This post provides a detailed look into the Pequea Valley Cowans’ property transactions. It’s unfinished and has been sitting in drafts over a year, but I decided to publish it anyway, in case the information is helpful to others. The unfinished portion is mainly near the bottom of the post.
David Cowan (1665-1730) and three sons, John (1686-1760), David Jr. (1693-1757), and William (1701-1789) settled in Pennsylvania sometime around 1720. They were from Chirnside, Berwickshire, Scotland. There was a fourth brother, James (b. 1695, Chirnside) who did not immigrate with the family. There are records of a Henry Cowan (1690-1760) who was a likely relative and could have been a fifth brother or cousin, however I have not found much info on him.
The family settled in the valley of the Pequea Creek, a tributary to the Susquehanna river, located in eastern Pennsylvania. The brothers put down roots in the Salisbury Township, initially part of Chester County. In 1729 Lancaster County was created in response to demands from residents to separate themselves from “thieves, vagabonds, and ill people” and the Cowan settlement became part of that county. Due to proximity and shifting boundary lines, records for this family can be found in both Lancaster and Chester.
In the early 18th century, this part of Turtle Island was home to multiple indigenous communities. Pequea gets its name from the Pekowi band of the Shawnee People, part of the Algonquin family. Their village Pequehan was active about 1697-1718. Other settlements included Conestoga, inhabited by Iroquoian-speaking Susquehannocks; and Conejohela, inhabited by the Conoy after they were pushed north by Virginia settlers.
Land Warrants
Starting in about 1733, European settlers could apply to purchase a certain amount of stolen land from the Land Office of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. A very informative historical account of land acquisition in the Pennsylvania colony can be found here. In summer 1734, the brothers David Jr., John, and William Cowan applied and received land “warrants” from the government, which authorized them to survey the requested land. Once the survey was returned and approved, the a “patent was issued, which officially granted ownership of the land to the settler, now called the patentee. The cost of this land was 15 pounds, 10 shillings per 100 acres, plus a yearly “quit-rent” of 1 half-penny sterling per acre.
1735 Cowan Patents
- William Cowan
- Received warrant 23 May 1734 for 200 acres (page 1, page 2)
- Returned survey 26 October 1735 for 158 acres (survey, back of page)
- Cost: £24 9 shillings (s) 9 pence (p)
- Annual quit-rent: 6s 7p
- John Cowan
- Received warrant 20 June 1734 for 300 acres north of William’s tract (page 1, page 2)
- Returned survey 26 December 1735 for 268 acres (survey, back of page)
- In 1744, John Cowan reapplied to purchase a survey vacated by a settler by the name of Archibald Douglas.
- Received warrant 6 April 1744 for 111 acres (page 1, page 2)
- Returned survey 20 August 1751 for 122 acres (survey, back of page)
- Total cost: £60 9s
- Annual quit-rent: 16s 3p
- David Cowan Jr.
- Received warrant 20 June 1734 for 300 acres east of William’s tract (page 1, page 2)
- Returned survey 26 December 1735 for 311 acres (survey, back of page)
- Cost: £48 4s 1p
- Annual quit-rent: 12s 11p
The Cowan brothers received 4 tracts of land and totaling 859 acres. Below is a segment of a Salisbury Township Connected Draft of Land Surveys Map of all the land patents in Salisbury. John Cowan’s 1744 purchase is the bottom right tract of the four outlined in pink, patent #40.
Modern Day Location
My best guess from spending way too much time comparing maps, is that today’s Peters Road in Salisbury/New Holland runs right through David Cowan’s former homestead and cuts across the northeast corner of John Cowan’s property; and Lesal Drive runs along the western edge of William Cowan’s parcel. The properties remain farmland to this day and I wonder if there are any remnants of old structures or what a metal detector would find! (Note: I’m in the process of tracing modern deeds back to this era to get a more precise map.)
1751
On 27 Nov 1751, John Cowan was granted another patent for 51 acres in neighboring Earl Township, directly north and contiguous with his 268 acre homestead. (See Earl Township Connected Draft of Land Surveys Map.)
1752
On 25 April 1752, John Cowan sold rights to his 122-acre patent to his son Henry Cowan (1722-1799). I have not found the record but this transaction is mentioned in a later Lancaster County Deed QQ-161.
1757
When David Cowan Jr. died in 1757, he willed his land to be split into 3 equal sections for his sons Henry Cowan (1729-1760), David III (1731-1785) and William (1742-1814), with 5 acres of William’s share set aside for Robert (1743-1760). David Jr. also willed “my beloved wife to live with my son David in the house that I now inhabit, as long as she lives single and be maintained free.” The widow Mary Fleming lived another 30 years. The couple’s other children were also accounted for in the will but did not inherit land. (Note: on the map below, the location and orientation of Robert’s 5 acres within William’s portion is estimated. All we know is it was positioned “next to the great road” along the border of William Slemmons’ land, which is grant #25 on the map, and contained a spring.)
