Philip Swatzel - Greene County, TN
Philip Swatzel appears in most genealogy research as a note alongside articles on Johan Henrich Schwartzel. “There is also a Philip Swatzel in Greene Tennessee in 1833 from Lancaster and Cumberland, PA.”
This information is based on his three page Revolutionary War pension application that gives an interesting look at his service but also some glimpses to his family, although he never named any of them.
Philip’s connection to the Schwartzel’s in PA interests me because I have been able to track my family heritage on the Swatzel side back to Greene County, TN but there is a significant lack of details for about two generations that really bothers me. Philip is by far the oldest member of the family in the area and his pension application links him directly to Johann Henrich Schwartzel. My theory and purpose for this research is to see if I can identify how Phillip relates to the rest of the Swatzel’s in Greene County and Eastern Tennessee.
Starting point
This information is based on his three page Revolutionary War pension application that gives an interesting look at his service but also some glimpses to his family, although he never named any of them.
Philip’s connection to the Schwartzel’s in PA interests me because I have been able to track my family heritage on the Swatzel side back to Greene County, TN but there is a significant lack of details for about two generations that really bothers me. Philip is by far the oldest member of the family in the area and his pension application links him directly to Johann Henrich Schwartzel. My theory and purpose for this research is to see if I can identify how Phillip relates to the rest of the Swatzel’s in Greene County and Eastern Tennessee.
Starting point
Philip states in his application that he has been in Greene County since 1800. This gives us a point to begin looking for Deeds, Land Warrants, Tax documents, and other Court Records. We will also have to look for family in Maryland and Virginia, two locations he lived before coming to Tennessee, but I’m going to work forward from 1800 then work my way back with any additional information I find. I will be referencing a number of records I found on a previous hunt through Greene County records I posted here.
The first record found in Greene County is a Deed from 1802 where Philip purchases 200 acres of land. There are boundary descriptions, like 2 chains to the White Oak tree, that won’t help us find the property now but it gives us an anchor because now he will be paying taxes. Unfortunately there is no family information in the deed.
The first record found in Greene County is a Deed from 1802 where Philip purchases 200 acres of land. There are boundary descriptions, like 2 chains to the White Oak tree, that won’t help us find the property now but it gives us an anchor because now he will be paying taxes. Unfortunately there is no family information in the deed.
FamilySesrch has a great collection of digitized documents and many are freely available via the internet. Many are also protected for various reasons and require you to be at one of there family history centers or an affiliate library. I’ve found that even the affiliate libraries don’t have access to all the repositories.
I mention this because almost all of the documents for Greene County are available via the internet, making my life so much easier. In these collections there are tax records for almost every year, safe a few gaps, starting from 1809. This is where we find a record for Philip in Captain Evan Guin’s district. He has 228 acres, on Richland Creek. Where did those 28 acres come from? There are also a John, 200 acres Pigeon Creek, and Jacob Swartzel, no land, in the same district nearby.
This description helps us place these three men just southwest of Greeneville on branches of the Nolichucky River.
Death and Taxes
Since there is a relatively complete set of annual tax documents available for Greene County and the first US Census that exists for the area isn’t until 1830 I am going to work my way through the tax records, year by year, to find all the Swatzel’s in the area. This helps me do a few things:
- Identify sons as they come of age, usually 22, 18, or 16, depending on the region.
- Identify family members who may have moved in from other regions
- Provide a target name and date for deed or land warrant records when new land is taxed
- Differentiate between family members with the same names
- Identify when someone potentially sold land, moved or died.
Working through all the tax records from 1809 through 1852 I found 115 entries for members of the Swatzel family in Greene County alone! Looking through these a couple of interesting storylines shine through. The first is Philip gradually sells all his land until 1839 when the last lot is gone. He also draws his last pension payment in September of that year. This gives me a point to start looking for death and probate records.
The other is a small parcel of 22 to 20 acres that passes from Samuel Swatzel to Mary Swatzel and then Josiah Swatzel. There’s definitely some inheritance occurring here, allowing me to pinpoint dates of death and link family connections.
Other interesting notes include John dropping off the tax rolls and a Henry Swatzel picking up the same 200 acres and maintaining it through every year I searched.
There are also multiple Henry, Jacob, and Mary/Polly’s that appear throughout the years. With all these extra names I now have to start sorting out who is related to whom and how.
Marriage records
The other is a small parcel of 22 to 20 acres that passes from Samuel Swatzel to Mary Swatzel and then Josiah Swatzel. There’s definitely some inheritance occurring here, allowing me to pinpoint dates of death and link family connections.
Other interesting notes include John dropping off the tax rolls and a Henry Swatzel picking up the same 200 acres and maintaining it through every year I searched.
There are also multiple Henry, Jacob, and Mary/Polly’s that appear throughout the years. With all these extra names I now have to start sorting out who is related to whom and how.
Marriage records
It isn’t hard to type “Swatzel Marriages Greene TN” in Google. It’s even easier to get results through Ancestory.com or FamilySearch. This hunt pulled in 18 unique marriage records from 1810 to 1852. None of them were for Philip but he did sign a marriage bond or two.
