PHOTOS OF ALL STONES ARE POSTED.

Not many people know where this over-200-year-old cemetery is unless they live on the road where it is located or are interested in early Hanover Township history. It's not even noted on local maps. The cemetery is on land once owned by Samuel Van Swearingen and his family. The Swearingens were some of the original settlers when they came to Hanover Township in the late 18th century. It was still a land inhabited by Native Americans; American independence was only a decade old. Those early pioneers had to clear the land of ancient forests to build for themselves and their families a new homestead and a new life.

But Samuel's only daughter and her child were not forgotten. Today students in Beaver County schools read about them in their history books. An historical marker placed by the road near the cemetery also notes what happened to Samuel's daughter and grandchild. Mary and her infant child were the victims of the last Indian murder in Beaver County and are buried here. In 1790, she and her child were scalped and killed by Indians.

The gravestones at this family cemetery were standing in 1995, but now they are half buried in dirt and grass. Only 13-14 remain in two rows. A couple are broken but partially readible. There is one that appears to be buried with its back facing up, and therefore unreadible.

The cemetery is located between two houses on the right of Swearingen Road less than 1/4 mile off of Hardins Run Road in Hanover Township. A farm is across the road. A roadside marker, hidden by some high bushes and barely visible from the road, was erected by the Beaver County Historical Research and Landmarks Foundation.

Other members of the Swearingen family are buried in Bethel Methodist Church Cemetery and Mill Creek Hill Cemetery.