Sections in this issue:
1) RESIDENTS OF CYPRIOT MELUN DAG JOIN MELUNGEONS IN DNA TESTING;
2) CALEB EMERY GOWEN AND FAMILY WERE “FREQUENT FLYERS” THRU PORT OF NEW YORK A HUNDRED YEARS AGO;
3) Ellis Island Immigration Website;
4) THEORIES STILL ABOUND FOR ORIGINAL MELUNGEON ETHNICITY: AND THEORIES THEY ALL ARE;
5) JOHN PETER GOINS WAS ATTRACTED TO WAVING SEA OF GRASS RESULTING IN HIS MOVE TO WEST TEXAS FROM TENNESSEE;
6) GENEALOGICAL RESEARCH IN THE 2000 CENSUS WILL BE MORE DIFFICULT IN THE NEXT CENTURY;
7) Dear Cousins.
All Gowen Manuscript Pages and Newsletters: https://goyengoinggowengoyneandgone.com/gowen-research-foundation-pages-and-info/
Gowen Research Foundation
Electronic Newsletter
May 2001
Volume 4 No. 5
1) RESIDENTS OF CYPRIOT MELUN DAG JOIN MELUNGEONS IN DNA TESTING
By Col. Carroll Heard Goyne, Jr. & Betty Brantley Goyne
Editorial Boardmembers
10019 Canterbury Drive Shreveport, Louisiana, 71106
318/798-7108 cgoyne@softdisk.com
Our plans to visit Turkey in June 2000 were nearing com-
pletion when Dr. N. Brent Kennedy, Vice Chancellor of the
University of Virginia’s College at Wise [UVA/Wise], in-
formed us that our trip was being delayed until mid-July.
Dr. Kennedy had received a telephone call from the New
York representative of the Turkish Republic of Northern
Cyprus [TRNC], inviting our group to attend the annual
celebration of the Peace and Freedom Operation in North-
ern Cyprus. The event honors Turkey for its military in-
tervention on July 20, 1974, that halted an attempted
genocide of the Turkish Cypriots by the Greek Cypriots.
In addition to Dr. Kennedy, five members of the faculty
of the UVA/Wise were in the travel party. Others in the
group were: Ms. Connie Clark, President of the Melungeon
Heritage Association; Mr. and Mrs. Wayne Winkler, he be-
ing Director of National Public Radio Station WETS-FM at
East Tennessee State University; and my wife Betty Brant-
ley Goyne and myself.
Our group assembled at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport on Friday,
July 14, 2000. We departed Chicago about 5 PM, and had
an overnight flight to Ataturk Airport in Istanbul. A
tour guide provided by the TRNC met us on arrival. She
had been retained to show us parts of Istanbul, take us
to lunch, and to otherwise keep us occupied for about
eight hours until boarding our flight to Cyprus.
We flew from Istanbul to Ercan Airport at Lefkosa [Nico-
sia], Cyprus, arriving a little after midnight on Sunday
morning. An attractive young lady greeted us, and escort-
ed us to the airport VIP Lounge. During our walk across
the tarmac, it became apparent that our escort was some-
one of importance in the government. One in our group
said to our escort: “I bet I can guess who you work for.
You work for the Prime Minister.” Devrim Altiok respond-
ed: “Close, but not quite.” We learned later that Devrim
was Third Secretary in the Foreign Ministry.
From Ercan airport, we were driven to the beautiful Olive
Tree Resort Hotel near Girne [Krynia], arriving at about
3 AM. When we finally settled into our beds, we had been
“out of bed” for about 40 hours.
Most of Sunday was spent recovering from jet lag. We re-
laxed around the hotel swimming pool, and talked with
some of the other delegates. That evening Devrim Altiok
escorted us to dinner at the Park Hotel near Gazimagusa
[Famagusta]. After a delightful dinner on the hotel pa-
tio, we attended a performance of the Bolshoi Ballet of
Belarus in the Roman Amphitheater in the ancient city of
Salamis. It was a brilliant performance, with beautiful
costumes, in a magnificent setting.
