A Little Boy Long Forgotten (Swain)
By William A. Greene
January 2015
One day in early January of 2015, I was looking up some information for a young lady about a house she and her husband had just purchased. As I was going through an old Andover Newspaper, I happened to notice a barely readable obituary.
It said, “CARL SWAIN”
Carl Swain, little three years old son of Mr. and Mrs. Frank Swain of Sa(unreadable) died suddenly, Saturday afternoon June 21st (1913) The babe had (unreadable) about the room when he was taken with convulsions and expired within a few minutes.
The body was brought to Andover on Monday, and buried in Hillside Cemetery.
That is all that I had and nothing more. I got my book of Andover Cemeteries and looked through the Hillside Cemetery list. I had no “Carl Swain” listed. So immediately put his name and information into the book. But who were his parents and where did they live.
So the only thing I had going is that the boy died in 1913 and was three years old. So I went back into the Andover Newspaper, and started to look for the marriage of Frank Swain and someone else. I finally found a Frank M. Swain and a Anna C. Warfield were married in Wellsville on Tuesday November 13th 1900 and they were both from Andover. I had hit pay dirt the first thing.
The Swain and Warfield families had lived in Andover during the mid 1800’s till the mid 1900’s. No one around by those names anymore. Now what?
I went to my census records and wanted to go through the 1890 census, but didn’t have that year, so I went to the 1900 census and started my search.
I found a Eugene Warfield, born Oct. 1850 and was 49 yrs. old.
His wife Alice M. Warfield, born Aug. 1850 and was 49 yrs. old. I now have the father and mother. Their children are: Maude, born Oct. 1877 and 22 yrs. old. Anna C., born Sept. 1182 and 17 yrs. old. And then Nellie E., born April 1885 and is 15yrs old. And a Cynthia L. Warfield born March 20, 1829 and 71 yrs. old. She would be Eugene’s mother. I have Anna C.’s family. Now to find the Swain family.
After going through 39 pages of Andover census, I didn’t find a Swain name anywhere. I even went back and looked a second time, just to make sure. Nothing changed.
I did find another Warfield family and they were: Josiah J. born June 3, 1856 age 43, Mary A. born April 27, 1859 age 41 and Clara J. born March 1883 age 17. I believe this would be Eugene’s brother and family.
In the 1905 Andover Census I find that Frank and Anna have two children. They are Harland M and Glenn B.
In 1910 I find them living in Great Valley in Catt. County. Frank and Anna’s family has grown. There are now four children. Harland is now 8, Glenn is now 6, Nellie is 4 and Virgil is 1.
In the 1920 PA. Census, Frank and Anna are now living in Mill Creek Township, Erie Co. PA. Frank is now 38, Anna is 38. The family has gotten a lot bigger; Harland is now 18, Glenn is 16, Nellie is 14, Virgil is 13, (Carl would have been here if he had lived and would have been 10) Edward is 4 3/12, Marjorie is 3 8/12, Shirley is 2 ½ and Eleanor is 6/12.
This is as far as I’m going as I have found “Carl Swain’s” family. I know who they are now and where they came from.
As for Anna and Frank they both are buried in the Laural Hill Cemetery in Mill Creek Township, Erie Co. PA. Anna died in 1948 and Frank died in 1961.