This site is dedicated to my father, his guidance led me to appreciate my heritage and how it influenced my instilled passion for freedom and independence.  I was fortunate enough to have a grandfather that was a family historian and had collected a treasure trove of family artifacts.  I was fascinated with his stories about our family and had the opportunity to study the family records he had acquired.  Some of the stories about the first Tipsword and his sons sounded incredible and as a youngster I was on the edge of my chair.  I have included some of the documentation I have and articles on the Tipsword family history.

    The information found here is a mixture of tales I heard from my youth, published history and research by other family historians.  The primary intention of this site is to share the rich heritage that everyone named or related to a "Tipsword" shares.  Visitors will learn that the family settled in the New World over 100 years before the War for Independence and continued to move ahead of civilization and live among the Natives in the wilderness of the Frontier. Tipsword ancestors lived in America long before there was a United States and were raising families in Illinois before it became a state.

    The Tipsword Family Name was born about the same time as the state of Illinois. Native American Indians were living on the land when the family arrived and are very much a part of the Tipsword history. I have included information on the early history of Illinois and the tribes that occupied the territory.

      For more detailed information on the Tipsword Family Tree and what limb you may be on, I recommend the work done by researchers Diana Smith Tipsword and Gayle Tipsword Norris.  Their work is online and you will find a link under Related Sites.

Index
 
The Griffin I Know
First Effingham Settler
Effingham Landscape
Altamont History
Vandalia Settled
Pension Claim
Photo Gallery
About the Author


Related Reading
 
Diana-Gayle Files
Old Family Pictures
Rolland Tipsword