Dear Friends,
We want to tell you everything about our history.
From some research in local archives of the City Council and the Church of San Gimignano we learnt that the "Marronaia (Magronaja)" was founded around 1200 ad by building on the hill where today house is, a watching tower, probably part of the ancient defensive walls of the city of San Gimignano. The defensive walls had a multiple function since served to controll the area, to demarcate the borders, and to protect the city. The tower is still visible today, even if well integrated inside the house, it is the central and most important part of the building.
The first description as a whole "Podere Magronaja" appears in the Municipality estimates of San Gimignano in the year 1536, when it is mentioned among the many agricultural properties of Ficarelli family, one of the most wealthy family of the town, but probably coming from the Chiarenti family.
There has been no news of the farm until the year 1630 when it is located between the properties of the nuns of the Monastery of St. Jerome who probably bought or received as a donation.
In 1789 as a result of the reforms introduced by the Grand Duke Peter Leopold of Tuscany, many monasteries were suppressed and their assets auctioned. Among the suppressed contents of the Monastery of San Girolamo also figured the Podere the Magronaja or Marronaia.
Since then there has been no definite information on the farm owned until recente times. During the Second World War the house served as a refuge for the partisans and refugees of the town.
Pietro
