William Cowan (1750-1809)

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Genealogical Keynotes
The content of this page contributed by: Margie Cowan

Vita

 * Born: 1750 VA
 * Married: c. 1773 [Botetourt or Fincastle Co., VA]. The eldest child of this couple was born in 1774, implying a 1773 DOM.  It is possible that the marriage occurred earlier than this.  Given her DOB of 1755  as commonly accepted but unconfirmed, Jane Walker would have been about 18 in 1773.  A DOM of earlier than 1770 would be hard to accept with out good evidence.
 * Died: 1809 [Blount Co.?] TN
 * Burial: William Cowan's DAR Marker, Maryville, Blount Co., TN

See Alternative Interpretation section below ...

Ancestry
The identity of William Cowan's parents is not known. It is generally assumed that his family was on Beverly's Manor prior to 1756. Many think that his father was John Cowan, though the basis for this is not clear. It is worth noting that identifying his father as "John" is consistent with child nameing patterns among the Scot-Irish (See Albion's Seed [Need reference], i.e., naming the first son for the paternal grandfather; second son for the maternal grandfather; first daughter for the maternal grandmother; and second daughter for the paternal grandmother. The first born son of William Cowan and Jane Walker was named John [Alexander] Cowan; this may indicate that the name of Williams father was indeed "John". Hildebrand's map of Beverly Manor for this time period shows parcels belonging to a John Cowan and a William Cowan. It is reasonable that one or the other could be William's father. (See "Research" below).

Spouse(s)

 * Jane Walker (1755-1806) (b. 1755 in VA; d. 1806, [Blount Co.?], TN)


 * m. 1773 (Botetourt or Fincastle Co., VA)

Marriage date based on the birthdate of the eldest child, Eleanor (Cowan) Gillespy. Eleanor Gillespy's tombstone states:
 * ''Beneath Sleeps
 * the mortal part
 * of
 * Eleanor Gillespy
 * Wife of
 * James Gillespy
 * Deposited here
 * November 23, 1831
 * Aged 57 years''


 * (d. 1831-57 = b. 1774)

Religious Affiliation
Presbyterian 

Child List


Military Service

 * Virginia State Library, Dunsmore’s War Records, p. 229. [Virginia State Library, microfilm, interlibrary loan.]
 * (Click the document image to view p. 229 ... or ... right-click to save the image to your computer.) ... or ... Search Virginia State Library
 * 1773 -- William Cowan shown on the list of militia soldiers under Captain William Russell for the first pay period just prior to the outbreak of Dunmore’s War in the fall of 1774.


 * Clark, Gerald H; Militia of Washington Co., VA; Officers 1777-1835; Militia Men 1798-1835, Mountain Press, Signal Mountain, IN; 1979, p. 13. (Fairfax Co., VA Library)
 * 1777 -- Recommended Lieutenant in Capt. Snoddy's Co., Washington Co., Militia (27 Aug 1777)


 * 1780 -- William Cowan was at the Battle of Kings Mountain under Col. William Russell (October 7, 1780).


 * 1782 –- William Cowan was “Recommended to his Excellency the Governor as fit and Proper Persons for Captains of Militia in the County of Washington” on March 20, 1782


 * 1785 -- Mentioned as Captain, Company No. 9, 1st Battalion.


 * White, Kathrine Keogh, The King’s Mountain Men …, Joseph K. Ruebush Company, Dayton, VA; 1924,
 * p. 162: “Andrew and William [Cowan] are listed by Summers and Eckenrode. They were captains in the militia of Washington county, 1777-1780, and were under Campbell at King’s Mountain.”


 * Hamilton, Emory L., The First Militia Roster of the Clinch River Area of Russell County, 1978 ...
 * "In the Archives of the Virginia State Library is found one of the most interesting documents pertaining to the earliest settlers of the Clinch River Valley in what is now Russell, Scott, and Lee Counties, but then a part of Washington County. It is pages 229 and 230 of the Dunmore's War Records, and is a roster of 72 names of Militia soldiers under Captain William Russell. The roster is for the first pay period just prior to the outbreak of Dunmore's War in the fall of 1774.


 * While this document does not list everyone living in the area, it does give an insight into some of the very earliest settlers. On the ensuing pages [Hamilton lists] by number and name each of the Militiamen, with a brief biography of what I[he was] able to find pertaining to each man."


