The Swineas by Robert Wayne Swinea

THE SWINEAS

“where we came from”

To my parents who bore me,
To my wife who inspired and encouraged me,
and
To my son who gave me a reason.

The story that I am about to share with you is the story of the SWINEA family. Although there are a number of Swineas in the United States, no one seemed to know much about the family or where our name came from. In our family, if you knew your grandparents, then you were one of the fortunate ones. Most of us only were aware of our own parents and maybe some immediate cousins.
All that I am about to write is true. In a few places it has become necessary to make some logical guesses in relationships etc. in the absence of any “hard” data. However, the flow of the family story is correct even if some of the minor details are the product of deductive reasoning.
What follows, then, is the story of our family. I hope that with the writing of this, the first, account of our story that others will also be inspired to take up the search into the Swinea name.

Written By:

The Rev. Robert Wayne Swinea

1223 Canter

Goodland, Kansas 67735

May, 1983

If you, like myself, have wondered for some time now as to exactly where our name “Swinea” came from then I am relieved to share with you that our name has nothing to do with pigs or swine in any form. Our name comes from the ancient Gaelic (the old language of Ireland and Scotland) name of “Suibhne” In Gaelic the “b” and “h” are silent so it was pronounced as “Suine”. “Suibhne” means “little hero”. This was the name of one of our ancestors who was living in Scotland and founded Castle Swin in about 1200AD.
Suibhne’s grandson took the name MacSuibhne (son of Suibhne) and it is from this MacSuibhne that we are all descended. MacSuibhne translates into English as any and all of the following: Sweeney, Sweeny, Sweney, Swinney, Swinny, Swiney, Swinea, Swinnea Swayne, etc.
To begin our odessey of the Swinea family we must start in 1033 AD when Adeh was the King of Ireland. Adeh was one in a long line of Irish Kings who could trace his own family tree back 1699 years before the birth of Christ. When Adeh died he left two sons; Domnall and Anradhan. (see chart) The elder son, Domnall, became King of all of Ireland so his younger brother, Anradhan, sailed north to Scotland. While he was in Scotland Anradhan conquered much territory with his armies and eventually married a Scottish princess of the Royal House of Argyll. By this marriage Anradhan had married into the great clan of MacDonald of the Isles. This means that Swinea men are entitled to wear the Scottish Kilt made of Mac Donald of the Isles Tartan. Now men, I wouldn’t advise wearing a kilt unless you have the legs for it. HA!
For the next hundred years or so our family prospered not only in Ireland but also in Scotland. Our hereditary occupation was that of being professional soldiers known as “gallowglasses”. Gallowglasses is a Norse word that literally means “commander of troops”. The MacSuibhne’s, much like the Japanese Samurai, were faithful fighting men who served their masters through thick and thin.
From a study of ancient warfare and armor we can determine the kinds of weapons and armor that the MacSuibhne’s carried with them into battle. Their personal armor consisted of a conical iron helmet fastened under the chin by a leather strap, a chain mail shirt that extended from the neck to the ankles and covered the arms to the wrists, over all of this they wore a large woolen yellow war-coat, they also carried a large shield that had an 18 inch spike extending from it. They also carried a long bow with a quiver of arrows, a 50 inch long two-handed broadsword known as a Claymore, a small (24 inch) sword carried in the left hand point downward concealed by the shield. The crowning piece of equipment carried by the MacSuibhne’s was a large battle-axe with a hook opposite the blade to “hook” opposing cavalry off of their horses. The MacSuibhne’s, did not use horses themselves preferring to run everywhere they vent. The family motto “Strike for Victory” certainly fit these hearty and fierce warriors of their day.
Sometime toward the middle of the 13th century, after a foster-father of one of the MacSuibhne’s was killed by the O’Breisleins who lived in Ireland, all hell literally broke loose. The Scottish MacSuibhne’s massed their huge army and sailed to Ireland and killed all of the O’Breisleins and took their lands and possession. This was in the days of “an eye for and eye and a tooth for a tooth”. Thus, the MacSuibhne returned to Ireland.
The group of MacSuibhnes who came to Ireland remained there and established themselves into three great clans in what is now called County Donegal in Northern Ireland. When the MacSuihhnes were not fighting for hire they raised cattle and sold then to the Continental countries. By the 14th century the MacSuibhnes had married Irish women and had adopted Irish Catholicism. By this time they wore now fully an Irish clan in three great parts; MacSuibhne Fanad, MacSuibhne Banagh and MacSuibhne na dTuath, more commonly called MacSweeney of the Battleaxes. Certainly out coat-of-arms reflects our “battleaxe” heritage. (see illustration)
In the year 1500 a branch of the MacSuibhne Fanad clan migrated south to Munster (County Cork) where they were soldiers for the MacCarthys who were fighting against the English presence in Ireland. Under the leadership of James Fitzmaurice the MacSweeneys and MacSheehys sacked an English stronghold in Killmallock in 1591. It is written that it took three days to carry off all of the booty after the battle. A more recent descendant of this branch of the MacSweeneys was Terrance MacSweeney Lord Mayor of Cork in 1920. Terrance was a poet who wrote about the English “It is not those who can inflict the moat that will triumph but those who can bear the most.” Terrance died in an English prison after a lengthy hunger strike. It is written of him that he did more for the cause of a free Ireland than anyone else of his age or this.
Meanwhile, back in the North, the rest of the MacSweeneys were also distinguishing themselves in battle. From 1400 until Ireland’s defeat by Oliver Crowell’s army in 1652 the MacSweeneys fought on the side of Irish Catholics for Irish independence. Under the Catholic King of England, James II, there were no fever than eleven Mac Sweeneys who were officers in his army.
“No family in Irish history has presented a more united snd unbroken front to the foes of Ireland than the clan MacSweeney. They were a fierce, warlike race, though displaying many of the virtues that would make them pre-eminent in the present day. FAITHFULNESS was undoubtedly their dominant characteristic as evidenced by the fact that their services were in great demand as lieutenants or marshals and standard bearers among the princes of Ireland.” (O’Neil; Irish Pedigrees)

