John Steven COWAN
Birth:
25 Dec 1832
Cannon, Tennessee
Death:
18 Jun 1900
Bandera, Bandera, Texas
Burial:
Bandera, Bandera, Texas
Marriage:
21 Jul 1853
Clarke Co, Arkansas
Father:
Mother:
Notes:
Deed from Drewey W. GOLLAHER of Sebastian Co., AR for $50 to John S. COWAN of
Pike Co, AR. Land in Clark County, AR: NE quarter of the NE quarter of D#17
Twp 810 R 22 W, 40 acres. Signed by his mark
Marriage license in file
Letter from a son of William Charles COWAN: "2 Feb 1962. To Daniel Emerson my
grandson,
A brief sketch of the COWAN family's history as clearly as I have been
informed and can remember.
The first of our family of COWANS was a John COWAN, who came from Ireland
in, I think, 1780 or thereabout.
He was the father of my great, great, great grandfather who settled in
Tennessee and owned lots of land. How or when I don't know.
However, when my great grandfather migrated from Tennessee to Arkansas, he
gave him a deed to one league of land. But in crossing the Mississippi Riber
on a ferry boat, the water was rough and one of their trunks tipped off the
stack of belongings and was lost. It had all of his papers and the deeds in
it. Land was so cheap in those days they didn't bother about it.
All of this I was told by my grandmother. So they settled near Ft. Smith,
Arkansas. They had a few slaves and raised four boys and two girls, of which
my grandfather was one. I don't know the names of but 2 of the others. One
boy was Jeff and one girl was Frances.
Grandpa married Jane Golahar. She was 7/8 black Dutch and 1/8 Choctaw
Indian. Grandpa was Irish.
To them was born Bill, George, Sol, Pat, and Mary.
Bill was my father. His full name was William Charles. He married
Josephine Smith.
To them was born George Henry, Ethel May, and Willie Bell.
Let's say we are Americans from white forebears (ancestors). Kindly proud
of my offspring.
Your Grandmother's heritage was about the same as mine. Don't know, Dan,
but hope what little I have been able to write you will be of some help.
Love, Grandpa
My grandfather, Clyde Solomon Cowan, said of his grandfather, who he lived
with for awhile, that he came from Arkansas with his brother-in-law Charles
GOLLIHAR. They split up; he went to the piney woods of Texas and worked in a
saw mill, and the brother-in-law went to Corpus Christi.
By Terry Cowan, April 2008:
John S. Cowan married Nancy Jane Gollihar in her native Clark County, Arkansas in 1853. On December 12, 1857, John S. Cowan purchased 40 acres from his brother-in-law, Drew Gollihar. Gollihar had himself purchased the property from his parents in 1854. On the 1857, John S. Cowan was said to be of neighboring Pike County, Arkansas.
On March 1, 1860, John Cowan received a grant for 40 acres of government land in Section 5, T 5 N, R 30 W. On May 1, 1860, he received a grant for another 40 acres in Section 19. This tract was just west of the acreage his father settled on.
The Cowans were Unionists, apparently. John S. Cowan did not enlist in the Confederate army upon the outbreak of hostilities. His brother William later joined the Union army, as did a brother-in-law. When the new conscription law was passed in April 1862, John S. Cowan was drafted into the Confederate Army on June 19, 1862. He was described as being 5'11" in height, of light complexion, with blue eyes and black hair. He served in Co. B of King's Regiment of the 34th Arkansas Infantry. His brothers-in-law, Drew Gollihar and Abner J. Wilson served in the same company. John obtained leave to go home for Christmas 1862, and once there, he and Jane packed their belongings, crossed over into the Indian Territory and headed for Texas. There, they sat out the rest of the war, and found a permanent home. His land in Arkansas may have been sold for taxes. Yet the acreage closest to the Cowan homeplace was owned by brother-in-law Andrew J. Gist in 1887, so some arrangement may have been made within the family.