1760
Unfortunately, David Jr.’s sons Henry (1729-1760) and Robert (1743-1760) passed away 3 years after their father at the ages of 31 and 17, respectively. The land was then divided between David III (1731-1785) and William (1742-1814). In 1765 this was formalized contractually (Lancaster County Deed L-00249) allotting William 151 acres and David III 160 acres. William’s parcel was considered higher quality land so he paid £5 to David III and his wife Hannah Graham to compensate.
David Cowan Jr.’s brother John Cowan (1686-1760) also died in 1760. In his will, he left his 268 acre homestead to sons Thomas and Henry. The parcel wasn’t officially subdivided and primary control went to Thomas, with an unspecified “small part” set aside for Henry. He also left 1/3 of future profits from this land to his wife Elizabeth along with the right to remain in the family home, supported and cared for by Thomas. The Earl Township tract was left to Thomas and Henry in a 50/50 split.
1767
On 12 January 1767, Thomas Cowan and his wife Susanna Cowan sold his half of the 51-acre Earl Township tract to Robert Young of Leacock Township (Lancaster County Deed XX-00286)
1769
On 18 September 1769, William Cowan (1701-1789) and his wife Susanna Fleming sold their Salisbury property to George Weik of Earl Township for £1,600 (Lancaster County Deed Q-67) and the family moved to Rowan County, North Carolina. I believe they had been living in Rowan County prior to that but will have to do more research to confirm. There seem to have been more than one William Cowan in Rowan County, including a son of William and Susanna, and must be sure I’m looking at the correct one.
1771
In 1771 the land of David Jr.’s son William Cowan (1742-1814) son of David Cowan Jr. was seized by the Lancaster County Sheriff for an unpaid debt of £21 3s (plus £2 11s 6p in damages) owed William Brisben. The Sheriff sold the land to James Fleming of Sadsbury, Chester County for £955 5s (Lancaster County Deed N-00401).
A 1772 tax record under William Cowan’s name describes the tract as composed of 70 cleared acres and 80 woodland acres. He owned 1 horse and 1 cow. The same year, David III’s property was the same (70 acres cleared, 80 woodland) and he had 1 servant, 3 horses, and 5 cows.
The new owner James Fleming was also kin to the Cowans. The Cowans and Flemings exchanged DNA and property more times than I can count. These unions also produced exponential offspring, and names were repeated ad infinitum. Keeping it all straight is near impossible. A separate post will be needed to separate all the threads that bind these two families.
That said, while I have seen claims that this particular James Fleming was William Cowan’s uncle James Fleming (1703-1767, brother of his mother Mary Fleming) married to his cousin Jane Cowan (1719-1775) daughter of John Cowan, I don’t believe this is correct. Uncle James’ wife’s name was Ann, according to his will; and cousin Jane was married to Francis Morgan. I believe the James Fleming who purchased William Cowan’s seized land was actually his cousin, son of his mother’s brother Peter Fleming. This James Fleming, born about 1720, indeed had a wife named Jane, however I don’t have a maiden name for her yet. Their daughter Isabella Fleming married Amos Slaymaker (see Lancaster County GG-36).
1775
Thomas Cowan died in 1770 “intestate” which means he didn’t have a will. I’m not sure of his age at the time of his death, but he was young. His wife Susanna, who was also his first cousin by his uncle William Cowan (1701-1789), was about 26 years old and the couple had young children. Because property was typically owned and inherited by men, intestate estates were managed by the courts. I’m working on getting the “Orphan’s Court” records for this case, which should provide some details (note: I have these records now and am working my way through them). But there’s a lot packed into a 2 March 1775 deed: Lancaster County Deed II-00017.
AND WHEREAS the said Thomas Cowan died intestate seized in fee of and in the said Tract of Land (except the small Piece aforesaid which contained about Thirty Acres) above described with the Appurtenances, leaving the said Susannah his Widow and Issue several Children who are yet Minors under the Age of Twenty one Years, to and amongst whom the same Tract of Land with the Appurtenances descended and came agreeable to the Laws of the said Province of Pennsylvania made for settling and Distribution of Intestate Estates, charged with the said Bequest of Elizabeth the Widow and Relict of John Cowan deceased, and subject to the Dower or Thirds of the said Susannah of and in the same during the Term of her natural Life.
