Submitted by Betty E. More E-mail: bemore9@hotmail.com
Betty E.
More submitted a series of letters written from Tularosa, Otero County,
New
Mexico and photos, dating from 1853 prior to the publication of her book,
Soldier Boy: Letters and History of an Illinois Union Soldier,
Bowie, MD: Heritage Books, 2000. The letters were written between
February 3, 1895 and September 30, 1904.
"They are written
by a cowboy who ranched and ran a saloon in the area,
and his children."
George Swaggart was her grandmother's brother.
George Swaggart and his wife, Olie ?, moved to Tularosa, NM sometime
between 1890 and 1895. Perhaps Tularosa was picked because Olie was
from
Tularosa (see letter 1). George came from a long line of adventurers.
On his father's side, his grandfather, George, fought in the War of
1812
when he was only seventeen years old. He fought beside his father
and
uncles. Later, he fought in the Blackhawk Indian Wars. His
father,
Eugene McBride Swaggart, fought during the Civil War in the 92nd
IL
Mounted Infantry and George Swaggart was born on March 4, 1863,
while
his father was away at war.
George's grandmother on his
father's side was Sarah
Whiteside/Miller/Swaggart. Her father, Uel Whiteside
and his father
before him, William Whiteside moved to Illinois from North
Carolina and
were some of the first settlers there about 1792. William
Whiteside had
fought in the American Revolution. The Whiteside family were
renowned
as Indian fighters in Illinois.
His mother, Elvira Van
Alstine/Swaggart, was from the families of Van
Alstyne and Dodge. Both were
in the United States in the 1600s.
George's family had moved from Illinois
to Caldwell, KS, following the
Civil War - arriving there between 1872 -
1875. George became a
cowpuncher at a very young age as did several of his
cousins who
traveled there with the family.
The following letters explain some of his life and the life of
his
children in Tularosa, NM.
Photos of George Swaggart and Olie Swaggart