HISTORY OF KENTUCKY AND KENTUCKIANS, E. Polk Johnson, three volumes,
Lewis Publishing Co., New York & Chicago, 1912. Common version, Vol. III,
pp. 1314-16.  Jefferson County.

EMBRY L. SWEARINGEN.  As president of the Kentucky Title Savings Bank &
Trust Company and of the Kentucky Title Company and as chairman of the
Board of the First National Bank of Louisville, Embry Lee Swearingen holds
precedence as one of the essentially representative financiers and business
men of the state, and this fact, as coupled with his high standing as a
loyal and public-spirited citizen, makes him specially eligible for
consideration in this publication, whose province includes such recognition
of the sterling citizens of his native state.
     Mr. Swearingen was born at Mellwood, on Cox's creek, in Bullitt
county, Kentucky, on the 27th of January, 1863, and is a son of George W.
and Mary (Embry) Swearingen, both of whom were likewise natives of
Kentucky.  The Swearingen family is of distinguished and patrician
Holland Dutch extraction, and the original progenitor in America was
Gerret Van Swearingen, one of the younger sons of a nobleman in sturdy
Holland.  He was sent to America as captain of vessel laden with supplies
for the Dutch colony at New Amsterdam, the nucleus of New York city, in
1656.  The vessel was wrecked and lost on the Atlantic coast of America
and Captain Van Swearingen then abandoned the sea and settled in Maryland
where he took up his abode in the same year that marked his voyage to
America.  He was a native of Beemsterdam, province of North Holland, and
his wife, whose maiden name was Barbara De Barett, was born at
Vanenciennes, in the lowlands of Holland.  Their descendant were found
numbered among the soldiers taking part in the early Indian wars, the war
of the Revolution and the war of 1812.  The founder of the family line
in Kentucky was one who came from Maryland to this state and settled in
Bullitt county in 1804.  His son William, grandfather of the subject of
this sketch, became a wealthy and influential farmer and slaveholder in
Bullitt county, and his wife, who maiden name was Julia Crist, was a
daughter of Hon. Henry Crist, who was a pioneer Indian fighter in Kentucky
and who served continuously in the Kentucky legislature from 1795 until
1806, after which, from 1809 to 1811, he represented this state in the
United Stated congress.  George W. Swearingen was reared and educated in
Kentucky and the major part of his active career was one of close
identification with the Mellwood Distillery Company.  He founded and built
up the Union National Bank of Louisville.  He was one of the honored and
influential citizens of Louisville at the time of his death, which occurred
in 1901.  His wife is still with her son the subject of this sketch.  Both
were members of the Presbyterian church, and in politics he was a stanch
advocate of the principles of the Democratic party.
     Embry Lee Swearingen, whose name forms the caption of this article,
was fitted for college at the Rugby school in Louisville, and in 1878
he was matriculated in the historic old University of Virginia, at
Charlottesville.  His health became much impaired, however, and he was
compelled to leave the university soon after entering the same.  After a
year's respite from study he returned to the University, where he
continued his studies for three years in which he was graduated in a
number of the academic schools.  After leaving the University, Mr.
Swearingen initiated his active business career by locating in the city
of Philadelphia, where he engaged in the manufacturing of hosiery and
other knitted goods.  He remained in the Pennsylvania city about one
year and at the expiration of this period he returned to Louisville,
where he established a plant for the manufacturing of hosiery, woolens
and jeans.  This was one of the first factories of the kind in the south,
and under the effective administration of Mr. Swearingen the business was
developed into one of wide scope and importance, this contributing
materially to the industrial prestige of the Kentucky metropolis.  To
this enterprise Mr. Swearingen continued to give the major part of his time
and attention for a period of eight years, at the expiration of which he
assumed the position of general manager of the Kentucky Title Company, in
which he became one of the heaviest stockholders and of which he was
elected president in 1895.  He has continuously served as chief executive
of this important corporation since that time, and in 1900 the business was
amplified and extended by the organization of the Kentucky Title, Savings
Bank & Trust Company.  The company is incorporated with a capital stock of
$350,000, exercises most beneficient functions in the various departments
and is one of the strong and popular financial institutions of the state.
Mr. Swearingen has other capitalistic interests of important order, and has
for many years been a director of the Union National Bank of Louisville.
He is known as one of the broad minded, progressive and substantial
business men of Louisville, where he has ever commanded a secure advantage
place in popular confidence and esteem.  His political allegiance is given
to the Democratic party, of whose cause he is a stanch supporter, though
he has never manifested aught of ambition for public office.  He lends his
aid and influence in the furtherance of enterprises tending to advance the
civic and material progress and prosperity of his home city, to whose
every interest he is loyal.  He and his wife hold membership in the
Presbyterian church and he is identified with various social and fraternal
organizations of prominence.
     In 1887 Mr. Swearingen was united in marriage to Miss Lalla Robinson,
the only daughter of Lawrence Robinson, of Louisville, and a granddaughter
of Rev. Stuart Robinson, D.D., a distinguished member of the clergy of the
Presbyterian church.  In the maternal line Mrs. Swearingen was a
great-granddaughter of Hon. William Owsley, who was governor of Kentucky
from 1844 to 1848 and who served as judge of the appellate court of the
state from 1812 to 1828.  She died in 1897, leaving two children, Lalla
Robinson and George W. Swearingen.  In 1901 Mr. Swearingen married Miss
Ada Badger, of Chicago.  Her mother was of the well know Sheridan family
so prominent in Louisville many years ago.  Her father removed to Chicago
in 1859, where he was for many years in the banking business.

Swearingen Van_Swearingen De_Barett Robinson Owsley Crist Badger
Sheridan Embry
=
Bullitt-KY MD PA VA IL Holland

http://www.rootsweb.com/~kygenweb/kybiog/jefferson/swearingen.el.txt