Lancaster County Instrument II-00017 recorded 3 Dec 1788, Salisbury Township
The contract pertains to John Cowan’s original 268 acre patent granted in 1735. Thomas’s widow Susanna and her new husband Philip Connell sold their rights to 207 acres of that property (the portion not occupied by brother-in-law/cousin Henry) to William Cowan, and provisions were made to compensate Elizabeth. I was thinking William Cowan was Thomas and Susanna’s youngest son, born about 1765 (later married Mary Rutter) but that would have made him a child at the time of the sale. I will have to wait for the Orphan’s Court documents to get the full picture.
When Thomas died, he left behind a debt of £24.18.6 owed to James Litle, which James assigned to Andrew Litle (relationship unclear). James Litle was also an administrator of Thomas Cowan’s estate, along with Philip Connell and Susanna Connell (formerly Susanna Cowan, Thomas’s widow). To pay the debt, the Lancaster County Sheriff seized and sold 50 acres of Thomas Cowan’s estate at auction to James Fleming for £250– the same James Fleming who bought William Cowan’s seized land and was Susanna Fleming’s first cousin. Lancaster County Deed S-353 transfers ownership of the 50 acres from Thomas Cowan’s estate to James Fleming.
1778
In 1778 James Fleming (1720-1778) died without a will at the age of about 58, leaving a widow and 7 children, 5 of whom were still minors:
- Daniel and Isabella Fleming were of age
- Mary and Hannah were minors over the age of 14
- Ann, Jane, and Margaret were minors under the age of 14
By order of the Lancaster County Orphan’s Court 7 December 1784, the two tracts of land James Fleming had bought from the Lancaster County Sheriff passed to eldest daughter Isabella (Fleming) Slaymaker and her husband Amos Slaymaker of Salisbury– the 151-acre estate seized from William Cowan (1701-1789) and the 50 acres separated from the former estate of the late John Cowan (1686-1760) to pay the debt of the late Thomas Cowan (1735-1770).
1785
Henry Cowan sells 122 acres Lancaster County QQ-161
1787
On May 21, 1787, Amos Slaymaker and his wife Isabella (Fleming) Slaymaker sold two adjoining tracts of land totaling approximately 201 acres in Salisbury to George Cowan for £1,800. The land had originally belonged to Isabella’s father, James Fleming, and had been inherited by Amos through an Orphans’ Court ruling. The deed guarantees full ownership and promises to defend the title against any future claims. (See document: GG-00036 and transcription.
1787
George Weigh gives George Cowan £1,000 to pay back taxes on the 207 acre tract Thomas inherited from his father John Cowan the immigrant (son of David Sr.). It is the portion of John’s original 268 acre patent not set aside for Thomas’s brother Henry in John’s will.
George Cowan will also pay Amos Haymaker £500 in 5 equal annual installments. He also agrees to ensure his younger brother William who is still a minor will discharge his claim on the land when he comes of age.
GG-00036
George Cowan also sells 2 tracts of land, one containing 151 acres and the other containing 50 acres, to George Weigh. I believe the 151-acre parcel is William Cowan (1701-1789)’s half of David Cowan Jr.’s original patent, which was seized by the Sheriff for unpaid debts in 1771 and sold to James Fleming, which was sold to George Cowan by Fleming’s heirs in 1787. I believe the 50-acre parcel is the eastern most strip of John Cowan’s original 268 patent, not included in the 207 acres mentioned above. That still leaves 11 acres left over, which still would have been in the hands of Thomas’s brother Henry.
In 1787 George Weigh paid George Cowan (eldest son of Thomas Cowan, deceased) in order for Cowan to pay back taxes on the land he just bought, 207 acres. William Cowan, a minor son of the deceased Thomas Cowan, not yet 21. Ann Cowan received her share of the profit.
1788
In 1788, Hannah Cowan sold David Cowan’s land to Christian Kurtz and paid the younger children’s inheritances
William Cowan died in 1789
1790
In 1790 William Cowan (1742-1814) lost another piece of land to a debt. Chester County Deed Book Vol 29 E-2, pages 517-519
I found two 1768 Chester Chester County contracts (Chester County Deed Book 0 volume 14, pages 270-273) that connect the children of William Fleming (
1793
Susanna Connell living in Salisbury retained David Cowan of Rowan County, North Carolina, as her attorney to represent her in NC legal proceedings, related to her shares in the estates of her father William Cowan (1701-1789) and brother Joseph Cowan (1747-1787). I am unsure which David Cowan this would be. It could have been the immigrant John Cowan Sr’s grandson via Henry Cowan (1722-1799), who I don’t have a birth year for. It also could’ve been another grandson via John Cowan Jr. (1723-1793) but that David Cowan was born in about 1776, so would have been only about 17 at the time.
1798