“Whenever we find detailed the history of a desperate case among the MacCarthy Mor, Prince of Kerry; the O’Sullivan Beare, Prince of Cork; or the O’Donnell, Prince of Tirconnell; calling for reckless bravery and unquestioning loyalty there we find the Mac Sweeneys of one or the other branches of the family being chosen to undertake the task.”¹
“All authorities agree in describing the Fanad branch of the Mac Sweeneys as the principal representatives of the family. The barony of Fanad comprised a rocky, mountainous peninsula interspersed with fertile valleys and glens and nearly surrounded by Lough Swilly on the north and east, by the Atlantic ocean on the north and Mulroy bay on the west. Here the Mac Sweeneys of Fanad built the Castle of Rathmullen (now a Cistercian Abbey) at the entrance to and overlooking beautiful Lough Swilly, and here the family held princely sway for over four hundred years, while following their overlords, the O’Donnells, Princes of Tirconnell, as standard bearers and faithful lieutenants through all of the desperate wars waged by the different members of that princely house. Indeed, at times, the family grew so powerful and arrogant, they even questioned the authority of the O’Donnells and refused for generations at a time to even pay the customary tribute. But there is no instance on record anywhere when the Mac Sweeney of Fanad ever failed the O’Donnell of Tirconnell in his hour of need.”²
When hopes for Irish Independence from England were finally crushed by Oliver Cromwell in 1652 some 30,000 Irish soldiers were sent into exile to France and Spain. Many more civilians were sold into virtual slavery to the West Indies and to the Crown colony of Virginia. Among these souls exiled were many Mac Sweeneys who distinguished themselves in the military service of these and other foreign countries.
The Mac Sweeneys who were not exiled had their lands and possessions confiscated and/or destroyed by their English conquerors. The remaining clanspeople were reduced to absolute poverty and out of necessity many became beggars in their own country. It was truly a black day for all of Ireland during this time.
The question has been asked as to why the “Mac” was dropped from the Mac Sweeney name. The answer is really quite simple. The conquering English could not speak the native Gaelic language of Ireland and the the Sweeneys did not speak English. English Tax collectors were the ones responsible for enrolling the Irish after the war to see to it that they paid English taxes. The Tax collectors simply spelled the name as it sounded to English ears and in many cases dropped the “Mac” “Mc” “O” altogether as barbaric Irish custom. After several rent returns were filed the name stuck and we became Sweeney, Swiney, Swaney or whatever.³ The Irish Census of 1659 listed the following spellings for our family name: Swayne. Sweeny, Swyny, McSweeny, McSwyne, McSwynie, and McSwyny. This is almost as wide a variation of the spelling that I found in the American records. This is where we shall move to nest-the American story of our family.

