John E. Swoffer

Originally from Salisbury, England John Swoffer was never stationary for long. He grew up in Chatham, county Kent, England. By 1870 he had removed to Queensland Australia where he married Mary Jane Allen (1850-1945). The couple had four children in Australia, each born in a different location.^[1] Records do not indicate his occupation during these years. By 1881, the family had relocated to Chatham, England.

John E. Swoffer’s immigration record gives us the most information that is available about his beginnings. He arrived in the United States in 1883 and took up residency in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania. According to Boyd’s Chester County Directory, Swoffer is listed as a laborer living on South St. near Emmet in Phoenixville in both the 1884 and 1888 editions^[2]. While in Phoenixville, the couple had three more children.^[3]

Phoenixville was home to many fine photographers over the years. During this time period of 1885-1890, John & Lewis Horning, M. B. Yarnall, J. W. Sigman, Ralph & U.G. Channell and W. L. Shoemaker all had studios there. It may have been that Swoffer learned the trade with one of these.

By 1890, Swoffer is listed in Boyd’s Directory as a photographer working in Coatesville, PA with a studio on Third Avenue near the Pennsylvania Railroad. His home address is listed as Chestnut Street corner of 7^th Avenue. There may be a few cabinet cards with his imprint in the collection of the Chester County History Center.

Swoffer is absent from the federal census in 1900, but is listed in the 1910 census as a 62-year-old photographer living in Clare Michigan with his wife Mary^[4]. He is recorded as owning his own photographic studio and home, but is not a naturalized citizen.

A 1913 immigration record reveals that his last permanent residence was Richards Landing, Ontario, Canada and he plans to relocate in Scottsville, Michigan. The clerk describes him as 5’4” with dark complexion, balding with a full grey beard. Swoffer gave the information that he immigrated in October 1883 from Amsterdam and lived in Phoenixville, PA from 1885 – April 1897. Oddly enough, he is not recorded in Phoenixville’s tax records during this period.^[5]

When the census was taken in 1920, Swoffer had moved to Chicago where he had his photo studio^[6].

Finally in 1930, at age 81, Swoffer was retired. He and his wife were living with his son William in Knox, Indiana^[7].

John E. Swoffer died on March 15, 1935, and was buried in the Crown Hill Cemetery in Knox, Indiana^[8]. He was 87 years old. He was survived by at least five of his seven children and his wife Mary.

© Pamela C. Powell, 2023