1. John W Swilling was an early pioneer in the Arizona Territory.
32 Facts About Jack Swilling
1. 2.
Jack Swilling is commonly credited as one of the original founders of the city of Phoenix, Arizona.
3.
Jack Swilling's discoveries resulted in a gold rush to the region, and this in turn led to the establishment of Arizona's first territorial capital at the mining town of Prescott.
4.
Jack Swilling was both a Confederate States Army minuteman and a civilian aid to the United States Army during the American Civil War.
5.
Jack Swilling worked in a variety of disciplines throughout his life, including as a teamster, prospector, mine and mill owner, and saloon and dance hall owner, as well as a canal builder, farmer, rancher, and public servant.
6.
Jack Swilling took morphine to assuage the pain, which led to dependency problems for the rest of his life.
7.
John William "Jack" Swilling was born on April 1,1830, at Red House Plantation, Anderson, South Carolina, to George Swilling and Margaret Farrar Swilling, the eighth of their 10 children.
8.
George Jack Swilling was the son of the plantation manager, while Margaret Farrar's father, Thomas Farrar, was the owner.
9.
When Jack Swilling was 14, the family moved from South Carolina to Georgia.
10.
Jack Swilling's whereabouts are unknown for a brief time afterwards, although he was reported in Georgia for the Christmas of 1849.
11.
Jack Swilling was elected captain of the Gila Rangers militia company that was formed to provide protection from Apache stock raids on the miners and the stage company.
12.
Jack Swilling was elected second-in-command of the company, or First Lieutenant, and retained that rank when the Arizona Guards were absorbed into the Confederate Army.
13.
Jack Swilling was involved in the noted incident at White's Mill at Casa Blanca, Arizona when Union Captain James McCleave was captured.
14.
Jack Swilling was involved in the campaign to take Mesilla which ended with a Union takeover of Confederate Arizona's capital.
15.
Jack Swilling's war ended there and he convinced Joseph Walker and his group that there was gold in the central highlands of the new Arizona Territory.
16.
Jack Swilling then guided them to where the first Yavapai County mining district was formed, just a few miles south of present-day Prescott, on May 10,1863.
17.
Jack Swilling left the Walker party shortly after the formation of the Pioneer Mining District and joined up with the exploratory party of Pauline Weaver and Abraham Harlow Peeples, which arrived in the area shortly after the Walker group.
18.
Jack Swilling made a small fortune from the unusual surface gold mine at Rich Hill between Wickenburg and Prescott.
19.
News of his successes spread eastward when two gold samples from Jack Swilling's claim sent to General James Henry Carleton were forwarded for presentation to President Abraham Lincoln.
20.
Jack Swilling had the inspiration to form a canal company which would open the Salt River Valley to farming.
21.
On November 16,1867, he formed the Jack Swilling Irrigating and Canal Company at Wickenburg.
22.
Jack Swilling promoted the irrigation system, which was in part inspired by the ruins of the Hohokam canals.
23.
Jack Swilling Irrigating and Canal Company started the small farming community of Phoenix that has since grown into one of the United States' largest metropolitan areas.
24.
Jack Swilling claimed a quarter section south of what became Van Buren Street between 32nd and 36th Streets for his own farm.
25.
Jack Swilling's farm was a local showplace, featuring an artificial pond with tame ducks, a vineyard and an orchard with a variety of fruit trees.
26.
Jack Swilling was involved in the planning and construction of additional canals, including the first ditch south of the Salt River in partnership with an old acquaintance and business partner, Charles T Hayden, the founder of Tempe, Arizona and father of long-time Arizona Senator Carl T Hayden.
27.
Jack Swilling's health was failing, and his drinking had become a problem.
28.
Trinidad Jack Swilling suggested that he go on a trip to recover and rebury the remains of their old friend, Colonel Jacob Snively, who had been killed by Apaches in the Wickenburg Mountains near the peak called White Picacho.
29.
Jack Swilling was released to the Hodges family, friends of the Swillings, and died in their home.
30.
Jack Swilling stated that Swilling died in the Hodges family house.
31.
The Hodges family owned two lots in the Yuma Pioneer Cemetery behind the old Catholic Church, and Jack Swilling was buried in one of lots before his family could be notified.
32.
Jack Swilling was known to put his own life at risk for others, literally riding to the rescue when help was needed in the face of an Apache attack.