Title	Mr.
Last Name	Swanton
First Name	Silas
Middle Name	B.
Maiden Name
Nick Name
Place of Birth	Dexter, ME
Date of Birth	1839-08-04
Place of Death	Santa Cruz, CA
Date of Death	1909-05-09
Publication	The Eastern Gazette 5-20-1909, p.8
Obituary	Silas B. Swanton. News has been received here of the death in Santa Cruz, Cal., Sunday, May 9, of Silas B. Swanton, formerly of this town, and who has many friends in this section of Maine. The Santa Cruz Sentinel of May 11, in speaking of the death of Mr. Swanton says: "Sunday at 5 o'clock in the afternoon Silas B. Swanton laid down the heavy burden of life and passed on to the land of rest. No man in the city was better known on the street than was Mr. Swanton. His tall form and genial face were seen daily on the street for years. He always had a kind greeting for everybody. His nature was sunny, his dispositions gentle and courteous. His promptness to render service to all classes of people who were in need, was proverbial. He was the Good Samaritan that rendered assistance to all that needed it. He was born in Dexter August 4, 1839, where he lived when the Civil War began. On Sept. 10, 1862, he enlisted in Company E, 22nd Regiment Maine Infantry and served one year, the term of enlistment. He saw hard service in the Department of the Gulf in the 19th Army Corps. His service in the malarial swamps of Louisiana left him in broken health from which he never fully recovered. He came to Santa Cruz in 1887 where he continued to reside until the end came. He was one of the most prominent and faithful members of Wallace-Reynolds Post of the G. A. R. He was rarely absent from the meetings of the Post. His counsel and advice were always highly regarded by his comrades. At his request the funeral services were conducted by the Grand Army and the Women's Relief Corps, Col. Lucas pronouncing the eulogy. Mr. Swanton was also a member of the A. 0. U. W., the members of which order furnished part of the bearers. Mr. Swanton leaves a devoted and heart-stricken wife to mourn his loss and who will have the sympathy of his numerous friends, also a brother, our well known fellow-citizen, A. P. Swanton, who is several years older than he and who keenly feels the loss of his brother. F. W. Swanton, who everybody knows, is a nephew of the deceased." Mr. Swanton has a niece, Mrs. Charles F. Bean, of Zion's hill, as well as other distant relatives in Maine and other New England states. For some years he was in trade with J. h. Swanton in Dexter. It will also be remembered by the older residents that he was at one time connected with the woolen mills in Sangerville.