As I begin the American part of our story I would like the reader to know that our name has been misspelled it seems almost forever. Or perhaps I should say that out name has seriously taxed the spelling abilities of others for years. The following list is a[s] complete of a list that I can muster as to the numerous ways that people have tried to spell our name. In the past we must have pronounced it quite oddly as evidenced by the list of spellings. Sometimes, the obviously same person would have had our name spelled differently on every public record. Since the Swineas do not appear on that many public records this has made my search interesting to say the least. Here is how the family name has variously been spelled: Sweney, Sweaney, Swaney, Sweany, Sweeny, Sweeney, Swiny, Swinny, Swinney, Swinea, Swillea, Swilly, Swilley, Liveney (obviously the writer mistook the sw for a liv), Swilla, Swinna, Swayne, Swezey. These add up to 18 different spellings. We are not the first generation to have had “name problems”.
The Swineas (however spelled) settled in America in two distinct areas. The ‘Northern” Swineas first settled in the Pennsylvania and New York areas in the 18th and early 19th centuries. The passenger manifests of ships that brought settlers to the hew World are rife with Swineas who came from Scotland, Ireland and Wales. After arriving in America these Swineas established new families and/or new family ties. Some remained in New England where they live to this day.
Others, for various reasons, handed with other like-minded folks and moved West into the frontier. They moved our of New England into Ohio, Indiana and Illinois. Some, after moving west into Illinois, followed the Mississippi River south into the eastern portions of Arkansas where their descendants live today.
My family, the “Southern” Swineas landed in what is now North Carolina. Some stayed there but others, like their Northern counterparts, ventured south into Georgia (free land) and west through the Cumberland gap into Tennessee, Alabama and Arkansas.
There is a family tradition that says that the “Southern” Swineas moved west out of North Carolina into Tennessee and Alabama with the Stutts, Coats and Wright families. Indeed, there was a number of early marriages between these four families. As a direct result of all of this moving around, family ties were forgotten or at least overlooked. Family ties were summed up by saying that all Swineas ware related. Only one’s immediate family was known; mother, father, brothers and sisters and perhaps (not always) grandparents.
This means that today there are numerous Swineas around that are related but no one knows exactly how. Although there seems to be a fairly strong family resemblance no one until now was able to “proove” how all of the Swineas are related.
I am now convinced beyond a shadow of a doubt that the family tradition is correct: all Swineas are related. The family ties are strong within the two branches yet they are not so strong between the two branches. This means that a Northern and a Southern Swinea may be related but not nearly so closely as members of the same branch. At my rate to call my Swinea “cousin” would not be far from the mark.
An interesting sidelight to this two-branch theory concerns two sisters who are Swineas; Beatrice and Lillie. Beatrice lives in Arkansas. Lillie grew up in Arkansas but now lives in Florida. Neither of these women’s progenitors “fit” into the Southern Swinea family tree even though they live in the South.
From their family bible I learned that their grandfather (A. G. Swinea) was born in Cairo, Illinois and that their great-grandfather (Bud Swinea) was also from that area. Here we have a case in which a group of the Northern Swinea followed the Mississippi River south to eventually settle near Palestine, Arkansas.
As things would have it, my Uncle Larry when he was a Marine stationed in Washington D.C. had lunch with this same Lillie. Their names were the same but neither me could make my family connections and they couldn’t figure out why. It is relatively simple now to know why there was, no immediate common family ties. Lillie is a Northern branch Swinea and Larry is a Southern branch Swinea.
The descendants of Lillie and Beatrice’s brother William Lonnie live for the most part in and around the Waynesboro, Tennessee area and sons are living in north Louisiana. What follows is a brief family tree for this part of the Northern Swineas who came south.

Bud Swinea (one of 16 children. he was married twice)
+(wife unknown by writer)

The American chapter of our Southern family begins in the English Crown Colony of Virginia in 1655. Edmund Sweney (born in Ireland), his wife Elizabeth, his sons Edmund Jr. and Merritt and his daughters Mary and Elizabeth were indentured