Monday morning we visited with His Excellency, Mr. Musta-
fa Akinci, Minister of State, and Deputy Prime Minister.
Previously, Mr. Akinci had been mayor of the Turkish part
of Lefkosa [Nicosia] for 14 years. Following our meeting,
Mr. Akinci hosted us for lunch in the 8th floor dining
room of a mid-city hotel. The panoramic view gave us a
good view of the entire city, including Ledra Palace, UN
Headquarters for Cyprus. That evening we had dinner at a
seaside restaurant near the ruins of Soli. From that lo-
cation we could see the Taurus Mountains of Turkey.
Tuesday morning we visited with His Excellency, Mr. Tah-
sin Ertugruloglu, Minister of Foreign Affairs and De-
fence. The Minister is a graduate of the University of
Arizona, and is very fond of the United States. Next, we
visited with His Excellency, President Rauf Dinktas.
President Dinktas had just returned from Geneva, where he
had been engaged in proximity talks with his Greek Cypri-
ot counterpart. We had very informative meetings with all
three of these senior members of the TRNC government.
After our meeting with President Dinktas, we had lunch at
the Dome Hotel in Girne [Kyrenia]. As we were having des-
ert, an assistant manager came to our table and extended
an invitation for us to have coffee with the General Man-
ager. We were escorted to Mr. Mete Hatay’s office, where
he greeted us with a big smile. Mr. Hatay said: “Dr. Ken-
nedy, I have been wanting to meet you. I know about the
Melungeons. I have read your book.” He then showed us his
copy of Dr. Kennedy’s book published in the Turkish lan-
guage.
Mr. Hatay said that he had a story to tell us. He said in
the mountains east of Girne was a village named Melun Dag,
meaning Damned or Cursed Mountain. He informed us that a
man on his hotel staff was from that village. Mr. Hatay
then told the assistant manager to bring the man to his
office. Presently, a man dressed in chef’s clothing en-
tered the office. Mr. Hatay asked the man to tell us of
the history of his village. The man proceeded to relate
the story in the Turkish language, with Mr. Hatay trans-
lating. He said long ago his ancestors were living on
the north coast of Cyprus, when sea-raiders attacked
them. The people fled into the mountains. They named the
mountain where they took refuge Melun Dag. Eventually the
people settled at the base of the mountain, and built a
new village. They named the village Melun Dag. Since that
day, the people of Melun Dag have referred to their an-
cestors as Melun Cans, meaning Damned or Cursed Souls.
[The Turkish word ‘can’ is pronounced ‘jan.’] All three
words: melun, dag and can, are listed in current English-
Turkish Dictionaries, and have the meanings I have stated.
Wednesday morning we got an early start for Melun Dag.
The people of the village had been informed of our visit,
and received us warmly. They placed chairs on the shaded
porch of the village mosque, where they seated us. They
served us cold drinks and sweets. Dr. Kennedy explained
the purpose of our visit, and asked for volunteers to
give hair samples for a DNA project. The two oldest men
in the village came forward, as did other adults. After a
few giggles, and saying “you first,” some of the children
got in line. The hair samples, with roots intact, were
placed in numbered plastic bags and returned to the USA
with us. The results of this test will become part of an
ongoing DNA study.
As is apparent from the foregoing, Cyprus, or the Turkic
world in general, is certainly a candidate for being the
source of the term Melungeon.
For several years we have researched the story of Piri
Reis, his maps, and his book “Kitab-l Bahriye.” This led
us to the story of the “Book of Shah Iskender.” The fol-
lowing poem from “Kitab-l Bahriye” is translated from the
Turkish language:
“Those sailors read, write and know about
The whole sea science
But they never share this knowledge
With anybody other than themselves.
Let me tell you why:
Once upon a time, Shah Iskender
Had traveled all over the seas,
What ever he had heard or seen
He had them written.
