[3] The town was founded in 1451 by the Count of Cammarata, Federico Abbatelli Chiaramonte[4][circular reference] when he obtained the privilege of building new lands (Ius aedificandi[5][circular reference]); it wasn't until 1507, though, that he obtained from King Ferdinand II of Aragon permission to populate the land (licentia populandi[6][circular reference])[7] San Giovanni was elevated to a duchy by Count Ercole Branciforte, who was invested with the title of duke by King Philip II of Spain; the royal privilege was granted on 10 November 1587 and made official in Palermo on 15 May 1588.

[8] Under his ownership, the duchy underwent a substantial economic and demographic growth which led him to separate the territory into two parts named Cammarata and San Giovanni.

She was invested as the owner of the fiefdom on 18 February 1656[9] alongside her maternal uncle Ferdinando Moncada Gaetani, son of Ignazio of the princes of Paternò.

Cattle breeding and sheep farms are flourishing while the local handicrafts are characterised by wooden, wrought iron, and ceramic objects.

The seventeenth century Chiesa Madre is a particular highlight: dedicated to S. Giovanni Battista, it contains a wooden crucifix and an urn both of which have been dated back to 1700.