San
Joaquin County
Biographies
JOHN A. SWAIN
A prominent citizen of Stockton, and
among the oldest residents of the city, is John A. Swain, who has been
identified with the city’s agricultural and other interests throughout his
active career. The family home is
located at 336 West Acacia Street, and his excellent farming estate is located
on the Lower Sacramento Road, about three and a half miles north of
Stockton. This ranch, which has so long
been under his careful management, contains 480 acres, twenty acres of which is
in vineyard, while the greater part of the remaining acreage is given up to
grain raising. This is a model country
estate and Mr. Swain is known as one of the most successful ranchers in the
county. When Mr. Swain settled thereon
in 1877 it was almost entirely unimproved, much of the land being covered with
dense underbrush that had to be cleared before it could be cultivated; and it
is owing to his energy and progressiveness that it has been brought into its
present fine condition.
Mr. Swain belongs to a well-known
San Joaquin County family, his father having been an early settler of the
county. His birthplace was at Westport,
Missouri, a town that is now a part of Kansas City, although his parents had
settled in that vicinity before the latter city begun its existence. He was born January 13, 1852, being a son of
Cornelius and Juliza C. (Davis) Swain, the former a
native of Tennessee and the latter of Missouri.
Cornelius Swain, who passed away at his Stockton home, March 26, 1904,
had crossed the plains to this state in 1853, being accompanied by his wife and
one child, the latter being John A. This
journey was made with ox teams, and it was five months before they arrived at
Stockton. Cornelius Swain was a carriage
maker, having learned the trade at Nashville, Tennessee, and followed it in
Missouri. On reaching San Joaquin County
he settled on Cherokee Lane, six miles north of Stockton, being one of the
early settlers of that locality, and he remained there until his removal to
Stockton in 1894. He lived his last years in his city home. His widow, who was born January 1, 1829,
survived him until 1908. Cornelius Swain
was a Democrat in politics, and fraternally was a prominent Mason. Six children were born to this worthy pioneer
couple: John A.; Joseph H.; Mary;
Charles, deceased; George, and Jessie.
John A. Swain
having come to California when a little more than a year old, has spent
practically all his life in this state.
He was reared to man’s estate on the home farm in San Joaquin
County. After his public school career
he attended the San Joaquin College at Collegeville, an institution no longer
existent, and he subsequently spent two years as a student at the California State
University, then located at Oakland, but now in
Berkeley. Following the completion of
his education, he farmed the home place for a time, and with the money that he
had saved took a trip through the south, visiting Los Angeles, San Diego, Fort
Yuma and Tucson, Arizona. Not being
satisfied with the country and conditions, he returned to Stockton and told his
father that he had decided to take up farming.
Since that time he has devoted his time and attention chiefly to
agricultural pursuits in their several branches, and is now known as one of the
leading men in this occupation. His
father gave him a half interest in the 230-acre home place on the Lower
Sacramento Road, which is now a portion of his fine estate located north of
Stockton. About thirty years ago, Mr.
Swain set out a twenty-acre vineyard of black grapes, which is still producing
good crops. This was one of the first
vineyards to be planted in the district.
On March 3, 1878, Mr. Swain was married
to Miss Mary E. Bunch, a daughter of the late John Bunch, who crossed the
plains to this state in 1864. Three
children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Swain.
John C. is engaged in farming the home place, under the able supervision
of his father. Susie S. is now Mrs. Marcrea; and Ethel, Mrs. Victor N. Walsh, resides in San
Francisco. Mr. and Mrs. Swain are the
grandparents of five grandchildren. For
many years Mr. Swain served as a trustee of the Lincoln school district. Fraternally he is affiliated with San Joaquin
Lodge No. 19, F. & A. M., at Stockton, and he is a member of the Christian
Church in that city.
Mr. Swain recalls many incidents of
the early days of Stockton and relates interesting experiences of those pioneer
times. The whole country around
Stockton, which was then a city of tents, was covered with dense growth of
underbrush, which had to be cleared before plowing and planting could be
done. Antelope abounded on the plains
and wild game birds were plentiful. He
has resided in San Joaquin County sixty-nine years, and with his estimable wife
enjoys the respect and esteem of the entire community.
Transcribed by Gerald Iaquinta.
Source: Tinkham, George
H., History of San Joaquin County, California , Page
533. Los Angeles, Calif.: Historic
Record Co., 1923.
© 2011 Gerald Iaquinta.
Golden Nugget Library's San Joaquin County Biographies
Golden Nugget Library's San Joaquin County Genealogy
Databases