The most interesting is the 1810 record where Jacob Swatzel marries a Caty Swatzel. At first I thought this was a case where Caty’s last name was unknown and the indexes and subsequent family tree records just used Swatzel. (I typically use the format ‘(unknown) Swatzel’ when I come across this issue of missing maiden names). But the original marriage bond and marriage registry clearly show she has the same last name as Jacob. Philip even signs the bond. This leads me to believe she is a cousin, and likely from PA, MD, or VA.
Deeds
The most interesting is the 1810 record where Jacob Swatzel marries a Caty Swatzel. At first I thought this was a case where Caty’s last name was unknown and the indexes and subsequent family tree records just used Swatzel. (I typically use the format ‘(unknown) Swatzel’ when I come across this issue of missing maiden names). But the original marriage bond and marriage registry clearly show she has the same last name as Jacob. Philip even signs the bond. This leads me to believe she is a cousin, and likely from PA, MD, or VA.
Deeds
FamilySeach also provides a lot of early county deed records along with a handy index. Using the dates I saw land amounts change and associated names I worked my way through the records. Some of the important things in the deeds themselves that aren’t listed in the index are witnesses, neighbors, and sometimes family members. These witnesses and neighbors are important because they often are the fathers or brothers of those listed in the marriage records. They may play a key in getting past a brick wall later on.
In all I found about 13 deed records in the county. In one we find where John sells the 200 acres to Henry. This one in particular provides a clue to the family location in Virginia. In the 1807 deed when John buys the land he is from Greene County. When he sells the land in 1816 he is from Augusta County, Virginia.
In all I found about 13 deed records in the county. In one we find where John sells the 200 acres to Henry. This one in particular provides a clue to the family location in Virginia. In the 1807 deed when John buys the land he is from Greene County. When he sells the land in 1816 he is from Augusta County, Virginia.
In another, Philip and Henry sell 10 acres together. Given the multiple Henry’s I go back to the tax records and found only one owns land at the time and on the same Richland Creek.
The earliest local record found in Tennessee for Philip is from 1780 in Sullivan County, at the time part of North Carolina and on the border of Virginia. This warrant for 100 acres of land was invalidated over the course of the next 27 years and it’s unclear if Philip ever actually lived there.
Military
The War of 1812 raged right has the family was settled and growing in Greene County. These military records give us a list of the younger generation who served our country and sometimes their spouses who claim there pensions. There are no records of Philip during this war as he would have been in his 50’s. There are multiple records for Jacob, Joseph, John, and Henry (possibly both Henry’s). Company history for each of them can be found at the Tennessee Secretary of State website.
Court records
Court records
If you’ve stayed with me this far you must be invested in this family line. I promise that here is where things start to pay off. There are no indexes from FamilySearch on these records. There are some abstracts of court records in books from the local library but the collection on hand only covered a few years and I have over fifty I want to cover.
Good thing I have a decent sized monitor and night duty with the new baby. Flipping through year after year, scanning pages quickly for a mention of “Swatzel” or variations I collect over 15 documents, but only a couple of worth and boy are they worth it!
The first records are for Joanna Swetzel. She was orphaned at a young age, her father was Joseph Swatzel and died before 1814, and assigned a guardian who died before she turned 18. Her second guardian then helps her with a lawsuit against the family of the first for money she’s owed.
This goes back and forth until it makes its way to the Tennessee Supreme Court. I couldn’t resist purchasing a copy of the case and have posted it here, Joanna Swetzel v. John Dyche. It’s not an easy read, legalese never is, but the handwriting makes it more difficult. I will try to decipher it for everyone and piece together the family ties in another post.
The other gem is from 1822 and 1823 when Joseph, Jacob, Samuel, Jacob Jr, and Elizabeth Swatzel heirs to John Swatzel informed the court that John Swatzel died at his father, Philip’s house where he had been living for some time. Philip will appear later to administer John’s estate and provide details about his sons service in the War of 1812.
Good thing I have a decent sized monitor and night duty with the new baby. Flipping through year after year, scanning pages quickly for a mention of “Swatzel” or variations I collect over 15 documents, but only a couple of worth and boy are they worth it!
The first records are for Joanna Swetzel. She was orphaned at a young age, her father was Joseph Swatzel and died before 1814, and assigned a guardian who died before she turned 18. Her second guardian then helps her with a lawsuit against the family of the first for money she’s owed.
This goes back and forth until it makes its way to the Tennessee Supreme Court. I couldn’t resist purchasing a copy of the case and have posted it here, Joanna Swetzel v. John Dyche. It’s not an easy read, legalese never is, but the handwriting makes it more difficult. I will try to decipher it for everyone and piece together the family ties in another post.
The other gem is from 1822 and 1823 when Joseph, Jacob, Samuel, Jacob Jr, and Elizabeth Swatzel heirs to John Swatzel informed the court that John Swatzel died at his father, Philip’s house where he had been living for some time. Philip will appear later to administer John’s estate and provide details about his sons service in the War of 1812.
