Hangman for a day .
. .
William W. Gowen Plunges
Two Murderers to Eternity
When William W. Gowen
settled in Charlton County, Georgia
in 1853, little did
he dream that the community would request
him to participate
in a hanging. But it did, and he and 106
other men willingly
pulled the trip-rope that dropped two
condemned murderers
to death. Family members later reported
that he regretted
the necessity of the execution of two renegade
slaves, but suffered
no remorse for his part in the grisly affair.
William W. Gowen, son
of William Keating Gowen and Mary
Harrison Gowen was
born in 1803 in Beaufort District, South
Carolina at Combahee
Ferry. In 1820, when he was 17, his
parents died--both
on the same day!
About 1828 William
W. Gowen was married to Rebecca
Townsend Greene.
The household of William W. Gowen appeared
in the 1830 census
of Beaufort District, page 289. The family
reappeared in the
1840 census of Beaufort District, Prince
William Parish, page
247. In the following year, William W.
Gowen was the high
bidder at $650 for "Frank, a slave for life"
in a sale held June
7, 1841 by the sheriff of Colleton District,
according to the bill
of sale retained in 1960 by Gertrude Godley
Durden, a great-granddaughter.
Rebecca Townsend Greene
Gowen died about 1846 after the
birth of her ninth
child, and William W. Gowen was remarried
about 1850 to Elizabeth
Chevalier, a widow of Beaufort
District. Following
the birth of one child, the second wife died,
probably in the winter
of 1851.
William W. Gowen removed
to Charlton County and located
near his brother,
James Gowen who had preceded him to
Georgia by some 35
years. James Vernon Gowen, a grandson,
still owned his 1,200-acre
tract in 1932.
It was in 1858 that
William W. Gowen participated in
Georgia's largest
hanging party. An extra 100 feet of rope was
tied to the trip line
on the gallows, and 107 men took hold of
the rope and, all
pulling simultaneously, carried out their
execution. Alex
S. McQueen described the event in "History
of Charlton County,
Georgia." To avoid being branded a
lynch mob, they wrote
a declaration to justify their action:
"To the Public: The
undersigned citizens of Charlton
County and surrounding
country, being about to resume
for a moment their
delegated rights and do execution
upon two acknowledged
murderers, publish to a candid
world their reasons
for the same.
Whereas, in the month
of April last an atrocious
murder was committed
upon one Henry Jones, a white
man by two negroes
named Peter and George, slaves of
Dr. C. E. Ballard
in this county, and said negroes on
being arrested did
voluntarily confess the same and
pointed out the place
of their victim's burial, disinter his
body and acknowledge
all the circumstances of his
death, thus leaving
no doubt in the mind of any one of
those present of their
guilt. And whereas, they have
since their arrest
broken from two prisons and have been
recaptured after great
trouble and much expense and are
now in our hands under
guard.
Now, therefore, we,
after quiet mature deliberation,
resolve that to give
peace and quiet to an excited
neighborhood and do
an act of justice which none can
condemn and which
involves the principle that self
preservation is the
first law of nature, we do therefore
condemn the said Peter
and George to be hung by the
neck until they are
dead, and the execution shall be at
Trader's Hill between
the hours of 12 and 1 p.m. on
Wednesday next."
The document, dated
September 6, 1858 had 107 signatures,
including William
W. Gowen's. In 1932 McQueen, interviewed
eye witnesses of the
event and recorded his findings:
"The writer, upon examining
this old paper, became
curious about the
large number of signers and went to
interview three old
men yet living in the county who
remember quite distinctly
the hanging of the two slaves.
It was found that
this bold statement 'to a candid world'
was signed by nearly
every adult male in the entire
county, and it was
also revealed, actually participated in
the hanging later.
This information was gleaned by
interviews with Jesse
Grooms and John Vickery, the
only two ex-Confederate
soldiers now living in Charlton
County and from James
Robinson, a boy at the time of
this incident, but
who remembers it well.