servants who can to America as headrights of the Thoms Purifay Company⁴. As indentured servants the Sweneys had agreed to work for free for 4-7 years in return for their passages to the New World. In essence, all that they received for their period of indenture was food, clothing and shelter. There were no wages paid whatsoever.
March 13, 1655 the Thomas Purifay Company purchased 2000 acres of tobacco land on the south shore of the Rappahannock River near Norfolk, Virginia. In all, 40 persons, including the Sweneys, came over from Ireland and England as indentured servants to work the land.⁵ It is a very high probability that these persons were part of the people Oliver Cromwell “resettled” after the Irish Civil War.
When their period of indenture was over, the Sweneys moved south to Elizabeth City in what is now North Carolina. Here they became friends with a number of influential families of the day and they themselves became public figures. Edmund Senior became a justice of the County Court and served in that office until his death in 1697.
After the death of his first wife, Elizabeth, Edmund Sr. remarried a woman named Martha Tabb; herself a recent widow. Edmund had no children by Martha. All of his six children were by his first wife.⁶
One of Edmund's six children was named Lazarus. Lazarus married a woman named Elizabeth and was living in Norfolk, Virginia; at least that is where his will was filed in 1732. His heirs were: his wife, Elizabeth, his sons Daniel and James, child in esse (in existence) and "other children" whom he does not name. His brother Samuel was named as executor of the will.⁷ The names of Lazarus’ other children and their descendants can he found on the Swinea family chart.
John, one of Lazarus’ “other children”, was granted land in North Carolina in 1716 and in 1720. He eventually settled in Chowan County.⁸ This fact is significant in that our progenitor James later joined his brother in North Carolina in Tyrell County sometime before 1743. Another brother, Daniel, eventually went west into Surry county end lived near Daniel Boone’s farm on the shallow ford of the Yadkin River before Boonesboro, Kentucky was founded.⁹ Daniel’s son William fought in the Revolutionary War and is listed in the DAR Patriot Index.
Moses, another brother, moved west into Pittsylvania County Virginia where he is listed on the 1767 Titheables list. The 1790 Census shows that Moses’ family consisted of nine persons living in two buildings. Still another brother, George, served in the Virginia Militia with one more brother Terrence who eventually became a North Carolina District Judge.
Lazarus’ son James, out progenitor, was married twice. Once as a young man to an as yet unidentified woman who probably bore him all of his children. James was married as an older man a second time in 1778 to Sarah Parker in Chowan County North Carolina. James and Sarah had no children. James had at least four children by his first wife. They are as follows:
1) Thomas - owned two ·slaves; living in Granville County NC in 1790
2) Molly - married William Moore in 1762 in Greene County Georgia
3) John D. - married Martha Mitchell in 1803 in Georgia (Greene County); he also received Georgia lottery lands
4) William B. - see next paragraph
William Swinney was born around 1740 in North Carolina. He married Elizabeth Lasseter in 1783 in Granville County NC. William served in the Revolutionary War as a member of a North Carolina regiment. I have a copy of one of his pay vouchers. For his military service he was paid 11 pounds and 6 shillings or about $30 in current US dollars. Also for his military service he was awarded 640 acres of Bounty Land in Tennesee (Carroll County?). However, he signed over his land to a Robert Thompson almost as soon as he received it.
I think that William did this because he had also been awarded 200 acres of Burke County Georgia land in the Georgia land lottery.¹⁰ Too, living in Georgia would have put him closer to his family who, for the most part, had already settled in the state. The Swineas received much land in the Georgia Land Lottery as attested to by the Land Lottery records.
William must have moved to Georgia shortly after the 1790 Census and before the 1801 Georgia Tax Lists were compiled. In 1790 William was living in the “Dutch District” of Granville County NC. Quite possibly this is where our family tradition of being “Black Dutch” began. William does not appear on any North Carolina records after 1790, William died in Greene County Georgia in 1823 leaving a will (I have a copy) in which he names ten children. The names of these children can he found on the family chart. One of the children named was Levie (Levi) Swinney. I now quote from William’s will; “I give demise and bequeath unto my son Levie Swinney one negro man named Dick, fourty acres of land to be laid out joining Thomas Swinney and Moores land in addition to things heretofor given him.”¹¹
The land that was left to Levie was in Henry County Georgia. Before the death of his father Levie was living in Granville County North Carolina. he was married and had several children as evidenced by the 1800 and 1810 North Carolina Censuses. After his father’s death he and his family moved to Georgia to take possession of his inherited land and quite possibly to be near the bulk of his family.
I find it interesting to note that Levie’s father William and his brother Thomas ware both slave owners. In fact, in his will William left each of his children at least one slave each. This means that William was a man of some wealth. William’s several children together owned at least 100 slaves. One son, William H., owned 73 slaves at one time (1850 Georgia Tas Records).¹²
What makes all of these facts so important is that there are B1ack Swineas. There are several possible explanations for this fact. One is that they were the offspring of Swinea men and Black women; or even perhaps Swinea woman and Black men. Another possibility is that when the slaves were freed and named after the Civil War they ware customarily given the family name of their former master. At any rate, they have earned their name through the years of their slavehood.
One of these Black Swineas was named Howell and he fought for the North in the Civil War. Howell married Mariah Halloway 28 December 1866 in Pulaski, Tennessee. In Howell’s will (I have a copy) he names one son, Yancey Swinea. Yancy married a young woman named Violet Scruggs who eventually bore him eleven children. I have bean in correspondence with one of Yancey’s sons, Bobbie Swinea, and he has bean most helpful and informative to me in my research. (see chart 16)
When Levie Swinea, our progenitor, left North Carolina for Georgia, he didn’t take all of his family along with him. He left behind in Granville County NC sons Jeremiah, Joel, Levie, Meril and Robert.¹³ Levie had other children too not already mentioned. They were George (known as “Old” George), Minerva and Katheryn. “Old” George had two sons Jim and Syne (Sion). Syne’s (Sion’s) children were Calvin, Frank, Polk, Tom and Elizabeth. These sons are responsible for the Swineas now living in Tennessee and Alabama. (see appropriate chart)
In Wilson County Tennessee Levie’s other son William R. Swinea was enumerated as the single head of a household in 1820. In 182l William B, married Sally Chamblis in Granville County NC and returned to Tennessee. Sally bore William R. six children in Tennessee. One son, Jesse, married and moved further west into VanBuren County Arkansas where he is found listed in the 1850 Arkansas Census living with his Tennessee born wife Sary (Sarah).
The question arises as to why William B. left North Carolina for Tennessee. One can only speculate in the absence of any factual data. I imagine that William B. wanted to go into the area where his grandfather’s Revolutionary War land grant was located. I also suppose that the aforesaid Robert Thompson (the one to which William B. signed over his land) was some friend or relation to the Swinea family. William B. evidently felt secure enough to go into Tennessee while his (younger?) siblings remained in North Carolina.