This is great because it proves some direct relationships between the family. Jacob likely has a son, Jacob Jr. Joseph, Jacob, Samuel and Elizabeth are most likely children or grandchildren of John who is the son of Philip. Four generations in one record! I wonder if this is the same John who purchased and later sold land to Henry.
Census records
Census records
The only census record we have of Philip is the 1830 US Federal Census. This document is helpful in that it provides some rough outline of what his family looked like at that point in time. In this document we Philip has six people living with him:
- 1 male 10-14
- 1 male 30-39
- 1 male 60-69
- 1 female under 5
- 1 female 30-39
- 1 female 60-69
He and his wife are between 60 and 69 years old. We know from his pension application his exact date of birth is 10 June 1758 so he would be 61-62 at this time. The younger children are likely his grandchildren and the two in their 30’s are his son[-in-law] and daughter[-inlaw]. This means we will find individual census records for each of his other son’s at this time.
Philip is missing, as far as I can tell, from the 1840 census. He had either passed away by this point or was in the process of moving when the census took place. (See probate section below).
The 1850 census is a keystone document for any genealogy research for families in the early 1800’s. If your family members are included in that document you can now find their age and place of birth (both with various degrees of accuracy).
In this case, Philip didn’t survive to this point, but many of his children did. Using their dates of birth and place of birth we can use those as proxies for when and where Philip possibly lived. At this point, I am assuming Philip is the progenitor of every Swatzel in Greene County and that he moved there with several sons who were close to, or of age, at the time they moved.
Here’s a list of the possible son’s along with their age, inferred year of birth, and state they were born.
Here we have two Henry’s on our list and it’s unlikely Philip had two sons with the same name. The elder Henry would have been 14 at the time the younger was born, making him a possible but unlikely father.
Philip would have been an older father if Peter and Benjamin are his, but we have no records yet of his wife(s) so it’s too early to write them off the list. There are some other names of those who died prior to 1850 that we need to include on the list of possible son’s. Here’s the list with dates of death I have recorded.
Philip would have been an older father if Peter and Benjamin are his, but we have no records yet of his wife(s) so it’s too early to write them off the list. There are some other names of those who died prior to 1850 that we need to include on the list of possible son’s. Here’s the list with dates of death I have recorded.
Probate
The final record I have found that helps to confirm those on the list above as Philip’s children is an invalidated will filed during probate in Barry County, Missouri on 7 October 1840.
“How did his probate occur in Barry County, Missouri?” you ask. It appears that he followed his son, Philip, and daughter, Elizabeth, out there. We can confirm this because the probate record lists the current locations of each of his heirs:
“Henry Swatszel, Joseph, Jacob, and the heirs of Samuel Swatszel, decd, all of Greene Co., Tenn; Benjamin Swatszel of Christian Co., KY; and Elizabeth Basinger & Peter M Swatszel of Barry Co., Mo.”
This checks off every name on the list except for John, who we verified through his own probate records. We also already have a list of John’s children from those same probate records, none of whom appear in Philip’s invalidated will. I have not found a reason why Philip made his last will null and void and I have not found a copy of the contents in the will, only references to it.
Further Research
There is still plenty of research for Philip Prior to 1802. The birthplaces for his sons all match with his pension application and now give us some defined dates to look for and even a specific county in Virginia. There is one irregularity that stands out though. Jacob was born in VA in 1776 and his younger brother was born in MD in 1777, which seems backwards based on time and geography.
Philip likely followed the Great Valley Road, also called the Great Wagon Road. Many of his MD and VA records are likely along this path.
Philip likely followed the Great Valley Road, also called the Great Wagon Road. Many of his MD and VA records are likely along this path.
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| By Family Search Wiki user: https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/User:DiltsgdDescription: Map of the Great Valley Road in the southeast United States.Drawn by: Diltsgd (FamilySearch Wiki).Date: 26 July 2010.Source: Self. Based on description in Wikipedia article.Permission: Public domain. |
Of course, there are the lives of each of his children to explore and try to connect all of the next generation of Swatzel’s. There’s Elizabeth, who married a Basinger and we have two other marriage records of Swatzel’s marrying a Basinger (Baysinger), so there’s a strong family tie there. There are the births of both Samuel and John that are missing.
There is the mystery of Joanna's father, Joseph, who died before 1814. Who was his father, as there is another Joseph still alive in 1840 who is the son of Philip?
And we still don’t have any information about Philip’s wife(s) other than an age range from the 1830 census. I haven’t found any court or probate records for her in either Greene or Barry Counties. Philip is missing from the 1840 census, as mentioned, but she may be with Peter or Elizabeth in Barry, MO at the time but I haven’t found either of them in the 1840 census. Given she wasn’t listed in Philip’s will I tend to believe she died prior to 1840.
I hope this information is useful to you in your family record hunts. If you have any additional information, corrections, theories, facts, anything at all on this topic I would love to hear from you. Please comment below.
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