A gallows was erected
at Traders Hill, both negroes
were placed on the
scaffold at the same time, and a
noose around the neck
of each one was tied by Daniel R.
Dedge, ex-sheriff,
who was also a member of the
vigilance court; a
long rope was then procured and
fastened to the 'trigger'
and every man of the 107 who
had condemned the
negroes to death placed a hand on
the rope, and, at
a given signal pulled the rope,
springing the trap
that plunged the murderers to their
death."
William W. Gowen was
married for the third time about 1860
to Mrs. Emily Nunguyer,
a widow some 27 years his junior. On
July 5, 1860 he was
enumerated in the federal census of
Charlton County residing
in Centrovillage District as House-
hold 195-178, page
28. A slave, Donas Gowen was included in
the household. He
was born March 4, 1832 and died May 5,
1915, according to
the inscription on his tombstone as copied
by Barney Alexander
Gowen of Woodbine, Georgia, grandson of
William W. Gowen.
Agnes Dean Gowen, a
great granddaughter reported in a letter
dated May 10, 1961
that William W. Gowen died at age 95 in
1898. He was buried
in Union Church Cemetery near
Colesburg, Georgia
at the side of his brother, Barney B.
Gowen.
There were perhaps
14 children born to William W. Gowen
and his three wives,
but only 12 have been identified to date:
William Washington
Gowen born May 15, 1829
Ann Elizabeth Gowen
born Dec. 29, 1831
Mary R. Gowen
born April 15, 1833
James Glenn "Buck"
Gowen born Nov. 18, 1835
Barney Glenn Gowen
born September 1, 1837
Andrew Greene Gowen
born February 13, 1839
Barney James Gowen
born December 4, 1841
Elizabeth Jane Gowen
born March 22, 1844
Rebecca Glenn Gowen
born July 17, 1846
Madison Amanda Reed
Gowen born June 27, 1851
Secession "Cess" Gowen
born about 1861
Mintie Gowen
born about 1863
Descendants of Pioneer
James Blair Gowens
Invite Foundation
Members to Reunion
By Patricia Gowens Ward
619 W. Taos, Hobbs, NM, 88240, 505/392-2748
James Blair Gowens,
youngest son of Charles Gowens, Revolutionary sol-
dier and Elizabeth
"Betsy" Blair Gowens [Electronic Newsletter, June
1998], was born in
Kentucky in 1810 and came to Texas to pioneer in a
new land. His
descendants invite Foundation members and their friends
to join with them
in honoring their pioneer ancestors in a reunion Octo-
ber 10, 1998.
The festivities will
take place in Graham, Texas City Park located on
Seventh Street and
U.S. Highway 67 at the Agricultural Activity Center.
Registration begins
at 11:00 a.m. with a covered dish luncheon at 12:30.
At 5:00 p.m. that
evening, we will have sandwiches, chips, dips, etc.
Bring your favorite
dishes and cold cuts.
Kitchen and bathroom
facilities are available at the Activity Center.
Motel reservations
can be made at Gateway Inn, 940/549-0222 or the
Plantation Inn, 940/540-8320.
Both are located on Highway 16 South.
We hope to see everyone
there.
Whence Came the Name
. . . ?
Gowen Field, Idaho
Gowen Field was named
July 23, 1941 in honor of 1st Lt. Paul
R. Gowen of Caldwell,
Idaho who was killed July 11, 1938 in
Panama in the crash
of his twin-engine Army Air Corps
bomber, according
to the July 23,1941 edition of "Idaho Daily
Statesman."
The War Department announced its decision to
honor Lt. Gowen, chosen
from names of three Idaho Army
pilots who had met
death in the line of duty, after several weeks
of consideration.
His plane crashed in
flames on the Paitilla Point military
reservation shortly
after taking off from Albrook Field near
Panama City. His navigator
and radioman crawled from the
wreckage severely
burned. They reported that smoke began
pouring out of right
engine shortly before it went dead. Lt.