 * Of note for purposes of this page:


 * "1. WILLIAM RUSSELL - He was Captain of Militia and lived near the present Castlewood High School. His first wife, Tabitha Adams Russell died there in 1776 and was buried there. Russell later married Elizabeth, the widow of General William Campbell and lived at Saltville. The second Mrs. Russell was a sister to Patrick Henry. At the outbreak of the Revolution, Russell became a general in the Continental Army. It was for him that Russell County was named."


 * "4. JOHN SNODDY - This was Captain John Snoddy, born circa 1739 and who was a militia captain on the Clinch until his removal to Kentucky around 1780. He had married Margaret Walker, a daughter of John Walker who lived at the "sink" of Sinking Creek on a farm he called "Broad Meadows". Snoddy at one time owned Moore's Fort at Castlewood, which he sold prior to his removal to Kentuckyto Frederick Fraley. He was a brother-in-law to Patrick Porter, and the Cowan brothers, David, William and Samuel, all having married Walker sisters. John Snoddy died in Madison Co., Ky. in 1814, and should not be confused with an older John Snoddy who served on the Washington Co. Court who lived at Abingdon. The older Snoddy married Agnes Glasgow in Philadelphia in 1741 and moved to Tennessee where he died in 1786."


 * "28. WILLIAM COWAN - William Cowan was a Captain in the militia and his wife was Jane Walker, daughter of John Walker. His brothers David, Samuel, and Andrew also lived on the Clinch River. William Cowan lived two miles below Moore's Fort on land he bought from Capt. David Gass, his brother-in-law. Cowan sold his land to James Osborne and left the area around 1780, probably for Kentucky. The old log house where Gass, Cowan, and Osborne lived still stands in lower Castlewood. Captain William Cowan made several trips into Kentucky before leaving the Clinch."


 * "30. DAVID GASS - Capt. David Gass was born in Pennsylvania in 1729. He settled early in Albemarle Co., Va., where he was serving in the militia in 1758. In 1769 he moved to Castlewood and prepared to go with Boone to Kentucky in 1773. After the Indians attacked Boone's party in Powell Valley, Boone came to Castlewood and lived in a cabin on Capt. Gass's land until he moved to Boonesboro in 1775. Capt. Gass made seven trips to Kentucky before finally moving his family there in 1777. Gass sold his home place on the Clinch to his brother-in-law, Capt. William Cowan, who in turn sold it to James Osborne, Gass died in Madison Co., Ky."

Family History
Land Records, Library of Virginia:
 * 1785 01 January  --  Grant 400 acres on the waters of Licking Creek adjoining David Gass (Fayette Co., [KY])
 * 1785 05 July  --  Grant 400 acres Castlewoods
 * 1797 13 September  --  Grant 100 acres Rockbridge Co.

Land grants for Blount County show that William Cowan secured a parcel on the west bank of the Little River, near Davis Ford. The following shows this parcel in relationship to land holdings by his brother-in-law, John Walker IV.




 * Hamilton, Emory L.; The First Militia Roster of the Clinch River Area of Russell County, 1978
 * "DAVID GASS - Capt. David Gass was born in Pennsylvania in 1729. He settled early in Albemarle Co., Va., where he was serving in the militia in 1758. In 1769 he moved to Castlewood and prepared to go with Boone to Kentucky in 1773. After the Indians attacked Boone's party in Powell Valley, Boone came to Castlewood and lived in a cabin on Capt. Gass' land until he moved to Boonesboro in 1775. Capt. Gass made seven trips to Kentucky before finally moving his family there in 1777. Gass sold his home place on the Clinch to his brother-in-law, Capt. WILLIAM COWAN, who in turn sold it to James Osborne. Gass died in Madison Co., Ky."
 * NOTE: David Gass has been mentioned by several sources as being William Cowan's brother-in-law.<BR>


 * Tinkling Springs Presbyterian Church (today, Staunton, Augusta Co., VA) shows John Cowan as one of the founding members of the church. See Research Needs below ...<BR><BR>

<ul> <li>Land records for Warren County, TN show land transactions (before 1809) for William, John, and Robert – Surveys Around McMinnville from Tennessee’s 3rd Surveyors’ District Plat and Survey Books<BR>
 * Shows land granted to:<BR>
 * 35-145, John Cowen	   1807	156 acres<BR>
 * 35-124, Jno Cowen	   1808	200 acres<BR>
 * 34-071, Wm Cowen	   1808
 * Colville and Mitchell families are neighbors to the Cowans on the plat map.