Therefore, all the world is
In that book of his.
The book is in Egypt
Kept in secret
Since Iskender.
They escaped with that book,
Traveled with its knowledge,
Translated it,
Let me tell you who translated it:
He was called Portolmiye.”
This poem, written in the late 1400s or early 1500s,
tells of a world traveler who, in antiquity, wrote a book
and drew maps. That person was Shah Iskender, which is
the Turkish name for Alexander the Great. Alexander’s
book of the world was recovered from the ruins of the Li-
brary of Alexandria, Egypt, and preserved in Egypt for
many years. At some point, Piri Reis obtained a copy of
the “Book of Iskender,” and included parts of it in his
book “Kitab-l Bahriye.” “Kitab-l Bahriye refers to elev-
en geographic features on the west coast of Africa having
Turkish names. The Piri Reis map, presented to the Turk-
ish Sultan in 1513, shows islands in the south Atlantic,
and parts of Antarctica, that had not been discovered in
1513. There is other evidence of a Mediterranean people
visiting the ‘New World’ long before Columbus’ first voy-
age. Certainly, much research remains to be done to de-
termine the origin of the term Melungeon. Insallah, we
will continue with our research.
The information on Piri Reis and Shah Iskender comes to
us from the Ottoman Archives, the Turkish Naval Archives,
and the Turkic World Research Foundation. It was trans-
lated from the Turkish language by Aslihan Arul who lives
in Istanbul.
2) CALEB EMERY GOWEN AND FAMILY WERE “FREQUENT FLYERS” THRU PORT OF NEW YORK A HUNDRED YEARS AGO.
Caleb Emery Gowen was a descendant of William Alexander
Gowen who was deported by Oliver Cromwell and who ar-
rived in New England in 1651. He inherited his wander-
lust.
Caleb Emery Gowen, with his son, Albert Younglove Gowen,
would have been the winners of any “frequent flyer” pres-
entations awarded to passengers moving through Ellis Is-
land and the Port of New York a century ago. They and
their families were recorded 22 times among the 101 Gowen
individuals who made a transit between 1892 and 1924, ac-
cording to the records of American Family Immigration
History Center.
Caleb Emery Gowen was a namesake of Caleb Emery who was
born in York County, Maine October 17, 1710. He was a
son of Daniel Emery and Margaret Gowen Emery, daughter of
William Alexander Gowen, who were married March 17, 1695
at Kittery, Maine.
Caleb Emery Gowen was enrolled in Harvard University from
1874 to 1878, receiving his A. B. Degree in 1878. In 1910
he was a resident of Cleveland, Ohio, living on Magnolia
Drive. He was engaged in “manufacturing and transporta-
tion” according to the alumni directory. From 1893 to
1910 he was recorded 11 times in the records of Ellis Is-
land. His wife and children frequently accompanied him.
They made crossings, mostly to English ports in 1893,
1894, 1896, 1903, 1904, 1906, 1909, 1910, 1914, 1920 and
1922.
Children born to Caleb Emery Gowen include:
Albert Younglove Gowen born about 1884
Margaret H. Gowen born about 1887
Harriett Gowen born about 1892
Albert Younglove Gowen, son of Caleb Emery Gowen, was
born about 1884. He was listed in the Harvard Alumni
Directory as a student at Harvard University from 1903
through 1905. In 1910 and in 1917 he was listed in “man-
ufacturing” with home address as 11120 Magnolia Drive,
Cleveland.
Albert Younglove Gowen was recorded four times from 1906
to 1923 in the records of Ellis Island , and then he
bought his own yacht.
In 1917 he was registered as the owner of a wooden motor
yacht, “Sweetheart,” according to Lloyds of London. It
was built as Hull No. 796 in 1913 at Lawley Shipbuilders
of Quincy, Massachusetts. At the same time, an 18-foot
yacht tender, Hull No. 1252, named “Adelia” was built to
be carried on the “Sweetheart.”
