Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1879-03-18
LEXINGTON, kY., January 10, 1879.

LEXINGTON, NY, January l3, 1879.
70 the Editor OF the CoDanaerciay:
"Iied at the residence Of his son-in- law. Cap
tain tain samuel Steele, near Frankfort, Ky, on
| the 23d OI December 1873, John I.yle Mcdowell
| III the Sfth year OF his age
Such is the brief and simple announce.
ment | find iii a recent number of the
| Frankfort Ieon7an. 1t brings to Inv
mind family history which il full o.
suggestions, and which may not be un
| interesting to many besides its thous-
and Of members, scattered as they are
throughout the States Of Ohio, Indiana,
Illinois. Missouri, Virginia, Kentucky
and the entire South.
Among the most warlike and fRrcest
OF the sects who ranged themselves with
| the Campbells, TO whom they we're allied
| by blood and intermarriages, under the
standard of McCaElam More, in the Sc
ries of struggles which led to the eXpul-
| sion Of the right line of the Stuarts
| from the British throne, were the Sons
| of DOWell PresbyteIiaus of the strictest
sect, and deeply imbued with the love
OF civil and religious liberty which char
acteriZed the followers of John Knox.
| One Of these, but Of what degree OF rela
| tionship 10 The chief of the elan do not
| know, nor is it Of any Importance to tell,
was one of The most respectable Of the col
| onists from Scotland ana England who
settled il the north Of Ireland during
the Protectorate of Cromwell Among
other children, this colonist, Mcdowell,
had 8 son named Ephraim, which. of
Itself would indicate the stock OF the
COvenanters. On the 9th OF December,
1888, when Mcdonnell Of Antrim aD-
preached the walls of Londonderry,
Ephfaiu Mcdowell, then only sixteen
years OF age, was one Of the young
Scotch Irish Prasby yteFians who flew to
the defence Of that heroic town, and as
sisted III closing the gates against the
intrudlng native lrishers. During the
long and ever memorable siege that fol
lowed, IL which the preacher. George
Walker, and the brave Murray, AT the
head Of their undiscipliHed fellow citi-
zens, successfully beat baci, Rosen,
Manmont, Pusignan and Hamilton,
young Mcdowell was conspicuous foy
gallantry in q band where all were s.e-
role as any Greek who fell At 1ler
mopyIse. | have 30 certain dat. which
enable me to state who was the wife OF
this Londonderry soldier boy, but nay
impression is that she was one Of a
Scotch family, who had gone TO Ireland
at the same time as his father, that she
was a relation of his own, and that her
name was Irwin. Nor can | tell the ex
act date Of their emigration to Pennsyl-
vania, but ii Was not until EphTaial
Mcdowell was past middle life. The
journal of Charles Clinton, the founder
of the we'll known New York family OF
that name, gives an account Of the voy
age OF the George and Ann, in company
&E,o !nl, nf Nm, IDt
Ireland on the Goth Of May, 1929, and
arriving on the American coast in Au-
Gust Of that year On board the George
and Ann there appear to have been sev-
eral families of Mcdowell, ten OF yshoni
died on the passage, and aIl going to
Pennsylvania and from the similarity
Of this and other names, | am inclined
to the belief that Samuel Mcdowell and
his family, beside number of kindred,
were among the passengers. At any
rate it was about or not long after this
time that Ephraim Mcdowell ca.nly
over, and with him a number Of lrvins,
McElroys and Campbells.
Ephrain Mcdowell remained in
Pennsylvania several years, and there
his son John was married, AMI bis
grandson, Samuel, Waa born. Theil
relative John Lewis had, il consequence
Of killing an oppressive landlord, who
had slain his brother before his eyes,
left Ireland some ears before, and about
1882 settled on the Middle River, in tie
Shenandoah Valley, in what was known
as the Beverly Manor, near the presen:
town of Stauuton, where he GLtaine ed
patents for 100000 acrec Of land. With
his SON John ana nis soninlaw, James
GreenIee, Ephraim Mcdowell left Penn.
7 sylvaDia IN the fall Of 1877 togo to Lew.
is, near whom they intended to locate
The year previous Greenlee had raised
q crop Of corn in the manor. While on
their way, when in camp on Levi,
Creek, tributary of Middle River, Bor-
den joined them. This gentleman had
obtained from Gov. Gooch, in exchange