Good explanation of Jonathan Swift

[Ken S.]

Botetourt County, Va. back then went all the way to the Mississippi River; RRG was in Va., I think... MAYBE, Swift & Associates were simply looking from land, leaving from Alexandria County, back then... dunno.

That might have been the Tenn. Area And I'm just guessing at that . Haven't done any research on it.

 

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[Rebel - KGC]

Ditto. Fincastle Turnpike back then was Botetourt County, Va.; it included Bluefield; "google" Fincastle Turnpike: Wilderness Road. "Google" Map of Botetourt County to Mississippi River; kinda blurry. Will have to go to Botetourt Historical Society, to see the map up-close.

 

[KY Hiker]

Ditto. Fincastle Turnpike back then was Botetourt County, Va.; it included Bluefield; "google" Fincastle Turnpike: Wilderness Road. "Google" Map of Botetourt County to Mississippi River; kinda blurry. Will have to go to Botetourt Historical Society, to see the map up-close.

Dates of those maps would be critical to know, if they coincide with Swift's journal time frame of 1760-69.

 

[rgb1]

going back to pg. 3 second john swift , could this have been john swifts son most fathers liked to name first son born with same name this fits time frameof swift

 

[KY Hiker]

going back to pg. 3 second john swift , could this have been john swifts son most fathers liked to name first son born with same name this fits time frameof swift

I would have to refer you back to Prather's book, much of his research is from a family (sorry don't remember their name it sounded French) and their genealogy back to Swift and before him. I don't recall his father's name being Jonathan...I think the Swift of his book was one of 6 or 8 children. His grandfather however, interestingly, was in charge of protecting and extracting lead from a seam in the Western Penn. frontier. I guess I should re-read the first part of the book again. Stay tuned...I'll try to read it this evening again.

 

[KY Hiker]

OK rgb1 here ya go...
Some of his primary sources outside of the Alexandria, VA. Library for Prather's research were 'Genealogy of the Roberdeau Family' by Roberdeau Buchanan and 'The memoirs of Gen. Joseph Gardner Swift LL. D., U.S.A.' the first graduate of the United States Military Academy, West Point.

Jonathan Swift was born 3,27or22 1764 to Samuel and Ann Foster Swift of Milton, Massachusetts and was the 7th of 9 children.
His father, Samuel Swift (1715-1775) participated in the Boston Tea Party by dressing as a Mohawk Indian and may have been a practicing law partner with John Adams. He went to Harvard College, studied law and graduated 1735. He died while being imprisoned in his own house by the British.

Jonathan Swift, merchant married Nancy (or Ann) Roberdeau the elder daughter of Gen. Roberdeau of Alexandria Sept, 24 1785. Swift was considered an importer and merchant.

Gen. Daniel Roberdeau (Swift's father in law) born 1727 in the British West Indies. He had a 1/8 share and was acting treasurer in two privateering vessels in 1776 called Chance and Congress that formed a company. In 1777 he served in the Continental Congress and served two terms. In 1778 he was granted a leave of absence from congress to allow him to manage the working of a lead mine for the army. He erected a fort, Ft. Roberdeau near Altoona, Pennsylvania an area called Sinking Spring Valley in Bedford County, to protect the mine operation with some 10 continental soldiers and 40 militia. Letters he had written about the Lead mine are quoted starting on page 74 of the book. Odd, but there is a reference to 'Standing Stone', a 'Morrison's Cave' and accounts of fighting Indians in these letters. Looks like he financed the building of the fort himself and was never repaid by congress for it. After the war he did not return to his previous business.

 

[Ken S.]

Here is part of what WikipediaWilderness Road
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


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For the band, see Wilderness Road (band).


Course of the Wilderness Road by 1785.


Wilderness Road


Daniel Boone escorts settlers through Cumberland Gap
The Wilderness Road was one of two principal routes used by colonial and early national era settlers to reach Kentucky from the East. Although this road goes through the Cumberland Gap into southern Kentucky and northern Tennessee, the other (more northern route) is sometimes called the "Cumberland Road" because it started in Fort Cumberland in Maryland. Despite Kentucky Senator Henry Clay's advocacy of this route, early in the 19th century, the northern route was selected for the National Road, connecting near Washington, Pennsylvania into the Ohio Valley of northern Kentucky and Ohio.
In 1775, Daniel Boone blazed a trail for the Transylvania Company from Fort Chiswell in Virginia through the Cumberland Gap. It was later lengthened, following Native American trails, to reach the Falls of the Ohio at Louisville. The Wilderness Road was steep, rough and narrow, and could only be traversed on foot or horseback. By contrast, wagons could travel along the National Road route (originally the Braddock Road blazed by the competing Ohio Company and George Washington circa 1750), particularly after the improvements. Despite the adverse conditions, thousands of people used the Wilderness Road, particularly slaveholders after the states of Ohio, then Indiana and finally Illinois became free states (abolishing slavery) on the northern bank of the Ohio River, where travelers often embarked on boats to travel westward. says the Wilderness road .

 

[KY Hiker]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Road a little late on the date.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nemacolin's_Path

 

[Ken S.]

Ditto. Fincastle Turnpike back then was Botetourt County, Va.; it included Bluefield; "google" Fincastle Turnpike: Wilderness Road. "Google" Map of Botetourt County to Mississippi River; kinda blurry. Will have to go to Botetourt Historical Society, to see the map up-close.

Counties were large back then, as time went on they started getting divided up so that the people in the county could ride horseback to county seat and do business and get back home in a days travel.