Gowen was unable to
gain altitude with only one engine and
attempted to glide
to the ocean less than two miles away. A
few hundred yards
from the water the plane was impacted by
tree tops and plunged
into the jungle. He was killed instantly.
He was 29. The
accident was witnessed by a group of coast
artillery soldiers
working in the vicinity. They sent a rescue
party and brought
the survivors to a hospital.
Lt. Gowen was survived
by his wife, the former Betty Wilson of
Twin Falls, Idaho
and a small daughter, Stephanie who had
lived with him in
the Canal Zone for the previous year. Other
survivors include
his parents of Caldwell [unnamed], two
sisters. Mrs.
Robert Walker of Caldwell and Miss Daphne
Gowen of Lewiston
and three brothers, William B. Gowen of
Boise, Ralph B. Gowen
of Twin Falls and Justin B. Gowen
"who is on a leave
of absence from Katowice Poland where he
is employed by Anaconda
Mining Co."
Lt. Gowen was a graduate
of Caldwell High School and the
University of Idaho
at Moscow where he was graduated with
honors. Following
college he was appointed to the U. S.
Military Academy at
West Point where he was also an honor
graduate. He
requested the Air Corps and, after flight training,
was stationed in Louisiana,
Oklahoma and the Canal Zone.
In a ceremony held
April 9, 1942, the name of Gowen Field
was formally adopted
by the U. S. Army. Col. Charles B.
Oldfield, commanding
officer invited members of Lt. Gowen's
family as guests of
honor for the dedication. Representing the
family were Miss Daphne
Gowen, sister, Lewiston; Mrs.
William B. Gowen,
sister-in-law, Boise and Justin B. Gowen,
brother, Butte, Montana,
according to the "Idaho Daily
Statesman."
Miss Gowen is secretary
to the president of Lewiston Normal
School. James
B. Gowen, a geologist for Anaconda Copper
Company, was working
in Poland just before Germany invaded
that country.
While most Americans were having great
difficulty leaving
Poland in opposite directions, he passed
through Germany unchallenged
and into freedom in Holland."
Serving Three Hitches
. . .
David Smith Goins,
Melungeon
Ended the War at Yorktown
Prepared from research developed
By Louise Goins Richardson
2207 E. Lake
Street, Paragould, AR, 72450, 501/239-4763
David Smith Goins,
probably a Melungeon, was born in Hanover
County, Virginia November
21, 1757, according to his Revo-
lutionary War pension
application abstracted in "Tennessee
Heroes of the Revolution"
by Zella Armstrong.
During his life he
was sometimes enumerated as "white" and
sometimes as "free
colored." Apparently his family removed to
Halifax County, Virginia
prior to the Revolution. He enlisted
there in a militia
company commanded by "Capt. Rogers," ac-
cording to his pension
application dated February 27, 1834:
"David Goins, a resident
of Hamilton County and State
of Tennessee, aged
76 years doth appear in open court
before the Worshipful
Justices of the Court of Pleas &
Quarter Sessions of
Hamilton County now sitting and on
his oath make the
following Declaration:
That he entered the
service of the United States as a vol-
unteer under Capt.
Rogers in Halifax County, State of
Virginia and was mustered
into service under Col.
William Terry at Halifax
Courthouse, to Williamsburg,
from Williamsburg
to Norfolk, and from Norfolk to
Portsmouth where he
was discharged, having served
three months.
"Six or eight months
after his return home, he was
drafted, according
to his memory under Capt. Bates and
joined the regiment
at Bibb's Ferry under Maj. Jones.
He was marched from
there to Cabbin Point below
Petersburg, Virginia
and was stationed there until his
term of service expired,
having served three months this
tour and was discharged
by Capt. Bates and returned
home.
