Will County IL Archives Biographies.....SWIVAL, HENRY ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/il/ilfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Paula Winke-Martisek wranglerjack@comcast.net September 24, 2007, 5:39 pm Author: GENEALOGICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD HENRY SWIVAL, who has met with gratifying success in his work as a farmer and cattle-feeder, is one of the well-known men of Florence Township. He was born in Switzerland September 9, 1834, a son of Henry and Rachael(Haefner) Swival, of whose six children the daughters remained in their native land, and the sons, David, Frederick and Henry, came to America. David is now deceased, and Frederick lives in Iroquois County, Ill. Both of the paternal and maternal ancestors represented long-established families of Canton Glarus, where the father and mother were born and reared. The former was engaged in farming and stock-raising. He died about 1847 and his wife twelve years later. Both were adherents of the Evangelical Church. The common schools of Switzerland gave our subject all the educational advantages he ever received. In 1853 he left home and went to Liverpool, where he embarked on a sailing vessel bound for New York. After a voyage for forty-two days he arrived in this country, May 2, 1853. The next day he started for Chicago. From that city he went to Gilman, Ill., where he engaged to work for a railroad contractor on the Illinois Central Railroad for $4 a month. During the summer of 1854 he worked under the same employer for three months on the construction of the Michigan Central Railroad at Chicago Heights. Following this he went to Greengarden, Ill., where he was employed as a farm hand. In April, 1855, he settled in Wesley Township, Will County, where he was employed on a farm for four years. He then spent one year in Florence Township, after which he herded cattle for eight years, being in the saddle almost constantly day and night. During the first six years of this time he had charge of the cattle owned by a large cattle company, receiving at first $50 a month, and later $75. Afterward for two years he bought and sold cattle for a gentleman in Kankakee, being paid $110 per month for the first five months, after which he hired to him at $850 per year and all expenses paid. In 1865 Mr. Swival bought one hundred and ten acres of land in Florence Township, where he now lives. March 5, 1868, he was united in marriage with Miss Mary Linebarger, a native of Parke County, Ind., and a daughter of John and Nancy (Stone) Linebarger. When she was a small child her father came to Will County about 1850 and bought a large tract of land in Florence Township. In 1868 he removed from that place to Elwood and later settled in Livingston County, this state. His last years were passed in Bonfield, Kankakee County, where he died in 1885. He was an earnest member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, served as a trustee and class-leader for years, and was well known for his upright Christian life, his hospitality and his generous aid given to charitable movements. After his marriage Mr. Swival settled down to farm pursuits on the place he had purchased three years before. In his new home his knowledge of the stock business proved most advantageous to him. He began at once to raise cattle and hogs, and during the winter months was a large feeder of cattle for the maket. In time he became a heavy buyer of stock, particularly hogs. As the years passed by he came to be recognized as one of the prosperous men of the township. In 1878 he bought another tract of one hundred and ten acres, making his farm one of two hundred and twenty acres. Recently he purchased three hundred and eighty-five acres in Dickinson County, Iowa, four and one-half miles from Spirit Lake, where he plans to send a couple of his sons in the spring of 1901. He and his wife became the parents of eight children, six of whom survive, namely: John, a farmer, who married Etta Newton and lives in Florence Township; Nellie, wife of Clarence Randolph, of Joliet; Minnie, who married Robert Ward, a farmer of Wesley Towrnship; Ara, William and Roy, at home; and Nettie, deceased. In national issues Mr. Swival votes the Democratic ticket, but in local matters he is independent, voting for the measures best calculated to advance his township interests and the welfare of the people. For one term he held the office of highway commissioner and for several years served as school director. Additional comments: Genealogical and Biographical Record of Will County Illinois Containing Biographies of Well Known Citizens of the Past and Present, Biographical Publishing Company, Chicago, 1900 File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/il/will/bios/swival1760nbs.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.net/ilfiles/ File size: 4.8 Kb