 

[KY Hiker]

Counties were large back then, as time went on they started getting divided up so that the people in the county could ride horseback to county seat and do business and get back home in a days travel.

That was one factor, also population and judge circuits (circuit judge) routes effected the size or area of the county.

 

[KY Hiker]

OK rgb1 here ya go...
Some of his primary sources outside of the Alexandria, VA. Library for Prather's research were 'Genealogy of the Roberdeau Family' by Roberdeau Buchanan and 'The memoirs of Gen. Joseph Gardner Swift LL. D., U.S.A.' the first graduate of the United States Military Academy, West Point.

Jonathan Swift was born 3,27or22 1764 to Samuel and Ann Foster Swift of Milton, Massachusetts and was the 7th of 9 children.
His father, Samuel Swift (1715-1775) participated in the Boston Tea Party by dressing as a Mohawk Indian and may have been a practicing law partner with John Adams. He went to Harvard College, studied law and graduated 1735. He died while being imprisoned in his own house by the British.

Jonathan Swift, merchant married Nancy (or Ann) Roberdeau the elder daughter of Gen. Roberdeau of Alexandria Sept, 24 1785. Swift was considered an importer and merchant.

Gen. Daniel Roberdeau (Swift's father in law) born 1727 in the British West Indies. He had a 1/8 share and was acting treasurer in two privateering vessels in 1776 called Chance and Congress that formed a company. In 1777 he served in the Continental Congress and served two terms. In 1778 he was granted a leave of absence from congress to allow him to manage the working of a lead mine for the army. He erected a fort, Ft. Roberdeau near Altoona, Pennsylvania an area called Sinking Spring Valley in Bedford County, to protect the mine operation with some 10 continental soldiers and 40 militia. Letters he had written about the Lead mine are quoted starting on page 74 of the book. Odd, but there is a reference to 'Standing Stone', a 'Morrison's Cave' and accounts of fighting Indians in these letters. Looks like he financed the building of the fort himself and was never repaid by congress for it. After the war he did not return to his previous business.

It could be that stories of Swift's father in law was the original source of the legend. He was a privateer and had dealings with a lead mine during the revolution. All one would have to say is 'you know silver is often found when mining lead' to spark a lot gossip in a new frontier. Especially if those hearing the story knew where they had seen seams of lead.

 

[Ken S.]

The dates are all screwed up to be The John of the legend , the land transaction of Filson would be off also. This goes back to was his name even John Swift.

 

[KY Hiker]

And if the dates were changed to protect the mining rights as Eastern KY was beginning to be more populated? Prather's Swift was the son in law of a Rev. war general who protected a lead mining operation on the Penn. frontier (west of the mountains), he also was involved in a privateer company prior to that for the colonies. This same Swift married this man's daughter in 1785. He also was involved in a importing and merchant business. Both were active in their lodges as masons. This Jonathon Swift was also a friend of Washington. Six years later the Swift of the Legend shows up looking for his mine with his journal in hand. I guess i need to draw a timeline. I do not believe in coincidences.

 

[Ken S.]

Dates could have been changed to protect the fact that they were actually mining lead instead of silver in preparation for the Rev. War. Lead would have been more valuable than silver in that case. They knew that the Revolution was coming without a doubt. British had started taxing the colonies, every time they woke up in the morning there was another new tax.

 

[franklin]

The lead mines near Ingles Ferry mined by Clark and others was rich in silver also. The silver is never recorded because the King of England expected a Lion's Share of the output of the mine. Lead was recorded and the by-product of silver was keep secret. The same would be true of Swift's Lead Mines, the true content of the silver would not be told until after the Revolutionary War.

 

[Ken S.]

Yep and after the Revolution was when Filson mentioned the Swift mine in a land deal.

 

[Ken S.]

Botetourt County, Va. back then went all the way to the Mississippi River; RRG was in Va., I think... MAYBE, Swift & Associates were simply looking from land, leaving from Alexandria County, back then... dunno.

Yes at one point it did go all the way to the Mississippi , Ran across a map showing that.

 

[KY Hiker]

Dates could have been changed to protect the fact that they were actually mining lead instead of silver in preparation for the Rev. War. Lead would have been more valuable than silver in that case. They knew that the Revolution was coming without a doubt. British had started taxing the colonies, every time they woke up in the morning there was another new tax.

If they were mining lead they would have processed the silver as well. Preparing for the war 15 years prior to it (1760)? There may have been discontent with tyrant King George, but no one was preparing for war at that time with England...no one knew 15 years in advance that someone would take a shot at Lexington and Concord.

 

[KY Hiker]

The lead mines near Ingles Ferry mined by Clark and others was rich in silver also. The silver is never recorded because the King of England expected a Lion's Share of the output of the mine. Lead was recorded and the by-product of silver was keep secret. The same would be true of Swift's Lead Mines, the true content of the silver would not be told until after the Revolutionary War.

This probably was the same with his father in law Daniel Roberdeau. If the legend was not based on Roberdeau, he somehow influenced his son in law with stories of it. As i have said before, I don't think this is a coincidence that they both are running mining operations.

 

[Ken S.]

If they were mining lead they would have processed the silver as well. Preparing for the war 15 years prior to it (1760)? There may have been discontent with tyrant King George, but no one was preparing for war at that time with England...no one knew 15 years in advance that someone would take a shot at Lexington and Concord.

Yep that's what they would have you believe. One Shot started it all.