Biography - T. W. SWIGART
T. W.
Swigart, the leading harness dealer and one of the most successful business
men in Newman and Douglas county, was born in Carroll county. Maryland, in
sight of Westminister, July 3, 1831, and was a son of Joseph Swigart. When
nine years of age T. W. Swigart removed with his parents to Seneca county,
Ohio, where he spent a large portion of his life on a farm. From the years
1848 to 1851 he devoted his time to learning the trade of harness maker at
Bellfontaine, Ohio. He was a young man of good habits and of splendid
mechanical turn of mind; he learned the trade thoroughly and soon became a
first-class workman. In the year 1852 he removed to Attica, Indiana, where
he resided and worked at his trade successfully up to the year 1870, when he
went to Princeton, Illinois. There he met Miss Sarah Jane Martin, who, in
1871, became his wife. In the same year he came to Danville, Illinois, where
he followed his trade until the month of February, 1873, when he came to
Newman and succeeded Speelman & Ogden in the harness business. During his
residence in Newman he has become one of the most successful business men in
the city and has accumulated quite a lot of property. In politics he is
thoroughly independent and there is very little of hypocrisy in his nature.
He is thoroughly candid and outspoken in his convictions. He has served
three terms as president of the town board. He has also been a member of the
board of health and director of the Building & Loan Association. He is a
Mason and member of the Knights of Honor. In his business relations with the
public he is unimpeachable and supplies the people for miles around with the
most improved style of harness. He is a clever gentleman and respected by
most every body.
Extracted 22 Jul 2019 by Norma Hass from the Historical and Biographical Record of Douglas County, Illinois, published in 1900, page 228.