<BR> <li>Orphan Court minutes in Dallas County, AL tie brothers Robert ( William1 ) and John ( William1 ) together ... separate transactions, but on the same day and same page. (Dallas Co., AL Orphan’s Court records, p. 73-74 … where (i) there are 2 transactions at the top of the page involving Robert and a (ii) third transaction at the bottom of the page where Robert ( William1 ) and John ( William1 ) are involved in the estate of David Mitchell and, in the same transaction, James G. Cowan ( John [Alexander]2, William1 ) is named guardian of the Mitchell minor children.) <BR><BR> <li>Additionally, the 1820 Dallas Co., AL State census shows three Cowan brothers: John ( William1 ), Robert ( William1 ), and David Cowan ( William1 ) residing in Dallas Co. </ul><BR>

Additional Information of Interest
Email ... from Andy Cowan, dated 27 Nov 2006

Dear Margie, <BR> My name is Andy Cowan and I have noted your postings on the subject. I don't know if I can add anything of value in documentation of the surname of David Gass' wife, Sarah but I do have some information pertaining to David Gass and William Cowan.<BR><BR> William and his wife are not in my line of Cowans and from the Cowan Family DNA project not closely related. My interest in them came from my ancestor Jane White McPherson Cowan, wife of Charles Cowan of Lebanon Ohio. Jane was born in Bourbon County, KY where her father Adam had settled in 1785. I have located the land he bought in Bourbon County. I found that one of the boundaries of his land lay along the land of William Cowan. I was naturally very interested in this close proximity of William Cowan to the McPhersons. I now believe that it was just coincidence that Jane later married into my Cowan line.<BR> William Cowan sold a part of his 1000 acres to Alexander Breckenridge in 1790. The deed reads "William Cowan of the County of Greene and the State of North Carolina and his wife, Jane.....". Greene County later became part of the State of Tennessee. The William Cowan land deeded to Breckenridge is described as beginning at a corner to David Gass.<BR><BR> David Gass and William had both been among the early settlers Clinch River Valley near Castle's Woods. David, William, and a William Bush seem to have explored and entered land in Kentucky and requested that the land be surveyed for them. <BR><BR> In a deposition, Michael Stoner was quoted as saying that he knew of no claim on certain land except that of David Gass who had marked trees at a spring now occupied by Mr. Breckenridge. <BR><BR> I believe that I have notes that establish that William Cowan sold his cabin at Castles woods to David Gass. Daniel Boone accepted an invitation by David Gass to live in a cabin on his property in Castles Woods.<BR><BR> My notes are not in electronic form but if some of this is of interest I could copy them for you. I have a map of Bourbon County on which I have located this William Cowan land that could be included. Some other stuff. David Gass' mother may have been a Margaret Cowan, married to John Gass in Lancaster, PA.<BR> Is any of this of use to you?<BR><BR> Sincerely, <BR> Andy Cowan

Alternative Interpretation
While many written sources claim William Cowan was buried in Clarks Grove Cemetery, there are questions and reservations about where he died and where he is buried because the BRONZE marker erected by the DAR is right in the middle of a chronological row of approximately 12 tombstones for Christopher Columbus Cowan and his descendants, beginning with Christopher Columbus Cowan (d. 1873) and ending with Margaret (Eagleton) Cowan (d. 1904). It would be difficult for someone to plan things out so that William, who is thought to have died in 1809, would be buried in the exact middle of that future row of graves. This suggests that at a minimum, he is not buried where the marker is placed. It may also be that he is not buried in Clarks Grove cemetery at all.

The question arises whether William Cowan and Jane (Walker) Cowan died in Blount Co., TN -- as he does not appear on the Blount Co. tax rolls for several years immediately preceeding his death. In 1803, he settled/lived on land owned by sons Robert and David.
 * Womack, Walter; McMinnville at a Milestone, 1810-1960; Standard Publishing Co., Inc. & Womack Printing Co., McMinnville, TN; 1960, p. 120-121. [DAR Library]
 * “The Bentley papers aver that Robert and David Cowan were living somewhere on the eastern side of the present Riverside Cemetery [need the county] as early as 1803. The same source states that a grant to William Cowan in 1803 is described as beginning at a poplar tree on the north bank of Baren Fork at Polly Black’s ford.”]