When Sally died, William R. remarried a woman named Sarah in about 1842. She bore William at least one more child, Sarah who went to Kansas territory in 1860. The 1850 census, the first to show this information, revealed that William B. was a farmer living in Carroll County Tennessee with his wife Sarah and their children. William B. owned farmland worth $311. His oldest daughter living at home was named Frances and her occupation was listed as that of a shirtmaker. The three oldest boys living at home were also listed as being farmers.
William R.’s second oldest son, George W., was married in Tennessee for the first time in about 1850 to a woman named Mary A.. George and Mary had at least five children together. George served in the Civil War as a Confederate Second Lieutenant in D Company of the 30th Tennessee Regiment.¹⁴ He served from November l861 until his capture at the end of the War in May of 1865.
George married again after the Civil War in late 1865 to a woman named Lucy (Bridgeforth?) who bore him four more children in Tennessee. About 1871 George remarried for a third time. The woman whom he married was named Sarah (Jackson?). She was some 25 years his junior; more than likely a widow with children of her own. Sarah bore George W. at least nine more children in Arkansas. 1880 finds the Swineas at home now in VanBuren County Arkansas. It is in this census that the family name is now spelled “Swinea”.¹⁵
George W. died sometime after 1880 and before 1900. The entire census for the United States in 1890 was destroyed. This means that we can only speculate on those intervening years. The 1900 Arkansas census listed George’s wife Sarah as the head of the household. The family was still living in VanBuren County Arkansas. One of her small boys living at home at the time was my grandfather Amos H. Swinea.
Amos married Etta Jo Risner also of VanBuren County Arkansas and moved to Wichita Falls , Texas where they had nine children; Paul, James D. (my father), Oree, Jesse W. (Pete), Goldie, Nita. Larry, Lucille and Nancy.
My father J.D. Swinea married Fay Malone of Paris, Texas. My mother is also an Irish descendant. She gave birth to me, Bobert Wayne Swinea, in Monohans, Texas. As I was growing up we lived in West Texas and Eastern hew Mexico. My father died in 1976 at Sr. Luke’s hospital in Houston, Texas.
I married Elizabeth Ann Johnson in 1971 in Ardmore, Oklahoma. Our son, Robert Preston was born September 16, 1981 in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
This brings me to the end of my story; yet it is only the beginning. hew Swinea are born and chapters of family history still await to be written.
I have found in my studies no less than 89 families across the United States who spell their name “Swinea”. This is a very small number of families when you compare ours with some families in the US whose numbers run into the millions. We are unique in this respect. We are a select few.
As I stated earliar, I am now fully convinced that we are all related through one or the other lines that I have traced out. We are descended from a noble and courageous people. We have served often and well in the armed services of our several countries.
I hope that in soma small way this booklet will help to take some of the mystery out of our past and give us renewed hope for the future. Benjamin Franklin said it best;”Only the people who see the past clearly can know the future.”
We have come a long way and I hope that we may continue in the future as I earnestly pray that the world itself may possess a future. I will close with the family motto;

STRIKE FOR VICTORY
At this location, the author includes:

Plate XXVI from Irish Family Names by Edward MacLysaght; Crown Publishers Inc. NY 1972

The Lyon Conjectural Tree tracing Suibhne (ca. 1200) back to Niall of the Nine Hostages (ca. 400)

A series of cascading descent charts reproduced here as a generation report. (The gender is not given in his charts, so I welcome any corrections to this lineage.)

The Swinea Family Tree from
Edmund in 1655 through Levie
listing the principle family heads

[Transcriber's note: Here Mr. Swinea provides a series of connected descendant charts. I have converted them to a descendant report for presentation in this .html document. The GEDCOM version of this data is located on this website. PLEASE remember that this is lightly supported data--use it for reference; don't just import it into your database...]

Descendants of Edmund Sweney

Generation No. 1

1. EDMUND1 SWENEY was born Abt. 1630. He married (1) ELIZABETH. He married (2) MARTHA TABB.

Children of EDMUND SWENEY and ELIZABETH are:
2. i. EDMUND2 SWENEY, b. Bef. 1655.
ii. ELIZABETH SWENEY, b. Bef. 1655.
iii. MARY SWENEY, b. Bef. 1655.
3. iv. MERRITT SWENEY, b. Aft. 1655.
4. v. SAMUEL SWENEY, b. Aft. 1655.
5. vi. LAZARUS SWENEY, b. Aft. 1655; d. Abt. 1732.

Generation No. 2

2. EDMUND2 SWENEY (EDMUND1) was born Bef. 1655. He married FRANCES ROBINSON.

Children of EDMUND SWENEY and FRANCES ROBINSON are:
i. DANIEL3 SWENEY.
ii. EDMUND SWENEY.
iii. MERRITT SWENEY.
iv. MARTHA SWENEY.