About two years after
the last mentioned service, this ap-
plicant was again
drafted, according to his memory un-
der Capt. Pregmore
in Halifax County. They marched
to join Gen. Washington's
army at Portsmouth where
this applicant remained
about two months before the
surrender of Corn
Wallis. About three days afterward,
his term of service
expired, and he was discharged by
Capt. Pregmore and
returned home, having served three
months this tour.
Four or five years
after the termination of the
Revolutionary War
[October 1781], he moved from
Halifax County to
Grayson County, Virginia where he
resided three years.
From there he moved to Wythe
County, Virginia and
resided there for 10 years. From
there he moved to
Grainger County and resided there for
14 years. From
there he moved to Hamilton County,
Tennessee and has
resided here twelve months the last
day of this month
and still resides here."
Apparently David Smith
Goins was married shortly after his return
home. "David
Going" was listed in the state census of Virginia
of 1782 as the head
of a household of two people in Halifax
County, according
to "Heads of Households, Virginia, 1790,"
page 24. He
reappeared in the 1785 state census of Halifax
County as the head
of a household of "four white souls," ac-
cording to the same
volume. In 1787 in Halifax County "David
Gowin" rendered for
taxes "two horses and five head of cattle."
About 1788 he removed
to Grayson County and from there he
relocated in adjoining
Wythe County about 1791.
"David Gowin" was listed
as the head of a household in the
1810 census of Wythe
County, according to "Index to 1810
Virginia Census" by
Madeline W. Crickard. About 1811 he
moved again to Grainger
County "where he had a brother, La-
ban Goin," according
to his pension application.
The 1820 census of
Grainger County [and all but 10 counties of
Tennessee] was destroyed
by a fire in Washington, and no copy
remains. "David
S. Going, free negro" appeared in the 1821
tax list of Grainger
County and paid a tax on "one free poll."
"David Goan" reappeared
in the 1830 census of Grainger
County, page 359,
heading a household of "free colored per-
sons."
"David Goins, age 76"
was listed as Revolutionary War Pen-
sioner S3406 in Hamilton
County in 1834, according to
"Twenty Four Hundred
Tennessee Pensioners" by Zella
Armstrong.
David Smith Goins died
in 1840 in Hamilton County, "his pension
then being paid to
his children" [unnamed], according to pen-
sion records.
He did not appear in the 1840 census of Hamilton
County. Children
born to David Smith Goins are unknown.
Laban Goins, identified
as a younger brother of David Smith Goins,
was born in 1764 in
Virginia, probably Hanover County. He
lived in Halifax County
during the Revolutionary War, but was
too young to serve
in the militia with his brother. About 1800
Laban Goins removed,
apparently with several families of rela-
tives, to Grainger
County, Tennessee. The 1805 tax list of
Grainger County included
"Laborn Going, Claborn Goins,
Daniel Going, Caleb
Going, James Goins and John Goins. A
second version of
the "Taxable Inhabitants for the Year
1805" listed "Laban
Going, Claiborne Going, Daniel Goin,
Shadrack Goin, James
Going, John Going and Calib Going."
Although the spelling
varies from the first list to the second, it
is obvious that the
two lists refer to the same individuals. Of
the second group only
Shadrack Goin does not appear in the
first list.
"Laborn Going" was rendered as "one free poll, ne-
gro" in the tax list.
Laban Goins preceded
his brother in the move to Hamilton
County. He appeared
in the 1830 census of that county, page
75, as the head of
a "free colored" household. The enumerator
obviously had no way
to properly record a Melungeon house-
hold. Although
he did not record the "free colored"
individuals, he did
enumerate in the household "one white fe-
male, 5-10" and "one
white female, 0-5."
On February 7, 1834
Laban Goins submitted his affidavit to the
Hamilton County Court
attesting to his brother's Revolutionary
War service.
Free "Family Explorer" Genealogy CD-ROM Software . . . Anybody?
