OVERVIEW[]
Major John Cowan married Mary Walker, his cousin. He was killed by the Indians on the Clinch River, 1778-1780. Mary Cowan was captured at the same time, with her small daughter, and her son James, 15 years of age. He ws captured by the Cherokees and escaped after one year. His mother, Ann Cowan was taken north by the Shawees, and escaped after seven years. Fleming, 1971 quoting Mrs. H.J. Dunavant.
There appears to be no direct confirmation of the existence of either Major John Cowan (?-c1779) or his wife Mary Walker (?-?). These individuals seem to be known ONLY from the letters of Dr. JB Cowan. It is highly likely that JB confused information about several different related family members.
JB was probably descended from the John Cowan (1763-1837) who married first Agness Martin (1763-1827). While this particular John Cowan was not killed by Indians c1779, there is a reasonable possibility that he was indeed the son of Samuel Cowan (?-1776) and Ann Walker (?-?). Most researchers, however identify his parents as Robert Cowan (1732-1784) and Susan Woods (1736-?).
Vita[]
| Entry | Source/Basis/Commentary | |
| DOB: | ||
| POB: | ||
| DOD: | between 1778 and 1780, incl. | per JB Cowan letters |
| POD: | Clinch River, probably near Castle's Woods | Mrs. Dunavant identifies his POD as the Clinch; JB seems to think/imply it occurred in East TN, though he's not sure. Its possible that he died on the Clinch in East TN, but Dunavant identifies his mother as Ann Cowan (presumably the wife of Samuel Cowan, who was killed by Indians in 1776 in SW VA). This connects him to the Castle's Woods line of Cowan who remained in the area until after the Revolution, and would seem to indicate that his POD was in the Castle's Woods area. However, the link to Samuel Cowan and wife Ann Walker Cowan seems to be in error, which calls into question this POD. See Indian Captivity Stories/Mrs. Dunavant/Validation. |
| Burial: | ||
| Spouse: | Mary Walker (?-aft1780) | |
| DOM: | ||
| POM: | ||
| Father: | ||
| Mother: |
Ancestry[]
ChildList[]
| Name | DOB | POB | DOD | POD | Spouse | DOM | POM | Notes |
| James Cowan (1770-1815) | Mary Montgomery (?-?) | DOB also given by some as 1764, wife also identified as Nancy Montgomery, and Mary Weir Montgomery, and Mary Weir. | ||||||