3. MERRITT2 SWENEY (EDMUND1) was born Aft. 1655. He married JANE RICKETTS.

Children of MERRITT SWENEY and JANE RICKETTS are:
i. ROSCOE3 SWENEY.
ii. PRISCILLA SWENEY.
iii. ANN SWENEY.
iv. SARAH SWENEY.
v. MARTHA SWENEY.
vi. MARY SWENEY.

4. SAMUEL2 SWENEY (EDMUND1) was born Aft. 1655. He married ANN ARMISTEAD.

Child of SAMUEL SWENEY and ANN ARMISTEAD is:
i. CHARLES3 SWENEY.

5. LAZARUS2 SWENEY (EDMUND1) was born Aft. 1655, and died Abt. 1732. He married ELIZABETH.

Children of LAZARUS SWENEY and ELIZABETH are:
i. TERRENCE3 SWENEY.
6. ii. JEREMIAH SWENEY.
iii. SARAH SWENEY, m. CALEB WILSON.
7. iv. DANIEL SWENEY.
8. v. JAMES SWENEY.
vi. MOSES SWENEY, m. REBECCA.
vii. JOHN SWENEY.
viii. GEORGE SWENEY.

Generation No. 3

6. JEREMIAH3 SWENEY (LAZARUS2, EDMUND1). He married MARY.

Children of JEREMIAH SWENEY and MARY are:
i. NANCY4 SWENEY.
ii. ISAIAH SWENEY.

7. DANIEL3 SWENEY (LAZARUS2, EDMUND1). He married SARAH.

Children of DANIEL SWENEY and SARAH are:
i. GEORGE4 SWENEY.
ii. WILLIAM SWENEY.
iii. EDWARD SWENEY.
iv. DANIEL SWENEY.

8. JAMES3 SWENEY (LAZARUS2, EDMUND1). He married (1) UNKNOWN. He married (2) SARAH PARKER 1778 in North Carolina, Chowan County.

Children of JAMES SWENEY and UNKNOWN are:
i. THOMAS4 SWINNEY.
ii. MOLLY SWINNEY, m. WILLIAM MOORE, 1762, Georgia, Greene County.
9. iii. JOHN DUDLEY SWINNEY.
10. iv. WILLIAM B. SWINNEY, b. Abt. 1740, North Carolina; d. 1823, Georgia, Green County.

Generation No. 4

9. JOHN DUDLEY4 SWINNEY (JAMES3 SWENEY, LAZARUS2, EDMUND1). He married MARTHA MITCHELL 1803 in Georgia, Greene County.

Children of JOHN SWINNEY and MARTHA MITCHELL are:
i. NANCY DUDLEY5 SWENEY.
ii. JOHNATHAN LOCKETT SWENEY.

10. WILLIAM B.4 SWINNEY (JAMES3 SWENEY, LAZARUS2, EDMUND1) was born Abt. 1740 in North Carolina, and died 1823 in Georgia, Green County. He married ELIZABETH LASSETER 1783 in North Carolina, Granville County.

Children of WILLIAM SWINNEY and ELIZABETH LASSETER are:
i. SAMUEL H.5 SWINNEY, m. NANCY LASSETER.
11. ii. WILLIAM H. SWINNEY.
iii. WILEY SWINNEY.
iv. RACHEL SWINNEY, m. ELIAS TREADWAY.
v. HENRY SWINNEY, m. MARTHA LASSETER.
12. vi. LEVIE SWINNEY.
vii. MARCUS SWINNEY, m. DINAH JACKSON.
viii. JOTHRAM SWINNEY, m. NANCY MCINTOSH.
ix. TIMOTHY THOMAS SWINNEY.

Generation No. 5

11. WILLIAM H.5 SWINNEY (WILLIAM B.4, JAMES3 SWENEY, LAZARUS2, EDMUND1). He married MARGARET MOORE.

Children of WILLIAM SWINNEY and MARGARET MOORE are:
i. MARK E.6 SWINNEY.
ii. SUSAN SWINNEY.
iii. MARTHA SWINNEY.
iv. LAVINIA SWINNEY.

12. LEVIE5 SWINNEY (WILLIAM B.4, JAMES3 SWENEY, LAZARUS2, EDMUND1). He married UNKNOWN Abt. 1800.

Children of LEVIE SWINNEY and UNKNOWN are:
i. JEREMIAH6 SWINNEY.
ii. JOEL SWINNEY.
iii. LEVIE SWINNEY.
iv. MERIL SWINNEY.
v. ROBERT SWINNEY.
vi. KETHERYN SWINNEY.
13. vii. WILLIAM R. SWINNEY.
14. viii. "OLD" GEORGE SWINNEY.
ix. MINERVA SWINNEY.

Generation No. 6

13. WILLIAM R.6 SWINNEY (LEVIE5, WILLIAM B.4, JAMES3 SWENEY, LAZARUS2, EDMUND1). He married (1) SALLY CHAMBLISS 1821 in North Carolina, Granville County. He married (2) SARAH Abt. 1836.