A phone call to Millisecond
Publishing Company confirms that the
company is offering
to family history researchers a free copy of
Progeny Software's
"Family Explorer" plus a free CD-ROM to run on
it. The CD-ROM
is entitled "Presidential Family Forest" and estab-
lishes that thousands
of Americans are related to one or more of the
U. S. presidents.
If a linkage has been established on your line,
then you are on the
CD-ROM.
The program is called
"Forest" because it is a lot of family
trees. It contains
a series of linkage-linked databases that
digitally connect
people with each other and with every presi-
dent who shares their
genetics and the history they created.
The program digitally
maps out and connects recorded knowledge
about the family ties
of all the U. S. presidents and vice-presi-
dents and their wives
and makes the information available immed-
iately. In addition,
many of the statesmen are traced to a thou-
sand or more of their
ancestors.
"Family Explorer" runs
on Microsoft Windows 3.1 or later. The
operating system loads
onto your hard drive, but the data is
intended to remain
on the CD-ROM. You may load your own family
data into "Family
Explorer." The program develops pedigree
charts, family group
sheets and fan charts, and the appearance
of the print-outs
is classic. The files generated can be read
by Microsoft Word,
WordPerfect, Windows Write, WordPad, AMI Pro
and others.
Three other data bases
are bundled on the CD-ROM: "Founders &
Patriots," "Pittsburgh
Family Forest" and "Delaware Family For-
rest." After
you view the contents and decide you would like to
utilize these data
bases as well, you will be expected to pay
[$20-$30] for Millisecond
Publishing to "unlock" them for you.
To receive the free
software, call 1-800/565-0018. You will be
expected to pay $6.95
for shipping and handling.
First Atomic Veteran
. . .
James Madison Gowin
Donates Memoirs
To the Foundation
Library
"Dear Cousins
I am enclosing
for the shelves of the Foundation library a
copy of 'Memoirs of
James M. Gowin, First Atomic Veteran.' In
addition to this 214-page
book, I am sending a cassette tape re-
cording which provides
additional information about my life and
my philosophy.
I would like the Foundation to have these and to
preserve them forever.
I greatly appreciate
receiving the Newsletter and applaud all
the efforts being
made to preserve our heritage. I am certain
when we go back far
enough the Gowins, Gowens, Goins etc.
all have some common
ancestors. My great-grandfather,
Shadrack Gowin was
born April 17, 1791 in Virginia, and my
grandfather, Drury
Gowin, was born May 26, 1819 in Wilson
County, Tennessee.
My father, James Madison Gowin was
born May 11, 1841
in Crawford County, Illinois. My cousin,
Donna Gowin Johnston
of Casper, Wyoming has done an out-
standing job in writing
the history of our family.
I was born August 25, 1915 in Rutherford County, Ten-
nessee when my father
was 74. My father was a Civil War veteran,
having served in the
Thirty-third Indiana Infantry Regiment. I
served in the 442nd
Infantry in World War II and did occupation
duty in Japan.
We arrived there
immediately after the second atomic bomb
was dropped, and five
of us requisitioned a truck and drove the
30 miles to Hiroshima.
We were appalled at this devastated
city. We could
not drive through, so we parked the truck and
walked through.
We were the first Americans to arrive there
and had received no
warning about radiation sickness. There
were some mighty dirty,
sick-looking people there digging
around in the rubble.
They paid us no mind nor we them. We
were about four hours
walking across Hiroshima and about four
hours coming back
through. We were amazed at the power of
this bomb. It
had severed 3-foot reinforced columns just as
smooth as a knife
cuts cheese. We ate there twice, laying our
food on the tops of
these severed columns.
On December
1, 1945 I was hospitalized with an "unknown
sickness" and on March
31, 1946 I was evacuated on a hospital
ship for home.
During the next 44 years I have fought a con-
stant [losing] battle
for my health. I hope that America will
never forget the horror
and suffering that has been unleashed.
