William W MCSWAIN Edna Earl MCSWAIN Albert MCSWAIN George Burton MCSWAIN Belle MCSWAIN Bertha M MCSWAIN William Harold MCSWAIN Frances Opel ELLIS Sarah Ann Isabella LOWE Mini tree diagram
William W MCSWAIN

William W MCSWAIN5,7,4,10,6,9,1,2,3,8

30th May 18975,7,8,9 - 3rd Oct 19414,5,6

Life History

May 1896

Born in Arkansas County, Arkansas.5,7,8,9

(less likely)

30th May 1897

Born in St Charles, Arkansas, Arkansas.1,2,3

(most likely)

1917

Occupation Well Driller, Lane and Boler Co., Paragould, Greene, Arkansas.2

5th Jun 1917

Resident in Paragould, Greene, Arkansas.2

24th Dec 1922

Married Frances Opel ELLIS in DeWitt, Arkansas, Arkansas.10

7th Oct 1923

Birth of son William Harold MCSWAIN in DeWitt, Arkansas, Arkansas.11,5,7,12,1,13

1930

Residence2 in Kerrville, Kerr, Texas.5

3rd Oct 1941

Died in McLennan County, Texas.4,5,6

3rd Oct 1941

Buried in Kerrville, Kerr, Texas.4

Notes

  • After William W McSwain and his wife Sarah Lowe McSwain died, their two children were taken in by the Henderson family.  I have not learned if there was a kinship relationship with the Hendersons.  I found the 1910 census enumerating Bertha and Will McSwian only in February 2011.

    1910 Federal Census, Arkansas County, Arkansas, 2 May, North Prairie Township, District 12, page 6B, Hse/Fam #116
    Henderson, J M Head M W 51 Married 30 years IL TN TN Farmer Rents
    Henderson, Mary Wife F W 58 Married 30 years 5 children/4 living Miss LA AL No Occupation
    McSwain, Bertha Ward F W 16 Single AR NC AR No Occupation
    McSwain, Will Ward M W 3 Single AR NC MS Farm Laborer

    It appears that our William W McSwain, son of William W and Sarah Lowe McSwain, moved to Texas after the death of his parents and little brother Albert.  An entry for a person of that name matching his details is found in Kerrville, Kerr County, Texas in 1930.  Other McSwains with connections to our Arkansas family made their way to Texas.  Some in the same family seem to have migrated directly from North Carolina.

    In the Texas census, we do notice that the parents of this William W McSwain are both reported as born in Arkansas.  This should be North Carolina for his father and Tennessee for his mother.  But this kind of discrepancy occurs all the time in the censuses, and is thus not definitive.

    1930 Federal Census, Kerr County, Texas, 8 April, Justice Precinct 1, Kerrville, District 133, page 7A, Hse #139, Fam #146
    McSwain, William W Head M W 34  Married at age 24  AR AR AR Assistant Landscaper
    McSwain, Opal F W Wife 30  Married at age 23  IL IL IL Grocery Store Clerk
    McSwain, Harold W Son M W 6  Married at age 24  AR AR IL

    Note that William and Opal were married in Arkansas, since their son Harold was born there.  This seems to mean that Opal's parents moved to Arkansas from Illinois, then William and Opal moved to Texas.  They are living in the same house with a family named Kelly, all of whom, parents and children, were born in Texas.  The Kellys and the McSwains are all in household #139, and the Kelly family is numbered Family #145, while William and Opal are Family #146.

    Head of the Kelly family, Herbert J Kelly, is a Construction Contractor.  William's occupation is reported as Landscape Assistant.  Perhaps he is working in the construction business of Mr Kelly, in the landscaping of the plots for the new houses.

    It is interesting that living next door the Kellys is another family named Kelly, but they are from Irish Free State (which we now know as the Republic of Ireland).  Herbert is 53 years old, while the  neighbour, Paul J Kelly, is 40.

