Vincenza married well and ended up being independently wealthy, but she died young at the age of 59.

She is one of my maternal 3 x great-grandmothers.

I estimate she was born between in 1834 because:

• She was 30 when her son was born in 1864¹.
• She was 59 when she died in 1894².

She was born in Valletta, Malta(Act of Birth of Salvatore Bonnici. (1864). Malta Government Public Registry. Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 20 Aug. 2024])), daughter of Salvatore Portelli³ and Elisabetta Bugeja⁴.

Family

On Tuesday 24 June 1856⁵, she married Girolamo Bonnici⁶ in the Oratory of the Blessed Sacrament, in the Basilica of Our Lady of Safe Haven, Valletta, Malta⁷. Fr Salvatore Pace officiated at the wedding⁸.

Together they had four boys I’m aware of⁹:

• Carmelo Paolo Maria Salvatore Vincenzo Antonio Emmanuele Giovanni
• Carmelo Lorenzo Giuseppe Maria Salvatore Antonio Vincenzo Paolo
• Paolo Carmelo Francesco Antonio Giuseppe
• Salvatore

Notable events

Like most women of the time, she didn’t work or have a profession. Having said that, she and Girolamo must have been well off because when she died her family described her as being independently wealthy¹⁰.

She lived for most of her life in Valletta. her last known residence was 19 St Mark’s Street, Valletta¹¹. She may have lived in St Julian’s since her son was living there when he married¹².

Death

She died at 02:00¹³ on Wednesday 25 July 1894¹⁴. She died of Type-2 diabetes¹⁵ at home in Valletta¹⁶. Her family buried her in the Maria Addolorata Cemetery, Paola, Malta¹⁷.

References

1. Act of Birth of Salvatore Bonnici. (1864). Malta Government Public Registry. Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 20 Aug. 2024][↩]
2. Act of death of Vincenza Portelli. (1894). Malta Government Public Registry. [online] Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 16 Sep. 2024][↩]
3. Certificate of marriage of Girolamo Bonnici and Vincenza Portelli. (1856). Registers kept at Porto Salvo and Saint Dominic parish church, Valletta, Malta, 1837-1859, p.379[↩]
4. Certificate of marriage of Girolamo Bonnici and Vincenza Portelli. (1856). Registers kept at Porto Salvo and Saint Dominic parish church, Valletta, Malta, 1837-1859, p.379[↩]
5. Certificate of marriage of Girolamo Bonnici and Vincenza Portelli. (1856). Registers kept at Porto Salvo and Saint Dominic parish church, Valletta, Malta, 1837-1859, p.379[↩]
6. Certificate of marriage of Girolamo Bonnici and Vincenza Portelli. (1856). Registers kept at Porto Salvo and Saint Dominic parish church, Valletta, Malta, 1837-1859, p.379[↩]
7. Certificate of marriage of Girolamo Bonnici and Vincenza Portelli. (1856). Registers kept at Porto Salvo and Saint Dominic parish church, Valletta, Malta, 1837-1859, p.379[↩]
8. Certificate of marriage of Girolamo Bonnici and Vincenza Portelli. (1856). Registers kept at Porto Salvo and Saint Dominic parish church, Valletta, Malta, 1837-1859, p.379[↩]
9. Velin, N. (2024a). Maltese baptisms – Digital Genealogy. [online] Digital Genealogy. Available at: https://en.geneanum.com/malta/databases/baptisms.html [Accessed 9 Dec. 2024].[↩]
10. Act of death of Vincenza Portelli. (1894). Malta Government Public Registry. [online] Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 16 Sep. 2024][↩]
11. Act of death of Vincenza Portelli. (1894). Malta Government Public Registry. [online] Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 16 Sep. 2024][↩]
12. Act of Marriage of Salvatore Bonnici and Emilia Farrugia. (1884). [online] (203). Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 24 Jul. 2024][↩]
13. Act of death of Vincenza Portelli. (1894). Malta Government Public Registry. [online] Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 16 Sep. 2024][↩]
14. Act of death of Vincenza Portelli. (1894). Malta Government Public Registry. [online] Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 16 Sep. 2024][↩]
15. Act of death of Vincenza Portelli. (1894). Malta Government Public Registry. [online] Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 16 Sep. 2024][↩]
16. Act of death of Vincenza Portelli. (1894). Malta Government Public Registry. [online] Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 16 Sep. 2024][↩]
17. Act of death of Vincenza Portelli. (1894). Malta Government Public Registry. [online] Available at: www.certifikati.gov.mt [Accessed 16 Sep. 2024][↩]