James M. Gowin, 7347
Charlotte Place, Nashville, TN, 37209.
Cornwall Advocated
as the Ancestral Home
of the Goyens, Gowens,
Goins Etc.
By Robert J. Goyen
523 Sutton Street,
Sebastopol 3357, Victoria, Australia
Taking into account
that the only areas of Britain that were
not conquered by the
Romans and later the Vikings were Scot-
land, Wales and Cornwall.
There they continued to use the
Gaelic language, and
so Gowens would be found in only those
three countries.
This being so,
then we were always Cornish. In 1936, my
mother asked a genealogist
of the time to find for her the origin
of the name "Goyen."
His story was that in 1066 among the
followers of William
the Conqueror was a Norman nobleman,
Sir Hugh de Goy.
His followers were known as
Goyens/Goynes.
Goy, Goyen and Goyne are place names de-
riving from a place
on the River Seine in Lower Normandy
which is now spelt
"Guyon." Sir Hugh de Goy was granted
land in Cornwall.
There the Goyen name was pronounced
Gowen as the old Cornish
language did not use the letter "Y."
I am enclosing
[below] a copy of a newspaper account of a
collision at sea involving
my g-g-grandmother and her children
while they were coming
out in 1859 to join my g-g-grandfather
already here.
Robert J. Goyen, 523 Sutton St, Sebastopol
3357, Victoria, Australia.
"Collision at Sea--Loss of the Elizabeth Walker
The White Star ship
Red Jacket arrived at Port Phillip Heads at sundown on
Saturday and reached
Hobson's Bay late yesterday evening. Her passage to the
Equator occupied 28
days; thence to the Cape light and baffling winds. Capt.
Kirby reports the
loss of the Elizabeth Walker from collision with the Red Jacket.
The following particulars
were extracted from the log:
June 13, lat.
30.40 S, lon. 36.40 W at 1 a.m, clear moonlight, ship's
course SE 1/2 S, rate
of sailing 9 knots, all plain sail set and the port
foretopmast studding-sail,
the man on the look-out reported a ship on the port
bow. Orders
were given by Mr. Robertson, officer of the watch, to show the port
light. On ascertaining
the tack and position of the ship the officer of the
watch gave orders
for the helm to be put to port, as the strange vessel was
nearly on a parallel
on the opposite tack to ourselves. The strange vessel
then showed a flaming
torchlight. At the same time, it was discovered that
she had put her helm
to starboard, and was keeping off the same as ourselves.
The officer of the
watch seeing, by the two vessels continuing on the same
course, that a collision
would be inevitable, ordered the helm of the Red Star
to be put to starboard,
with the view of passing under the stern of the
strange vessel, and
almost simultaneously, the helm on board of the strange
vessel was put to
port, which luffed her across our bows, and a collision
took place.
Orders were immediately
given to throw all aback. To describe the confusion
among the passengers
at the first shock is unnecessary; suffice it to say that
the Red Jacket had
cut into the main-hatch combings of the other vessel, carry-
ing away her mainmast,
mizen topmast, yards, etc, the Red Jacket losing fore
topmast-studsail-boom,
and some of the head gear being carried away. On looking
over the bows of our
own vessel, I immediately saw the dangerous position of
the other one, as
she was evidently filling very rapidly with water, and called
out to them on board
to leave her at once. With much difficulty the crew got on
board the Red Jacket,
and in less that eight minutes from the first shock the
strange vessel went
down under the bottom of the Red Jacket. At the earliest
opportunity the crew
of the strange vessel was mustered. They were all on board,
and with the exception
of the man that was at the wheel, they were all uninjured.
The ship proved to
be the Elizabeth Walker, of Glasgow, from Buenos Ayres, with
a general cargo.
When repair was completed, sail was made with the intention to
proceed on the voyage
and to put the crew on board the first ship we found home-
ward bound."