The Cowans first settled in San Saba County. Some of the Gollihars may have lived in the area, though probably across the Colorado River in Burnet County. By 1870, they had relocated to southwestern Bell Cowan, near a host of distant kinsmen, the William F. Cowan family.
Indians remained a problem in the area. Jane Gollihar Cowan recalled that they would sneak up to the spring and steal butter and milk from the milk house. She kept a gun close by, and a bulldog for protection. In 1870, Indians stole some horses from the Cowans.
John Cowan was a freighter and owned several wagons and teams. At first, he used ox teams, but later upgraded to mule teams. John Cowan would often haul freight out to Fort Concho and back. The freighters traveled together for protection from Indians. John Cowan lost several oxen to marauding Indians.
In 1879, John Cowan sent his own herd from Bell County to Llano County, with sons William and Patrick in charge of their care. The cattle remained there for several years.
In 1889, John Cowan made at least one trip back to Sebastian County, Arkansas. He was there to execute some deeds in settlement of the family land there.
In later years, John S. Cowan may have maintained a home in Bandera, Texas, where he died and was buried. Other accounts indicated that he died while on a trail drive there. Jane Gollihar Cowan was a midwife. She spent her last years with her daughter, Mary Cowan Elmore, in Eden, Texas, and was buried there.
Nancy Jane GOLLIHAR
Birth:
17 Nov 1836
Clarke, Arkansas
Death:
3 Jul 1908
Eden, Concho, Texas
Burial:
Eden, Concho, Texas
Father:
Notes:
Grave marker: N.J. COWAN, born 17 Nov 1836, died 3 July 1908. Heaven now
retains our treasure, earth the lonely casket keeps, and the sunbeam long to
linger, where our sainted Mother sleeps.
Katie Alice Cowan Campbell, her granddaughter, said "she always wore black when she visited us. She had a satchel with peppermint candy & cinnamon bark. She seemed old."
Children
Marriage
1
Birth:
1 Jun 1855
Sebastian, Arkansas
Death:
23 Dec 1916
Notes:
Family Group sheets received from Terry Cowan, 603 Circle Drive, Bullard, Texas 75757 around 1990.
marriage: Terry Cowan #207
Family: Mrs. Lloyd F. (Mary Jo Cowan) Emerson, Ponca, AR, December 1981
Terry Cowan Document #196
Certificate of Record of Mark and Brank, #2208, W.C. Cowan, Llano County, Texas, Brand WCC, Location of brand: Right side of cattle & left thigh of horses. May 9, 1883
Terry Cowan Documents #204-205
W.C. Cowan's Record Book
Song Ballot - 1875
Across the wide country
A courting I'll go
Intending to marry
Sweet Mary I know.
Farewell, sweet Mary
I'll bid you adew,
I am ruined forever
By loving of you.
Your parents don't like me,
That I well know.
They say I am not worthy
To knock at your door.
Farewell, sweet Mary,
I'll bid you adew.
I am ruined forever
By loving of you.
O Mary, O Mary,
Would you think it unkind
For me to sit by you
And tell you my mind?
My mind is to marry
And never to part,
For the first time I saw you
Wounded my heart.
Fare you well, sweet Mary,
I'll bid you adew
I am ruined forever
By loving of you.
Go build me a castle
On yonder mount high
Where I can see Mary
As she passes by.
Farewell, sweet Mary,
I'll bid you adew
I am ruined forever
By loving of you.
I'll eat when I am hungry
I will drink when I am dry,
And think of sweet Mary
And sit down and cry.
W.C. Cowan
W.C. Cowan was borned January 6th, 1855
The following little poems were also found in W.C. Cowan's record book:
Give me my home
To (me) quite dear
Where hours untold
And peaceful move.
So fate ordain
I sometimes there
May hear the voice
Of her I love.
The rose is red
The grass is green,
The time is past that
We have seen.
But yet I hope
That the time will come
when we both
Be just alone.
I got my leg broke the 27th day of May, A.D. 1883.