    The World War I registration of William McSwain in 1917 seems to match with these entries.  This provides us with William's exact birth date, plus specify the birth place as St Charles.  This matches the presence in 1870 of his uncle Francis next door to John F McSwain and family in Prairie Township.  The 1870 census did not specify a location in Prairie Township of Arkansas County, but in 1880, John and his wife Mary and their son George F McSwain (spelled McSwane in this census and in 1880) are specifically located in St Charles.

    The information we have about William's parents, William W and Sarah Lowe McSwain seems to put them in southern Prairie Township, in or near the Ethel community, a few miles south of St Charles, in 1880, when William is reported as a child in their household.  St Charles was the closest town, where a doctor likely would have been living, so Sarah might have had her children in town.  Or William might have stated the place of birth as St Charles since that was the nearest town.

    U.S. World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918
    William McSwain, age 21
    Residence W Main St, Paragould, Greene County, Arkansas
    Born 30 May 1897, St Charles, Arkansas County, Arkansas
    Grey Eyes, Black Hair; single
    Occupation well driller for Lane and Boler
    Registration 5 June 1917, Paragould, Arkansas

    There is a one-year discrepancy in the birth date reported on the Draft registration and other sources.  The 1900 census reports William's birth date as May 1896.  Jerry Gallagher follows this date from the census in his genealogy.  The draft registration however, which William signed, says 30 May 1897.  William married Frances Opel Ellis in 1922.

    Arkansas, County Marriages Index, 1837-1957
    Opal Ellis
    Gender: Female
    Age 23, Birth Year abt 1899
    Residence: Saint Charles, Arkansas, Arkansas
    Spouse's Name: Wm W McSwain
    Spouse's Gender: Male
    Spouse's Age: 26
    Spouse's Residence De Witt, Arkansas, Arkansas
    Marriage 24 Dec 1922 Arkansas County
    Marriage License Date 23 Dec 1922

    Arkansas Birth Certificate
    DeWitt, Lagrue Township, Arkansas County, Arkansas
    William Harold McSwain
    Born 7 October 1923
    Father W W McSwain Age 27, Born Arkansas, Day Laborer, Residence DeWitt
    Mother Opel Ellis Age 27, Born Illinois, Housewife, Residence DeWitt
    Filed 11 November 1923

    1930 Federal Census, Kerr County, Texas, 8 April, Justice Precinct 1, Kerrville, District 133, page 7A, Hse #139, Fam #146
    McSwain, William W Head M W 34  Married at age 24  AR AR AR Assistant Landscaper
    McSwain, Opal F W Wife 30  Married at age 23  IL IL IL Grocery Store Clerk
    McSwain, Harold W Son M W 6  Married at age 24  AR AR IL

    1940 Federal Census, Kerr County, Ohio, 13 April, Kerrville, District 133-1B, page 8A, 805 Moore St, Hse #192, Owns $2500
    McSwain, William W Head M W 44 Grade 6 b Ark lived in same place 1935 Asst Landscape Gardener for Gov Hospital
    McSwain, Opal Wife F W 40  Grade HS-1 b Ill In same place in 1935
    McSwain, Harold Son M W 16 Single Grade 6 b Ark In same place in 1935

    The Texas Death Index reports the death of a William W McSwain in McLennan County (Waco area) in 1941.  This could be the same William W McSwain.  One genealogy references this TDI report for our William, but reports his death occurred in Kerr County (where he was living).  He is buried in Kerr County.  The death info on the military grave matches the death report in McLennan County.

    Texas Death Index, 1903-2000
    Certificate #47119
    William W. Mcswain
    Death 3 Oct 1941 McLennan County

    The Military Cemetery listing reports that William was buried the same day he died.  This seems unlikely, especially if he was buried in a national cemetery, and thus likely with military honors.

    Kerrville National Cemetery, Kerrville, Kerr County, Texas
    McSwain, William W
    d. 10/03/1941
    US Army, PVT, TX
    Plot: 2C 0 6, bur. 10/03/1941
    --   http://www.interment.net/data/us/tx/kerr/kerrnat/index.htm

Sources

Page created using GEDmill 1.11.0