The roots of the family, various spellings, is elsewhere established, see TRUESDELL GENEALOGY, as having been in Lincolnshire, England as early as the start of the 14th century. First of authentic lineage is Sir John Truesdale, vicar of St. Betolph's in 1309. A century later and of record for nine generations covering a period of almost three hundred years was a distinguished county family at the manor of Munden in Caister [Lincolnshire Pedigree]. The last of this family have been traced to Ireland where one son, Captain Francis Trewsdale, dying at Dublin about 1666 without issue, had commanded a royalist troop against Cromwell. He and his family were admitted Anglicans, supporters of the Stuart kings.

In the meanwhile, a second family of Truesdale's developed in and about the borough of Boston, as established by the Parish Registers of St. Betolph's beginning in the middle of the 16th century. This family was dissenters or non-conformists and presumably anti-royalists, supporters of Cromwell and the Parliament. From this branch come the earliest migrants to America; Deacon Richard Truesdell, to Massachusettes Bay Colony in 1630, followed by his nephew Samuel, 1645-1694, to Newton, Mass.

About this time, Oliver Cromwell with English troops invaded Ireland. Drogheda fell in 1649. Some Parliamentary units were demobilized there, the superior officials being given forfeited Irish lands and the soldiers allowed to settle. This is the starting point of the family tradition of the Truesdales of County Down in Norther Ireland. [unknown] Truesdale, an English soldier under Cromwell, settled near Drogheda and his descendants in 1700 moved to Dounty Down from which three generations later John Truesdel and his family left Kinghill and sailed for Charleston, S.C. in 1772.

In assemblying [sic] the data for this manuscript all available sources have been searched. Public records in Ireland are virtually non-existant due to the burnings occuring in the Civil War of 1921/2. Such as were available were procured by Mabel Phelphs, a professional genealogist. Rev. A.J.R. Campbell, rector at Rathfriland, searched the registers of his parish finding some early births and marriages at Clanduff [Hilltown]. These were amplified by the private records of Mr. John A. McCracken, also of Rathfriland.

Of greatest value in developing this manuscript are a series of letter written to the immigrant, John Truesdel 1740-1806, as follows:
    -by his brother-in-law, Henry Hollingsworth, from Kinghill in 1773
    -by his brother, Samuel Truesdale, from Kinghill in 1792, 1802 and 1804
    -by his nephew, Henry Hollingsworth jr, from Musquibit River, Nova Scotia in 1803
Of equal importance are two letters from another nephew, James Truesdale, who migrated to Rochester, N.Y. in 1823, written to John Truesdel jr in 1824 and to Jesse Edward Truesdale in 1859. The original letters are in the possession of Mrs. Charles O. Beckham of Lakeland, Fla. She, with Mrs. Larence T. Gregory of Kershaw, S.C., painstakingly undertook their transcription. Typed copies have been furnished Mr. McCracken of Rathfriland and Miss Dorothy S. Truesdale, formerly of Rochester, N.Y.

Descendants have kindly assisted with further family records. Mis Margaret Drakeford, in connection with her paternal family, had prepared a basic manuscript. Mrs. Gregory, above, was most generous with her time and advice. Mis Gussie Truesdel developed the Mississippi branch. Mrs. William R. Tisdale furnished all information as the Truesdels of Tampa, descendants of Hollingsworth. Others, submitting specific dates, have been so credited in the body of the manuscript.

The pertinent Federal Census from 1790 to 1880 were extensively examined. The results were confirmatory as regards the known families, but it also produced a number of new families or the beginnings of families which had not been previously included and which today are lost. Possibly the publication of this manuscript may serve to supply some of the omissions.

Vital statistics filed in the state archives are of such recent compulsatory date that they would cover only the recent generations and have not been consulted. They are within current memory. Nor have recorded land transactions been included - this is regretfully admitted.

Throughout, the spelling of the surname has conformed to that given in the bulk of the references or, in current generations, as indicated by the individual contributor. The variations in the terminal syllable - "dale", "del" or "dell" - are all historically correct and, today, conform to family usage or individual choice.

As noted above there exists adequate authentic source material for the general reconstruction of the genealogy of this family from its beginnings in Northern Ireland down to the present. Some of the descendants have kept good family records. They are so noted in the text. However, deficiencies exist in data pertaining to the descendants of the two younger sons, James and Hollingsworth, of the immigrant. In addition, quite a number of those written to failed to respond or to contribute information as to their part in the family history.

Not included herein are several other pre-Revolutionary migrant families of the same name, scattered across the United States and Canada, and in great number. Their genealogies, like this, have been worked out and are the subject of separate text and manuscript. In addition to the descendants of Samuel Truesdell, 1645-1694, known to have come from near Boston in Lincolnshire, there were two others with specific Irish background. In 1730 a John Trousdale came to the Colonies and eventually settled in South Carolina, his descendants moving to Tennessee and elsewhere. Here, the tradition is simply "from Ireland". In 1771, another John Truesdale, definitely from County Down, settled in western Pennsylvania, the descendants moving to Ohio and westward. No authentic relationship has been established between any of the foregoing or with the family of John Truesdel of South Carolina.

This manuscript has been prepared to make a record of all data secured that applies to a specific, established branch. After critical review by several interested members of this family, a corrected copy will be placed in some appropriate state [South Carolina] depository as an open reference text. Any descendant, without request, may reproduce the same wholly or in part.

KARL TRUESDELL
Major General U.S. Army [Ret.]