2
Birth:
14 May 1860
Sebastian, Arkansas
Death:
25 Dec 1935
Eden, Concho, Texas
Notes:
Family Group sheets received from Terry Cowan around 1990.
1900 United States Federal Census about Arthur Elmore
Name: Arthur Elmore
Home in 1900: Justice Precinct 8, Bell, Texas
Age: 13
Estimated birth year: abt 1887
Birthplace: Texas
Relationship to head-of-house: Son
Parent's Name: M C
Race: White
Household Members: Name Age
M C Elmore 43
Mary Elmore 40
John Elmore
Wheeler Elmore 14
Wm Elmore 10
Arthur Elmore 13
Ezitte Elmore 3
Death Certificate: Mary Virginia ELMORE, b. 14 May 1860 AR, father John COWAN
b. TN, mother Nancy GOLLAHAIR b. AR. husband Mc Elmore. died 12-26 1935 at
11:50 p.m. of myocarditis. Also had arteriosclerosis.
3
Birth:
9 Mar 1864
San Saba, Texas
Death:
24 Aug 1934
Topsy, Lampasas, Texas
Notes:
Family Group sheets received from Terry Cowan, 603 Circle Drive, Bullard, Texas 75757 around 1990.
Lived next door to sister Mary Virginia in 1900, Bell County
Terry Cowan Document #172
Bell County, TX 1900 Census
Cowan, Geo W. Mar 64, 36, TX
Allie, Feb 70, 30, TX
Sybell, Aug 90, 9, TX
Roy, June 93, 6, TX
Bertie, Aug 95, 4, TX
death certificate gives: G.W. COWAN, b. 9 Mar 1864, TX, son of Jno. COWAN, b.
AR, & Jane GALLAGER, b. MS, rancher, wife Allie COWAN, d. 24 Aug 1934 of
coronary thrombosis
Gravestone in Copperas Cove Cemetery: George W. COWAN, Mar 9, 1864 - Aug 24,
1934.
4
Birth:
19 Aug 1865
San Saba, Texas
Death:
6 Oct 1892
Killeen, Bell, Texas
5
Birth:
18 Dec 1866
Bell, Texas
Death:
28 Mar 1944
Notes:
Family info from Frank D. Jenkins, 508 Fourth Street, Ballinger, TX 76821.
26 July 1976. His brother's wife is a daughter of Henry Thomas MONTGOMERY.
Family Group sheets received from Terry Cowan, 603 Circle Drive, Bullard, Texas 75757 around 1990.
More family info from ancestry.com tree: Lee's Ancestors and Descendants
Joan Case. LFCASE@awoc.com
email from: burnsntx@juno.com Mireta Woodward Feb 2007 Rita
Concho County, TX 1910 Census
Terry Cowan Document #171
Patrick L. Cowan, 43
Lenora P. 35
Ruffin E. 14
Ruth 12
Rulie 10
Seldon 8
Pauline 5
Royce 8
Johnnie 11/12
Death certificate: Patrick L. COWAN, b. 18 Dec 1867, married, b. Bell Co, TX,
father John COWAN, b. TN, mother Jane GALLAGHAR, b. AR, d. 28 Feb 1944, heart
lasion.
Terry Cowan Document #182
unknown cemetery listing
Lena Cowan, 1875 - 1952
Pat L. Cowan, 1866 - 1944
American Life Histories: Manuscripts from the Federal Writers' Project,
1936-1940
Range-lore
Annie McAulay
Maverick, Texas
Page one {Begin handwritten}Duplicate{End handwritten}
RANGE-LORE
P. L. Cowan, now a resident of Runnels County, was born near Belton,
Bell County, Texas, December 18, 1886 [sic:1866].
He tells the following story: "I learned to ride a horse when I was very
young. My older brother taught me how to ride and also how to work with
cattle. My father [John] being a freighter, owned several wagons and
teams. In the early days he used ox teams but later he used mules to
freight with. Freight was hauled from points east to Fort Concho. On
some of these trips they encountered bands of Indians, some of whom were
not friendly toward the whites. One group killed one of father's oxen.
