Paolina lived to the ripe old age of 95, and outlived her husband by almost 40 years.
She is one of my maternal great-grandmothers.
Paolina was born at 04:00 on Tuesday 23 March 1886 in St Julian’s, Malta1 2. She was the daughter of Salvatore Bonnici and Emilia Farrugia1 2. They christened her Paolina Giuseppa Maria Annunziata, but noted that she should be known as Paolina1.
Fr Joseph Scerri baptised her the following day at St Julian’s parish church3. Her maternal grandparents, Paul and Angelica, were her godparents3.
Salvatore registered the birth with the state authorities in Valletta on 8 April; it entered the state registry 2 days later1.
Family
On Tuesday 25 November 1913 she married Paul Darmenia from Valletta4 5. They were both living in Cospicua at the time of marriage5.
They both chose their own brothers as witnesses for the wedding. Paolo chose his 21-year-old brother Giuseppe, or Joseph, while Paolina chose her 22-year-old brother Giovanni, or John4 5.
Church records list her as Pauline4, i.e., the anglicised version of her name.
State records show they married in the chapel of Our Lady of Divine Mercy in Sliema5, but the church’s records say they married in the then newly-built parish church of Stella Maris4. The Reverend Amadeo Bonello conducted the ceremony4 5. This is unusual because this chapel was not meant to be in use in 1913.
I’ve written about the history of this chapel. Since Sliema had a parish church in 1913 the authorities meant to use the chapel for storage rather than religious activities. State records for Paolo’s wedding suggests this is not the case.
When I went to check the Church’s record of Paul’s marriage, the priest noted that Paul and Pauline’s marriage took place in ‘The parish of Stella Maris’. This is ambiguous since the statement suggests that the wedding took place in the parish church without explicitly saying so. He and I discussed this at length but he had no further information to shed on this matter, except to add that Fr Bonello filled in the register himself.
They registered the marriage on Tuesday 01 December, and it entered the state records immediately5.
Together they had the following children:
- Antonio (known as Antoine), born in 19156
- Annie, born in 1917.
- Victor
- John
- Mary
- Josephine, known as Josie, who emigrated to Sydney, Australia.
Notable events
By April 1915 the family moved to Sliema6. I know this was between November 1913 (when she married) and April 1915 (when her eldest was born). I don’t know whereabouts in Sliema they lived.
The family moved to Hamrun7, and then returned to St Julians soon after. I do not yet have information on when these moves took place.
Her husband lived in Balzan towards the end of his life, but there is no indication she also lived there with him at the time.
Death
Paolina lived a long life and outlived her husband by almost 40 years.
She died at 04:458 on Friday 26 June 19818 in St Luke’s Hospital, Pieta, Malta8. She was diagnosed with left ventricular failure and a viral infection8. Her family buried her at the Addolorata cemetery in Marsa, Malta8.
Lineage
She is one of my maternal great-grandmothers.
References
- Act of Birth of Paolina Bonnici. (1886). [online] (1728). Available at: https://www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 12 Jul. 2024][↩][↩][↩][↩]
- Certificate of Baptism for Pauline Bonnici. (1886). St Julian’s parish records, 1, p.160[↩][↩]
- Certificate of Baptism for Pauline Bonnici. (1886). St Julian’s parish records, 1, p.160[↩][↩]
- Extract from the Register of Marriages. (1913). II, p.320[↩][↩][↩][↩][↩]
- Act of Marriage. (1913). [online] (945). Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 10 Apr. 2018][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩]
- Birth certificate of Antonio Darmenia; 1915-04-22[↩][↩]
- Anon, (n.d.). Available at: https://en.geneanum.com/malta/databases/passports.html [Accessed 18 Jul. 2024][↩]
- Act of Death of Paolina Bonnici. (1981). [online] (1962). Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 12 Jul. 2024][↩][↩][↩][↩][↩]