Children of WILLIAM SWINNEY and SALLY CHAMBLISS are:
i. WILLIAM7 SWINNEY.
ii. LEVI SWINNEY.
iii. FRANCES SWINNEY.
iv. JANE SWINNEY.
v. JESSE SWINNEY.
15. vi. GEORGE W. SWINEA, d. Aft. 1880.

Child of WILLIAM SWINNEY and SARAH is:
vii. SARAH7 SWINNEY.

14. "OLD" GEORGE6 SWINNEY (LEVIE5, WILLIAM B.4, JAMES3 SWENEY, LAZARUS2, EDMUND1).

Children of "OLD" GEORGE SWINNEY are:
i. JIM7 SWINNEY.
16. ii. SYNE (SION) SWINNEY.

Generation No. 7

15. GEORGE W.7 SWINEA (WILLIAM R.6 SWINNEY, LEVIE5, WILLIAM B.4, JAMES3 SWENEY, LAZARUS2, EDMUND1) died Aft. 1880. He married (1) MARY A. 1850. He married (2) LUCY BRIDGEFORTH 1865. He married (3) SARAH JACKSON 1871.

Children of GEORGE SWINEA and MARY are:
i. NANCY8 SWINEA.
ii. MARY SWINEA.
iii. THOMAS SWINEA.
iv. WILY SWINEA.
v. JOHN SWINEA.

Children of GEORGE SWINEA and LUCY BRIDGEFORTH are:
vi. MAUDIE8 SWINEA.
vii. LIZZIE SWINEA.
17. viii. WILLIAM C. SWINEA.
ix. DELLA SWINEA.

Children of GEORGE SWINEA and SARAH JACKSON are:
18. x. AMOS H.8 SWINEA.
xi. MARTHA SWINEA.
xii. FANIE SWINEA, m. FANCY.
xiii. MALISA SWINEA.
xiv. CALEB SWINEA.
xv. ROBERT SWINEA.
xvi. GEORGE SWINEA.
xvii. ALBERT SWINEA.
xviii. JULIA SWINEA.

16. SYNE (SION)7 SWINNEY ("OLD" GEORGE6, LEVIE5, WILLIAM B.4, JAMES3 SWENEY, LAZARUS2, EDMUND1).

Children of SYNE (SION) SWINNEY are:
19. i. CALVIN8 SWINNEY.
ii. TOM SWINNEY.
iii. FRANKLIN SWINNEY.
iv. POLK SWINNEY.
v. ELIZABETH SWINNEY.

Generation No. 8

17. WILLIAM C.8 SWINEA (GEORGE W.7, WILLIAM R.6 SWINNEY, LEVIE5, WILLIAM B.4, JAMES3 SWENEY, LAZARUS2, EDMUND1). He married GEORGIE WILLIAMS.

Children of WILLIAM SWINEA and GEORGIE WILLIAMS are:
20. i. LYDIA9 SWINEA.
21. ii. PERCY SWINEA.
iii. BUFORD SWINEA, m. SISTER1 HUDSON.
22. iv. EULAS SWINEA.
23. v. WILLIAM T. SWINEA.
24. vi. VELMA SWINEA.
25. vii. EDWARD SWINEA.
26. viii. GEORGE SWINEA.

18. AMOS H.8 SWINEA (GEORGE W.7, WILLIAM R.6 SWINNEY, LEVIE5, WILLIAM B.4, JAMES3 SWENEY, LAZARUS2, EDMUND1). He married ETTA JO RISNER.

Children of AMOS SWINEA and ETTA RISNER are:
i. PAUL9 SWINEA.
27. ii. JAMES D. SWINEA, d. 1976, Texas, Houston.
28. iii. LARRY SWINEA.
iv. JESSE W. "PETE" SWINEA.
v. NITA SWINEA.
vi. OREE SWINEA.
vii. NANCY SWINEA.
viii. GOLDIE SWINEA.
ix. LUCILLE SWINEA.

19. CALVIN8 SWINNEY (SYNE (SION)7, "OLD" GEORGE6, LEVIE5, WILLIAM B.4, JAMES3 SWENEY, LAZARUS2, EDMUND1). He married ANNIE RICE Abt. 1880.

Children of CALVIN SWINNEY and ANNIE RICE are:
i. RICE9 SWINNEY.
ii. CLYDE SWINNEY.
iii. MAE SWINNEY.
iv. IDA SWINNEY.
v. DELID SWINNEY.
vi. JOHN FRANKLIN SWINNEY, m. EVIE DRIBBLE.
vii. JUDY SWINNEY.
viii. BELL SWINNEY.
ix. EDGAR SWINNEY.

Generation No. 9

20. LYDIA9 SWINEA (WILLIAM C.8, GEORGE W.7, WILLIAM R.6 SWINNEY, LEVIE5, WILLIAM B.4, JAMES3 SWENEY, LAZARUS2, EDMUND1). She married UNKNOWN CASTLEBERRY.

