The Brassea Family
John R. Brassea
John Brassea was born in Italy and immigrated to Starkville, Colorado as a small child. He moved with his family to the ‘FK Drake Ranch’ where he worked with his father and brothers.
He married Mary Louis Schwartz who was born in 1895, nine years younger than he. The couple had four children: Virginia M. Brassea Graham born in 1916; Joseph L, 1921; Oliver James, 1923 and John Charles in 1930.
John, like his father worked in the mines and sometimes ranched. His family followed him wherever he was working. After his brothers’ deaths he was given land adjacent to the Brassea family ranch. Eventually he and Mary lived in Florence where he died in 1968; she in 1982.
Natalina Brassea Viola Natalina Brassea was born in Italy and immigrated to Colorado with her family. She married Frederico Viola in 1905 in Trinidad.
Fred Viola was in Colorado by 1900, when he is listed in the Federal Census in Gilpin County as a 19-year-old boarder. He homestead land directly west of the Brassea family ranch [awarded 1924, Custer County 22S 70W Section 25 SE ¼; S ½ SW ¼; SW ¼ NE ¼; NE ¼ SW ¼] and [awarded 1927, Custer County 22S 70W Section 25 NW ¼ NE ¼].
The couple had three children Louis born in 1906; Fred in 1908 and Elenn. Only Louis ‘Kelly’ survived infancy. He married Margaret Isis Griffiths and they lived in Colorado Springs.
In 1910, Fred and Natalina are living in Fremont County near her family with 3-yearold Louis. Fred was working as a miner. Natalina died in 1915, perhaps at the birth of their child, Elenn.
Margaret Brassea Viola
Margaret ‘Maggie’ Brassea was born in 1900 in Starkville and grew up on the Brassea Family Ranch. In 1916, she married her older sister’s husband, Frederico Viola in Canon City. Fred was working in the mine at Radiant, Colorado, where they are recorded in the 1920 Federal Census living with Fred’s son/Maggie’s nephew, 13- year-old Louis.
In 1921, Fred and Maggie’s first son, James ‘Jim’ is born in Coal Creek. Ray follows in 1923. Frederico Viola was killed at the Radiant Mine in January of 1927.
In 1930, Maggie Brassea Viola married Frank Quaretti, a coal miner. The Quaretti couple moved to the Viola homestead with the three Viola boys. The homestead inherited by Maggie is isolated. In a few years they bought the John Plementos homestead, which adjoined her family’s property to the southwest and most importantly had direct access to the road.
Both Jim and Ray Viola served during World War II. Jim enlisted in the Navy in 1942 and became a member of the Marine Corp living through the Battle of Iwo Jima. Ray enlisted in the Army in 1944 and was sent to the Philippines. Both young men return in 1946 to find their mother, Maggie and Frank Quaretti in Penrose where Frank operates a saw mill.
Maggie dies in 1982, Frank Quaretti in 1983, both are buried in Florence.
(to be continued)
