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Christian
Edward Swope was born in New Jersey in around 1848. His parents were German-born Ignatius
Swope and his wife Maria (also recorded as Anna Maria). They
Swopes had lived in Philadelphia, before moving to Camden's South
Ward. The 1850 Census shows German-born Ignatius Schwaab (or, in
this Census, Swope) and his wife Maria living in Camden's South
Ward. Also at home were the following children, Joseph, 15; William
H.,
12; Mary A., 10; Elizabeth, 7; John, 3; Christian Edward., 2; and
Mary C., a newborn. Ignatius Schwaab died on April 2, 1857.
When
the 1860 Census was enumerated oldest son Joseph had married,
moved out, and started a family. Daughter Elizabeth had also wed,
and was living with her husband, John
Olden. Anna Maria Schaub (or Swope) worked as a washerwoman to
support five sons, William, 21; John, 14;
C. Edward, 10;
Andrew, 8; and George,
3. It should be noted that in the hand-written censuses of the
19th century, variations in ages were not at all uncommon, and
also that the censuses were not always taken in the same month of
the year from decade to decade. In 1860 older brother William
H. Schwaab (the spelling that he used) worked as a laborer.
Boarding with the family was son-in-law William
Gordon, married to Mary Schwaab, and their baby, also named
William.
When
the census was taken in 1870 William
H. Schwaab was living at in
Camden's South Ward with his wife Amanda at the home of his
widowed mother Maria Schwaab. Also living there were his brothers Andrew, John,
and George Schwaab and Anna
Schwaab, his daughter. By
the December of 1871 the Schwaab family was living at 329 Cherry
Street in South Camden. Brother George was then using the
name George Schaub. Older
brother William
had served with the Union Army and also appears to have been a
volunteer fireman in Camden during the late 1860s. William
H. Schwaab was appointed as an extra man with Engine
Company 1 on December of of 1871. He served until April of
1876, when he was not re-appointed, and was replaced by William
Guthridge. Brother George
Schaub was appointed
to the Camden Fire Department as an extra man on April 8, 1876,
and served for one year. He was working as a laborer at the time
he was appointed. Fire Department records state that he was living
on Cherry
Street, below Fourth, when he was appointed most likely at 329
Cherry
Street, which was the family home for many years.
It
appears that George Schaub passed away in the late spring or
summer of 1877. His brother, William
H. Schwaab, who lived at 329 Cherry
Street, named his son, born in August of 1877.
The
third brother to become a member of the Camden Fire Department
after George Schaub and William
H. Schwaab is the subject of this sketch, brother C. Edward,
who often went by the name of Edward
Swope. As stated above, he served as a member of the Camden Fire Department for two
years, beginning April 21, 1882 with the Hook
and Ladder Company. The
1878-1879 City Directory shows Edward Swope, still using the name
Edward Schwaab, at 329 Cherry
Street in South Camden, living with his mother and
brother William
H. Schwaab. He was the working as an iron moulder, and
remained in this trade throughout his time with the Fire
Department. He was still living at 329 Cherry
Street as late as 1885, and was still listed in City
Directories as Schwaab, even though he had used Swope when working
for the Fire Department. The
1887-1888 City Directory lists him as Edward Schwaab, iron moulder,
at 212 Pine
Street. The 1888-1889 edition shows him as Edward Swope, iron
moulder at the John H.
Dialogue shipyard, living at 704 South
2nd Street. The 1890-1891 edition shows him living at South
3rd Street and Spruce Streets. The 1894-1895 Directory lists
him as Edward Schwaab, living with his brother Andrew at 913 South
4th Street, still working as an iron moulder. The
1896 and 1897 Camden City Directories both show that Edward Swope
was working as an iron moulder and was boarding at 922 South
3rd Street, the saloon owned by John
H. Carroll. By 1898 he had stopped working as an iron moulder
and had gone to work as a bartender for John
H. Carroll. He was still living at 922 South
3rd Street and working as a bartender when the Census was
taken in 1900. Edward
Swope does not appear in the 1906 Camden City Directory. An
"E" Swope does appear in the 1910 Census living at 330 Atlantic
Avenue and working as a bartender, and Edward Schwaab does
appear at that address in the 1910 Camden City Directory as an
iron moulder. He does not appear in the 1914 or 1918-1919 City
Directories. Camden Fire Department records also list a
Charles Swope, a stone cutter from Camden's North Ward, who served
as an extra man with Engine
Company 2 for 1 year, beginning April 8, 1876, who does not
appear to be related to the Scwaab-Schaub-Swope brothers.
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