket of fungi, which must be presented before a specially trained official who selects and pass those mushrooms which are edible and safe to eat and to destroy those that are deamed poisonous. Gathering funghi is a popular and favorite pastime of tourists in the summer. One of the main occupation for the inhabitants in the region is in the industry engaged in the manufacturing of Eye Glass Frames, a multi million dollar industry. There are at least 40 major factories and many smaller, employing several thousand in the area from Casamazzagnoin the north, to Pieve di Cadore in the south.It is indead a paradise: I am registered born in Casamazzagno, and yes I have considered retiring there - but ??? |
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( Marks of the houses in Casamazzagno. )  These "Segni" or codes (marks) carved into the beam and or the entrance to the house identifying the original owner or head of the family. These marks were registered with the Comune. The family mark was passed on to the first born son. To the second son when married was given the mark to which was added a small variable and so on to each succeeding son. The marks were also added to all their tools. For instance the wood shoe last in the picture. This valuable information was kindly sent to me by Stefano Zannantonio_Martin. Born in Casamazzagno (See # 45 at bottome of list) |
:: A Dying Village :: 
| The Village of
Andreis recently celebrated the "Festival of the Millenium
996-1996". Its origins began around 450 AD as a Roman town
called Caellina, the derivation of which gave its name to the
river Cellina that is an integral part of the environs of Andreis.
Around 500 AD, a unique group of Celtic herdsmen, escaping the
consequences of the fall of the Roman Empire, took refuge in
the valley and the settlement then became known as Andrea, and
later derivated to Andreis. Certainlyi in antique times there
existed many tribes in the valley. As for Andreis it is noted
from Statistical data from the archives of Demographic Evolution,
that in 1652 with the comming of the first Parroco ( Parish Priest
) it was recorded that there were "50 Fuochi" ( Fires
- Refering to fireplaces and therefore houses) and this translated
into a population of approximately 300 inhabitants. In 1864,
in th mountains of Andreis, a stronghold of Garibaldini soldiers
engaged in and repelled an attack from an Austrian battalion,
the resulting rout brought some fame to the Valley and it was
about this time that the Austrian dominance of the north began
to wane. The Population peaked in 1911 at 1795,and from there
it began to decline until the present time 1998, the population
is only 450. The village is slowly dying . Mostly occupied by
retirees, many who had earlier left to find work in the big cities
and now returned to retire in peace and tranquility on the pension.
As in Casamazzagno it is snowed in for half the year being only
about 100 kilometers south of the Dolomites. Here also fresh
clean mountain water flows close by the town, sourced from the snow permanentlly bound in the mountains behind the village. The valley at one time cleared for grazing, is now fully forested again and continues to provide the necessary winter fuel. Sebastiano Tavan, one of my ancestors was elected Mayor in 1765, another Mayor, was Simon Tavan in 1766-67 and 1780-1782, and another Gio Batta Tavan 1771. A new hydroelectric dam is currently under construction just out of town on the Cellina river and provides work for a few Andreisians, sadly when completed it will see more forced to seek work elsewhere, and thus a further decline in the Population |
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