Children of LYDIA SWINEA and UNKNOWN CASTLEBERRY are:
i. VERA10 CASTLEBERRY.
ii. EVELYN CASTLEBERRY.

21. PERCY9 SWINEA (WILLIAM C.8, GEORGE W.7, WILLIAM R.6 SWINNEY, LEVIE5, WILLIAM B.4, JAMES3 SWENEY, LAZARUS2, EDMUND1). He married UNKNOWN CROCKER.

Children of PERCY SWINEA and UNKNOWN CROCKER are:
i. JAMES10 SWINEA.
ii. HOLLIS SWINEA.
iii. LUCILLE SWINEA.
iv. REBECCA SWINEA.

22. EULAS9 SWINEA (WILLIAM C.8, GEORGE W.7, WILLIAM R.6 SWINNEY, LEVIE5, WILLIAM B.4, JAMES3 SWENEY, LAZARUS2, EDMUND1).

Children of EULAS SWINEA are:
i. BOY10 SWINEA.
ii. GIRL SWINEA.

23. WILLIAM T.9 SWINEA (WILLIAM C.8, GEORGE W.7, WILLIAM R.6 SWINNEY, LEVIE5, WILLIAM B.4, JAMES3 SWENEY, LAZARUS2, EDMUND1). He married LILLIE WRIGHT.

Children of WILLIAM SWINEA and LILLIE WRIGHT are:
i. DAVID10 SWINEA.
ii. JERRY T. SWINEA.

24. VELMA9 SWINEA (WILLIAM C.8, GEORGE W.7, WILLIAM R.6 SWINNEY, LEVIE5, WILLIAM B.4, JAMES3 SWENEY, LAZARUS2, EDMUND1). She married UNKNOWN HERSTON.

Children of VELMA SWINEA and UNKNOWN HERSTON are:
i. BILLY10 HERSTON.
ii. GIRL HERSTON.

25. EDWARD9 SWINEA (WILLIAM C.8, GEORGE W.7, WILLIAM R.6 SWINNEY, LEVIE5, WILLIAM B.4, JAMES3 SWENEY, LAZARUS2, EDMUND1). He married UNKNOWN BUTLER.

Children of EDWARD SWINEA and UNKNOWN BUTLER are:
i. RONNIE10 SWINEA.
ii. DONNIE SWINEA.

26. GEORGE9 SWINEA (WILLIAM C.8, GEORGE W.7, WILLIAM R.6 SWINNEY, LEVIE5, WILLIAM B.4, JAMES3 SWENEY, LAZARUS2, EDMUND1). He married SISTER2 HUDSON.

Children of GEORGE SWINEA and SISTER2 HUDSON are:
i. GEORGE10 SWINEA.
ii. FRANCES SWINEA.
iii. MARY SWINEA.
iv. JUDY SWINEA.
v. PEGGY SWINEA.
vi. DAN SWINEA.
vii. FRANK SWINEA.

27. JAMES D.9 SWINEA (AMOS H.8, GEORGE W.7, WILLIAM R.6 SWINNEY, LEVIE5, WILLIAM B.4, JAMES3 SWENEY, LAZARUS2, EDMUND1) died 1976 in Texas, Houston. He married FAY MALONE.

Child of JAMES SWINEA and FAY MALONE is:
29. i. ROBERT WAYNE10 SWINEA.

28. LARRY9 SWINEA (AMOS H.8, GEORGE W.7, WILLIAM R.6 SWINNEY, LEVIE5, WILLIAM B.4, JAMES3 SWENEY, LAZARUS2, EDMUND1).

Children of LARRY SWINEA are:
i. LARRY10 SWINEA.
ii. DARCY SWINEA.
iii. ROBIN SWINEA.

Generation No. 10

29. ROBERT WAYNE10 SWINEA (JAMES D.9, AMOS H.8, GEORGE W.7, WILLIAM R.6 SWINNEY, LEVIE5, WILLIAM B.4, JAMES3 SWENEY, LAZARUS2, EDMUND1). He married ELIZABETH ANN JOHNSON 1971 in Oklahoma, Carter County, Ardmore.

Child of ROBERT SWINEA and ELIZABETH JOHNSON is:
i. ROBERT PRESTON11 SWINEA, b. Private.

Bibliography
1) John Sweeney; The Genealogy of the MacSweeney Family; Library of Congress
2) ibid
3) ibid
4) ; Southside Virginia Families;
5) ibid
6) ibid
7) Virginia Wills and Administrations
8) Record of North Carolina Land Grants
9) Surry County North Carolina Public Records
10) Georgia Land Lottery Records
11) Greene County Georgia Wills
12) Georgia Tax Records 1850
13) 1800 North Carolina Census
14) Tennessee Civil War Veterans
15) 1880 Arkansas Census

ALSO: many thanks go out to everyone who gave so generously of their time and knowledge to me so that this booklet might be published.