Thus, there is reason to believe that he and wife, Jane, were living in Warren Co., TN when they died.<BR><BR>

Records

 * Printed Sources:

<ol> <li>Clarks Grove Cemetery, Maryville, Blount Co., TN ... transcriptions at DAR Library. <li>Cowan Bible Records in possession of Margie Cowan, Reston, VA (as of August 2006) ... starts with John [Alexander] Cowan and his wife, Rosanna Gillespy/Gillespie. <li>Fleming, John Kerr; Cowans of County Down, Derreth Publishing Co., Raleigh, NC; p. 371-376. (DAR Library) <li>Houston, Blaine and others, Maxwell History and Genealogy; C. E. Pauley & Co., Indianapolis Engraving Co., 1916, p. 6. [DAR Library] <li>Houston, Samuel Rutherford, Brief Biographical Accounts of Many Members of the Houston Family accompanied by a genealogical table, Elm Street Printing Co., Cincinnati, 1882. [DAR Library] <li>White, Emma Siggins; ''Genealogy of the Descendants of John Walker of Wigton, Scotland, with Records of a Few Allied Families. Also War Records and Some Fragmentary Notes Pertaining to the History of Virginia. 1600-1902'', Tiernan-Dart Printing Company, Kansas City, MO; 1902, p. 282-283. [DAR Library] <li>Wiseman, Eugene M.; The Warren County Story, Genealogy Publishing Service, Franklin, NC 28734, 1995 (DAR Library) <li>Womack, Walter; McMinnville at a Milestone, 1810-1960; Standard Publishing Co., Inc. & Womack Printing Co., McMinnville, TN; 1960, p. 120-121. [DAR Library]<BR><BR>

Other Sources: <li>Clarks Grove Cemetery, Maryville, Blount Co., TN ... personal tombstone photos taken by Margie Cowan (many posted at Find-a-Grave.com). See the online transcription for ... Clarks Grove Cemetery. <li>TN Land Grant #544 for William Cowan [Tennessee State Archives, Nashville, TN] ... dated October 17, 1783 for 250 acres in Greene Co., NC (part of Greene became Sevier Co., TN; then part of Sevier became Knox Co., TN; then part of that became Blount Co., TN) <li>TN Maps -- 1820-1840 <li> Key  document to establishing identity of several of William Cowan & Jane Walker's children is Andrew Finis Cowan's (AFC) Letter (June 7, 1906; Indian Territory/Oklahoma) to Columbia Cowan ( John Alexander4, Campbell Gilmer3, John [Alexander]2, William1 ) in Pierce City, Lawrence Co., MO. <BR> (Original in possession of James E. Freeman ( Ruth (Ginder) Freeman6, Florence Edna (Cowan) Ginder5, Richard Tankersley4, Campbell Gilmer3, John [Alexander]2, William1 ), Camas, WA as of August, 2006). <BR> Note:   A copy of the AFC letter was included with Margie Cowan's First Families of Tennessee applications for William Cowan and John [Alexander] Cowan ( William1 ) <ul> <li>Of note, Andrew Cowan ( William1 ), father of Andrew Finis Cowan, was 90 when he died in 1872. <li>Since Andrew Finis Cowan was 43 when his father died, it is likely he heard many stories first hand about his grandparents (William & Jane) as well as his aunts/uncles, interacted with the remaining aunts & uncles and/or their children (his first cousins), was aware of correspondence between the families, and/or that the families visited each other ... especially so since many of these aunts/uncles remained in Knox/Blount/Loudon counties, which were in relatively close proximity to McMinn and Bradley counties, where AFC and his father lived for many years. <li>The letter was written by Andrew Finis Cowan ( Andrew2, William1 ), who was 77 years old (b. December 1829), in an apparent response to Columbia’s request for information about their ancestors, initiated because of a “claim” (scam?) that the Cowans were potential heirs to a part of Central Park and she was trying to “prove” whether her Cowan ancestors tied into the Central Park “ancestors”. <li>Thus, Andrew responds with information about his aunts and uncles, makes “honorable” mention to several of their children, and a reference to his grandmother, Jane (Walker) Cowan. <li>While Andrew Finis Cowan's eldest three aunts and uncles died at relatively young ages (either before AFC was born or shortly thereafter), their spouses did not die until many years later. <li> The 1857 letter written by Andrew Cowan ( William1 ) to Rosannah (Gillespy/Gillespie) Cowan shows, that despite considerable distance, the two branches of the family remained in contact. </ul> <li> Key  document to establishing relationship of Andrew Cowan to John [Alexander] Cowan is the letter written Andrew Cowan ( William1 ) on May 17, 1857 from Bradley Co., TN) to Rosanna (Gillespy/Gillespie) Cowan (addressed as "Dear Sister Roseanna") ... original in possession of James E. Freeman, Camas, WA (as August, 2006).<BR> (Copy of the Andrew Cowan's 1857 letter was included with Margie Cowan's First Families of Tennessee applications for William Cowan and John [Alexander] Cowan, along with a copy of his pension application for War of 1812 service to prove that the signatures matched on both documents.)

