The Village of Andreis recently celebrated the "Festival of a Millennium 996-1996". Its origins began around 450 AD as a Roman town called Cellina, the derivation of which gave its name to the river Cellina that is an integral part of the environs of Andreis. Around 500 AD, a unique group of Celtic herdsmen, escaping the consequences of the fall of the Roman Empire, took refuge in the valley and the settlement then became known as Andrea, and later derivated to Andreis.
Certainly in antique times there existed many other tribes in the valley. As for Andreis it is noted from Statistical data from the archives of Demographic Evolution, that in 1652 with the coming of the first Parroco ( Parish Priest ) it was recorded that there were "50 Fuochi" ( Fires - Referring to fireplaces) and this translated into a population of approximately 300 inhabitants. In 1864, in the mountains of Andreis, a stronghold of Garibaldini soldiers engaged in and repelled an attack from an Austrian battalion, the resulting rout brought some fame to the Valley and it was about this time that the Austrian dominance of the north began to wane.
The Population peaked in 1911 at 1795,and from there it began to decline until the present time 2000, the population is only 450. The village is slowly dying . Mostly occupied by retirees, many who had earlier left to find work in the big cities and now returned to retire in peace and tranquillity on the pension. As in Casamazzagno it is snowed in for half the year being only about 100 kilometers south of the Dolomites.
Here also fresh clean mountain water flows close by the town, sourced from the snow permanently bound in the mountains behind the village. The valley at one time cleared for grazing, is now fully forested again and continues to provide the necessary winter fuel. Sebastiano Tavan, one of my ancestors was elected Mayor in 1765, another, Simon Tavan in 1766-67 and 1780-1782, and Gio Batta Tavan 1771. A new hydroelectric dam is currently under construction just out of town on the Cellina river and provides work for a few Andreisians, sadly when completed it will probably see more forced to seek work elsewhere, a resultant further decline in the population.