Ramifications. Family trees and archives from the collections of the Civic Library of Rovereto, curated by the library’s archivists.

Branchings. Family trees and family archives from the collections of the Rovereto City Library, maintained by the library’s archivists.

The Library constantly pays attention to the archival heritage, implementing multi-year intervention plans for its conservation, inventory, and enhancement. Among the documents preserved in the historical archive, one can appreciate numerous family trees, some decorated and hand-colored, as well as rich family archives. Particular mention should be made of the genealogies developed by Quintilio Perini (1865-1942), a pharmacist, well-known bibliophile, and coin and medal collector, who conducted much of his research in the fields of numismatics and genealogy, publishing numerous works that earned him associations with international cultural institutions. Some of the most important noble families of the Trentino-Tyrolean area, the Moll and Lodron families, have entrusted their archives to the Library. As part of the Moll archive, the collections of the Ceschi di Santa Croce, Fedrigazzi, and Gonzales de Rivera families are also preserved, which held jurisdiction over Nomi before the Moll family. As part of the archive of the Municipality of Lizzana, a small collection of the Frizzi family of Rovereto is preserved. The latest and significant acquisition (2013): the archive of the Bossi Fedrigotti family. The family trees from the collections of the Civic Library of Rovereto are exhibited in a display curated by the library’s archivists.
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GLI ALBERI

BOSSI FEDRIGOTTI
The Bossi Fedrigotti family, probably originally from Lombardy, settled in Sacco in the first half of the 15th century. The first historically certain ancestor is Nicolao del Buoso, who died in 1434. The noble title was confirmed in 1592 by Ferdinand of Tyrol to Giovanni Bossi Fedrigotti.
Starting from Nicolao de Buoso, the history of the Bossi Fedrigotti family is closely intertwined with that of Borgo Sacco, Rovereto, and Vallagarina. Initially, the family participated in the Expedition Company, which managed commercial traffic on the Adige River from Bronzolo to Sacco, using rafts; from 1750, they held the privilege to manage the postal traffic between Calliano and Torbole (called “Feudo Postale”), which lasted until the Great War. From the second half of the eighteenth century, the Bossi Fedrigotti family increasingly engaged in silkworm breeding and viticulture. Filippo (1838-1908), in addition to being a member and president of the Rovereto Academy of the Agiati, dedicated himself passionately to these activities. He was the creator and supporter of the Rovereto Agricultural Society and founder of the Agricultural School of Rovereto (1871-1877). He introduced modern and innovative solutions. It was his idea to use pruning shears for harvesting grapes, replacing the traditional sickle. Federico (1906-1996) subsequently made the family business known at a national level, being the first in Italy to introduce a “Bordelaise blend,” vinifying Cabernet and Merlot simultaneously, following the tradition of red wines from the French Bordeaux region. Additionally, Isabella Bossi Fedrigotti is a well-known journalist and writer, who in 1991 won the Campiello Prize with her novel “Di buona famiglia” (“From a Good Family”).

Escutcheon. Quartered shield: in 1, silver with a phoenix rising from its ashes; in 2, blue with a gold lyre; in 3, blue with a caduceus with silver wings and green serpents; in 4, a green tree above a grassy terrain, in front of the tree a natural-colored ox passing by; in the center, a small shield of green with a gold hunting horn tied with a chain.

BRUNATI (Brunatti di Brunenfeld)
The Brunatti family of Brunnenfeld is a historic noble house already active and well-established in the social and administrative fabric of Trentino (among Rovereto, Trento, and Tenno) long before the eighteenth century. The elevation of the Brunatti family to noble rank with the title “de Brunnenfeld” officially dates back to December 30, 1777. On that specific date (December 30, 1777), the Emperor of Austria, Joseph II, granted in Vienna the original nobility diploma with the predicate de Brunnenfeld to Girolamo Brunatti, son of Giacomo Brunatti.

TACCHI
The Tacchi family profoundly marked the economic, social, and architectural history of Rovereto between the 18th and 20th centuries. Originating from Zelbio (Como), the Tacchi moved to the city to manage the thriving silk trade, becoming one of the most influential and respected dynasties and dedicating themselves to construction.
The Tacchi architects, particularly Bernardo and Bernardino Tacchi, played a decisive role in building historic buildings such as Palazzo Rosmini “Al Frassem” between 1733 and 1737 and in designing Corso A. Bettini. They also took care of religious buildings like the Church of the Beata Vergine del Loreto, commissioned by the Confraternity of Saints Rocco and Sebastian in 1737, and the Convent and Church of the Order of the Visitation of St. Francis, erected between 1740-1741 and demolished in 1902.
On the Castel Dante hill stands the Tacchi Mausoleum (or de Tacchi), built by the family in 1862 and considered one of the most important examples of 19th-century architecture in Trentino.
In July 1854, Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria granted Giovanni Battista Tacchi the noble title with the predicate of Monte Maria, as a tribute to an ancient sanctuary owned by the family, which they restored and reopened for worship.

Coat of arms. Field of the shield: azure with a silver church façade placed on a grassy ground.

TARTAROTTI
The Tartarotti family, originating from Pomarolo, is a historic and affluent family from Rovereto, known especially for being the birthplace of the renowned scholar and pre-Enlightenment thinker Girolamo Tartarotti (1706–1761). Girolamo was an abbot, philosopher, historian, and literary figure. In 1764, the Municipality of Rovereto acquired his extensive book collection, creating one of Italy’s first public libraries—our municipal library.
The main branches of the family distinguished themselves in law, the city council, and the promotion of culture in the 18th century. Francesco Antonio Tartarotti, Girolamo’s father, was a famous jurist and member of the prestigious “Council of the Thirty-One,” an political and administrative body that governed Rovereto during the Ancien Régime.
Maria Teresa, with a diploma dated August 12, 1743, in Vienna, granted nobility of the Holy Roman Empire to Federico Tartarotti, marking a key step in the family’s social rise. A few years later, further confirming imperial favor, she elevated the rank of another prominent family member, Giovanni Battista Tartarotti, by appointing him “Knight of the Holy Roman Empire” with a new diploma dated January 22, 1754.
The family lived in various residences in the center of Rovereto; among these are the house at Piazza Podestà 13 (inhabited from 1715 to 1730 and today the offices of the municipality) and Casa Serbati alla Torre in Via della Terra 15.

Coat of arms. Quartered shield: in the 1st and 4th quarters, silver with a green pavilion bordered in gold; in the 2nd quarter, blue with an eight-pointed star above a radiant sun; in the 3rd quarter, red with a silver band on which a silver lamb is seated, holding a silver banner also in silver.

RIDLER
The Ridler family is one of the oldest and most influential families of the patriciate of Munich of Bavaria, a select group of great merchants and landowners, who held not only economic power but also political influence. The Ridler family became prominent in the 13th century, quickly establishing themselves in the local political scene and rightfully entering the “Inner Council,” the body that de facto governed the city. The earliest documents mentioning them date back to 1295. Their wealth mainly came from the textile trade with Flanders. They were recognized as a Bavarian noble family in 1628, when, together with the Ligsalz and Bart families, they obtained equality with the nobility.
Among the most important members of the family was Heinrich Ridler, who founded one of the most significant charitable institutions for women’s assistance in 1295.

Coat of arms. Field of the shield: red, with a silver diagonal band crossed by a black arrow arranged in a bend.

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