Charlie Thomas Swinson was born in Onslow County in an area the local's affectionately call the "Ten Mile". He was the seventh son, of ten children, born to Jesse Swinson and Calestia Ann Batts. Of the ten children, nine boys and one girl, only seven boys reached maturity: James David, John Austin, Jacob Edward, Zedick Calvin, Montie Gue, Charlie Thomas, and Jessie Gaston.

Charlie Thomas was commonly called Tom, or Tom Rocker, because it appeared he was slowly rocking side to side as he walked. He lived on the Ten Mile his entire life. When he was 32 years old he married Fanny Bell Rogers, the daughter of Major Ransom Rogers and Martha Elizabeth Pierce, from the Nine Mile. They moved into a house built by Tom and his father. It was a wooden house made from the heart of a pine tree. The main house was two rooms that joined through the living room. The house was heated with a fireplace located in the living room. The type of construction didn't offer much protection from the elements. You could usually see the chickens as they moved under the house, which was supported by lighter knot stumps that held it approximately two feet off the ground. The front porch, called a dog trot, connected the main house to the kitchen. There was a large well in front of the house that was on a weighted pulley retrieval system. When the bucket was full the weight of the water would offset the pole balancing the bucket and pull it upward. Fanny had a bed of orange lilies that grew around the well so she could enjoy them each morning when she went to fetch the water.

They weren't married long before the children started coming:

George Nick was born March 5, 1919 and lived only a short time. He died April 4, 1919.

William Howard was born February 4, 1920. He married Mary Alice Ramsey on May 7, 1940. They had three children: Helen, Veronica and William (1945-1995). William Howard died on July 8, 1967. Mary Alice passed away March 21, 1975.

Claudie Horace was born Nov 1, 1921. He married Clara Messener and they had two sons, Charles and Irvin. They divorced and he married Janet Mae Anderson, from Maryland, on October 3, 1955. Janet passed away August 20, 1999. They had six children: Cheryle, Robert, Carol, Boyd, Audra and Shawn. They all currently reside in Richmond, VA.

Mattie Gertrude was born July 31, 1923 and lived nine months. She died May 12, 1924.

Lucille was born August 21, 1924. She has resided in California most of her life.

Gladys was born November 23, 1926. She married William Stanley Harrison from Bertie County, NC. They had eight children: Velvet, Danny, Jacquelyn, Thomas (1950-1969), Brenda, Deborah, Anthony, and Carroll. Gladys currently resides in Windsor, N.C.

Hubert Lee was born June 21, 1928. He married Pearl Louise Jarman on March 17, 1952 and had three children: Thurman, Faye and Jimmy. They divorced and he married Rochelle Hudson Swinson, his first cousin's widow. Hubert died December 22, 1998.

Hallie Donal was born July 24, 1929. He married Shirley Warren from Oswego, NY on January 1, 1953. They had four children: Donna, Freida, Douglas and Ronald. They divorced and he married Diane Lee Burleigh of Medway, ME in 1976. Diane brought 5-year-old daughter, Trichelle, to the marriage. They had Jeremy (Oct 16 - Oct 17, 1976) and Barbara.

Although I've heard people say their last child was a girl, my research indicates a baby boy was stillborn on June 25, 1930. With his passing he took my grandmother, Fanny. She is buried in the Swinson Cemetery on the Ten Mile. Although the marker bears no indication of this, she was laid to rest with the baby in her arms. After Fanny's untimely passing, the six surviving children were spread out to their uncles and aunts while Tom tried to regroup.

In November 1931 he married Ada Mae Ezell, the daughter of Christopher "Kit" Ezell and Killie Howard. They tried to bring the children home, but the transition proved to be a difficult one for Hallie. He'd already become a part of his Uncle John's household, quickly becoming their baby. After losing a second "mother" in as many years he was inconsolable. His Uncle John retrieved him one day and Hallie lived with his uncle's family until his late teens. He never realized until much later that Tom Rocker was his father.

Tom and Ada had six children of their own:

Daisey Bell was born December 25, 1932. She married Cleve Morris on May 10, 1953 and had two girls, Floy and Gwendolyn. They all reside in Georgia.

Albert Thomas was born May 11, 1935. He married Karen King, of Oswego, NY, and had four children: Tommy, Kerri, Ricky and Julie. They divorced and he married Cecilia (Peaches) Gaimbo, also of New York. Peaches brought a daughter, Amy, from her first marriage. Albert and Peaches had one son, Scott. They currently reside in New York.

Alma Dean was born March 20, 1938. She married Steve Hemby on August 28, 1954 and had four children: Kathy, Steve, Susan and Johnny. They all currently reside in the Jacksonville, NC area.

Lorraine was born Dec 11, 1943. She married Floyd Shephard and had two sons, Earl and Glen. Floyd passed away on June 25, 1967. Lorraine and her boys live in NC.

Paul Dewey was born April 30, 1947. He married Linda Faye Moore (our only red-headed Swinson). They had three children: Anthony, Amanda (Born/died Sep 14, 1980) and Jason.

Like most people of that time and location Tom was self-sufficient. He lived on land his father deeded to him, Fanny, and the heirs of her body. His farm raised everything they needed with the exception of rice, coffee, and sugar.

On December 1, 1963 Thomas Charlie Swinson died from a stroke. Although she never drove an automobile Ada Mae died from internal injuries she sustained in a car crash on March 7, 1967. They’re both buried in the Swinson Cemetery on the Ten Mile.

(Freida is the granddaughter of Charlie Thomas Swinson and the daughter of Hallie Swinson and Shirley Warren. She currently resides in Midlothian, VA with her husband and two children. This biography is used with her permission.)

(Onslow County Heritage - North Carolina, by the Onslow County Historical Society, contains additional information on the family of Charlie Thomas Swinson, with articles by Alma Dean Swinson Hemby, daughter of Charlie Thomas and Ada Mae Ezell; and Mary Helen Swinson Swift, granddaughter of Charlie Thomas and Fanny Bell Rogers.)