<BR><BR> Both letters below have similar details to the AFC letter and/or either further substantiate his info or add further details of family relationships. <li>W. E. Parham Letter to W. D. Newberry re Cowans [McClung Library, Knoxville, Parham Collection; Blount Co., TN Library] <li>R. M. Johnston ( Jane Walker (Cowan) Johnston3, Andrew2, William1 ) letter to first cousin, James H Cowan ( George Washington3, Samel2, William1 ) [McClung Library, Knoxville, Parham Collection; Blount Co., TN Library] <ul> <li>R. M. Johnston's mother was Jane Walker (Cowan) Johnston ( Andrew2, William1 ), a daughter of Andrew Cowan ( William1 ) and his wife, Esther F. "Hettie" (Houston) Cowan. <li>Thus, R. M. Johnston was a grandson of Andrew & Hettie ... and AFC's nephew. <li>(The Johnston family is buried at Steekee Creek Cemetery, Loudon, Loudon Co., TN. ... listed at findagrave as [Steekee Cemetery]. While I have many pictures of Johnston tombstones, I have not had time to post them at findagrave.  However, see the online transcription of the Steekee Creek cemetery ... Part 1 and Part 2)</ul>

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Cemetery Records/Tombstone Photos

<li>Clarks Grove Cemetery (Findagrave.com), Maryville, Blount Co., TN ... Clarks Grove Cemetery transcriptions. <li> William Cowan's DAR marker, Clarks Grove Cemetery, Maryville, Blount Co., TN<BR> <li>Eleanor Gillespy's tombstone, Clarks Grove Cemetery, Maryville, Blount Co., TN. </ol><BR><BR>

Research Needs
 Please help other researchers by posting your tombstone photos at findagrave.com <BR><BR>

<ul> <li>''If you are a  COWAN male , the  Cowan DNA Project needs you to help establish links between the various Cowan branches. ''<BR><BR>

<li>If you claim descendancy from one of William Cowan and Jane Walker's children, please contact Margie Cowan -- mcowan @ erols.com. <BR>(I am also looking for photos of ancestors and/or current descendants as well as tombstone photos.)<BR><BR> <li>Does anyone know what the tax laws were in early TN? I'd heard that there was an age at which a man no longer paid tax ... which could provide an alternative explanation for why William Cowan does not appear on Blount Co., TN tax rolls after a certain date.<BR> <ul><li>I'm not sure about TN, but in 18th century VA there are numerous records where the county administrators grant exemption from taxes due to "old age and infirmity". I don't think there's a specific age when that was done, or that it was done in every case. it appears to me to be more a matter of case-by-case decision making. Bill 23:58, 29 August 2006 (UTC)</ul>

<li> Parents of William Cowan (1750-1809.  Oral tradition suggests his father was John Cowan. This is consistent with child nameing patterns among the Scot-Irish, as characterized in Albion's Seed, i.e., naming the first son for the paternal grandfather; second son for the maternal grandfather; first daughter for the maternal grandmother; and second daughter for the paternal grandmother.  The first born son of William Cowan and Jane Walker was named John [Alexander] Cowan;  this may indicate that the name of Williams father was John. <BR><BR> Jane's parents are identified as John Walker III and Ann Houston of the Wigton Walker line.  Her parents were living in Borden's Grant or perhaps Beverly's Manor in Virginia in the early 1750's. It is commonly speculated that Williams parents came from Beverly's Manor, though evidence for this seems lacking.  However, Hildebrand's map of Beverly Manor for this time period shows parcels belonging to John Cowan and William Cowan. It is reasonable that one or the other could be William's father.

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Links

 * Wigton Walkers
 * Walker Home
 * Virgina County Boundary Changes
 * Smoky Mountain Photos
 * Finley & Gillespie Research
 * Cowan Clan United
 * Cowan DNA Project<BR>
 * If you are a  COWAN male , the  Cowan DNA Project needs you to help establish links between the various Cowan branches. Click the link and sign up!<BR><BR>

Utilities
 * Wiki Tips, Tricks, Links<BR><BR>
 * Tombstone Cleaning Tips, Tricks, Techniques<BR><BR>
 * Perpetual Calendar
 * Birthdate Calculator
 * Fun Birthday Information<BR><BR>

Contributors

 * Margie Cowan -- Cowantex 14:55, 12 August 2006 (UTC)