They freighters went in groups and were well armed, as they were in
danger of encounters with robbers, as well as Indians, at all times.
"In 1879 my father moved his herd from Bell County to Llano County and
sent my brother and I to look after the cattle. {Begin handwritten}C12 -
2/11/41 - Texas{End handwritten}
Page 2 { page image }
We worked there several years and I got some real experience which I
needed.
"In 1882, while there, we had a pretty bad stampede. My brother and I
and two hired punchers were holding about seven or eight hundred steers
on the banks of the Colorado river, where there had been an old field,
the fence still being good on two sides. There had been a lot of rain
and the river was on a big rise. The cattle seemed restless and along
came an old mule, stopping near where the cattle were bedded down. He
was hee-hawing for all he was worth. We had been holding the cattle
there for three or four days, waiting for the river to go down and they
were getting nervous and so were we. When that mule made his appearance
the cattle began running, and we began riding. We stayed with them and
when daylight came we were four miles from home, but still had our herd,
and the next day we crossed the river and delivered every one of them.
"In 1887 I helped to drive a herd of 3,300 head for Joe Mitchell of Bell
County to Abilene, Kansas, starting from his Bell County ranch. There
were about twenty men in the outfit. We traveled almost due north and
crossed the Red River at Doans Store near Vernon. We didn't have any
trouble on this drive but we got somewhat excited when we were passing
through the northern part of Oklahoma and had to witness an Indian
funeral. They had sewed the dead Indian up in a buffalo hide and swung
him to a limb, high up in a tree. That was the way the Cheyenne tribe
buried, or disposed of their dead.
Page 3 { page image }
"The best bronc buster I ever knew was Iky Stevens. He could ride
anything. I saw Booger Red thrown off of a heathenish horse - Booger was
a good rider, too - but Iky was watching and saw him when he got thrown
and he said he would ride that filly for a dollar. And he did. He rode
the best I ever saw.
The Indians killed my grandfather [John] on the Colorado river, near
Wolf Crossing [1875]. It happened just before the Pack Saddle fight. He
was on horseback, alone, and they shot arrows into his back. He kept
riding, but died soon after reaching home. My mother [Jane] said they
would sneak up to the spring and steal her milk and butter from the milk
house. Mother had a bulldog and a gun for protection against the
Redskins, when father was away from home. When I was about four years
old they stole some horses from a thicket where my father had tied them.
Of course father and a group of men followed them, but they didn't
recover any of the horses.
"I am now too old to ride the range or work with cattle in any way, but
I still think the old days on the range were the best I ever had."
*******
REFERENCES
Personal interview with P. L. Cowan, who told the story.
Patrick L. Cowan, born 1866. Died 1944. Buried Pear Valley Cemetery,
McCulloch County, TX
Cowan Archives http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/index?list=cowan
FamilyCentral Network
John Steven Cowan - Nancy Jane Gollihar
John Steven Cowan
was born at Cannon, Tennessee 25 Dec 1832.
His parents were William M. Cowan and Mary M. Briant.
He married Nancy Jane Gollihar 21 Jul 1853 at Clarke Co, Arkansas . Nancy Jane Gollihar was born at Clarke, Arkansas 17 Nov 1836 daughter of Charles Gollihar and Margaret "Peggy" (Marijot) Hoofman .
They were the parents of 5
children:
William Charles Cowan
born 1 Jun 1855.
Mary Virginia Cowan
born 14 May 1860.
George Washington Cowan
born 9 Mar 1864.
Solomon Asa Cowan
born 19 Aug 1865.
Patrick Lafayette Cowan
born 18 Dec 1866.
John Steven Cowan died 18 Jun 1900 at Bandera, Bandera, Texas .
Nancy Jane Gollihar died 3 Jul 1908 at Eden, Concho, Texas .