Hi, thanks for all your responses. I thought this might be of some help to
other researchers so I'm sending it out. This was taken from the History
of Smith Co. TN 1986 Vol. 1 pg 429.
Cindy
CARDWELL FAMILY
F198
1800s
Cardwell was a very common family name in Smith County in the mid-1800s.
but many moved on, and the number declined in the late 1800s A complete
study of the families, identifying all individuals, and their
inter-relationships, has not been done, but this sketch is believed to be
an accurate picture of a group from which many Smith Countians descend.
The first Cardwell in Smith County was John G., who was recorded as being
on a jury by 1808. By 1820, he had been joined by Anderson and Caleb and
their families - 19 in all. By 1830, Caleb had moved (possibly to
Illinois), and Leonard, Fenalon, and Ruth had arrived. There were now 39
Cardwells in Smith County. The first four are believed to have been sons of
Thomas Cardwell, who was born about 1743, raised in Prince Edward County,
Virginia, but moved to Granville County, North Carolina, in 1785, where he
died in 1800.
Thomas was the son of John (ca. 1721-1795), who was the son of Thomas (ca.
1685-1751), who was the son of Thomas (ca. 1660- ca. 1717), who was the son
of Thomas (ca. 1615 - ca. 1689), who came to Virginia in
1636. He was the son of William Cardwell of Lancashire, England. Starting
with the first Thomas, who settled in Middlesex County, Virginia, the
Cardwells moved successively westward - to Henrico County, to Cumber-land
County, and to Prince Edward County. The name Cardwell is of Norman French
extraction, and was the earlier "de Cardeville," or one who comes from
Cardonville (Chardo's village) in Normandy.
The three brothers who stayed in Smith County all raised large families.
John G. and his wife Sarah H. had at least 12 (and maybe 13) children,
including Emily Watson (m. Thomas Overstreet), Frances (m. Varnal
Cardwell), Helwig (?) (m. - Wheeler), Polly Ann (m. W.L. Kemp), Lethe D.
(m. -Kamp), Lucy Nell (?) (m. Benjamin Samp-son), Thomas D., John R.,
William W., James Alexander (m. Lucy Cardwell), Martha Paralee (m. William
Burrell Robinson), and Sarah G.
J[onathan] Leonard married Lucy Strum 18 Dec. 1802 and they had at least
eight children, including William Wilson, Buckner S. (m. Mary Carolyn
Robinson), Leonard Jefferson (m. Lockey - ), Alvin P. (m. Amelia C.),
Margaret (m. - Troop), and Daniel J. (m. Adelaid -).
By 1850, Alvin, Daniel J., Buckner S., Leonard Jefferson, and Alvin P. had
families of their own. In addition, Leonard H. Cardwell had come to Smith
County before 1840, and in 1850 had a family of at least seven children. He
was the son of Thomas Nelson Cardwell, a brother of the four brothers who
had come to Smith County earlier. In addition, Isaac Cardwell, who may have
been the son of James Dudley Cardwell, another brother to the four, was in
Smith County by 1850. There were now 50 Cardwells, all except Daniel J. and
his family living north of the Cumberland River. All four of the brothers
died in the 1840s. By 1870, only four Cardwell families were listed in the
census.
Only about four Cardwells from Smith County served in the Confederate
Army, the highest ranking of which was 2nd Lieutenant Joseph Leonard
Cardwell of 2nd Co. H, 24th Tennessee Infantry. The other three, James,
Silas, and William L., were in the same unit. Approximately 30 Cardwells
served in Tennessee Confederate units, with a large proportion serving in
the cavalry. Many Cardwells, first or second cousins of the Smith County
Cardwells, had moved to Grainger or Green Counties from North Carolina.
They split about equally between Confederate and Union units.
by Edward L. Thackston