Albert Younglove Gowen was recorded as a member of the
Cleveland Yacht Club, and the vessel showed Chicago as
its home port. He changed the name of the yacht to “Spee-
jacks.” In 1922, he sailed the vessel around the world
and became the first to circumnavigate the globe in a mo-
tor-driven yacht, according to “Guiness Book of Records.”
Jeanne Couchet Gowen extracted information from the log
of the Speejacks on a voyage from New York to Australia.
Dale Collins used the data to write “Sea Tracks of the
Speejacks” which was published in 1923.
Brian Cartwright of Toronto, Ontario, Canada contacted
Gowen Research Foundation October 10, 1999 to report that
he had purchased the “Adelia” in 1985. He wrote:
“I took “Adelia” back to Boston [the Lawley boatyard
was in Quincy, south of Boston] last summer for the
Lawley Boatowners Rendezvous & Boston Antique Boat
Show. This was her first return visit since it was
built, over 85 years ago. Not only did I then find
out from Albert Hickey, LBOA Executive Director and
Burt Hasselbalch, curator, Hart Nautical Collection,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, when “Adelia”
was built, but for whom and for what yacht.
Ideally, and perhaps, idealistically, I am very cur-
ious to know if the motoryacht for which it was
built, has survived two world wars and over nine
decades of use, to this present day. My fingers are
crossed. I look forward to any background informa-
tion and any insights you may be able to provide on
Albert Younglove Gowen. I would be interested to
know how he came about such good fortune to have
such fine yacht/boat commissioned.”
Children born to Albert Younglove Gowen include:
Albert Younglove “Jaxie” Gowen, Jr. born about 1939
Albert Youngblood “Jacksie” Gowen, Jr, son of Albert
Younglove Gowen, was born about 1944 in Cleveland.
In 1993, he was living in Geneva, Switzerland where he
was the executive vice-president of Coutts & Company, an
investment banking arm of the National Wesminster Bank
Group of London. His office was located at 13 Quai de
l’Ile, 1211 Geneva [11].
In 1999 Albert Younglove “Jaxie” Gowen, Jr, was vice
chairman of Sarasin Geneva, part of Bank Sarasin, a
Swiss private bank. He was interviewed by a reporter of
the “International Herald-Tribune” of Paris, France who
was writing a news story which was published October 18,
1999.
==O==
3) Ellis Island Immigration Website
After more than four years of work, millions of volunteer
hours and almost $25 million, the American Family Immi-
gration History Center opened its doors to the American
people. This center, housed in the Ellis Island Immigra-
tion Museum along with a companion Website provides easy
access to ships’ passenger manifest records of more than
22 million immigrants who entered through the Port of New
York and Ellis Island from 1892 to 1924. While these rec-
ords have been available on microfilm for years through
the National Archives, this is the first time they are
available via an electronic database.
The millions of records available both through kiosks at
Ellis Island and via the Internet will provide the fol-
lowing types of information about the immigrants:
Immigrant’s given name
Immigrant’s surname
Gender
Age at arrival
Ethnicity/Nationality
Marital status
Last residence (town & country)
Date of arrival
Ship of travel
Port of origin
Current microfilm records at the National Archives cover
immigration through the Port of New York from 1820 to
1957. While the American Family Immigration History Cen-
ter’s database currently includes only the records from
1892-1924, the peak years, they plan to continue adding
records until all Ellis Island records are available
electronically. Records of immigrants through other U.S.
ports will be added to database subsequently.
One hundred one members of the Gowen family made an en-
trance into the United States through the Port of New
York and Ellis Island in the 32 years between 1892 and
1924. They were among the 22 million immigrants, pass-
engers and crew members who made a transit through the
port facility, according to the website of the American
Family Immigration Center.
The Website is accessed at:
http://www.ellisislandrecords.org
The free electonic database has been overwhelmed by fam-
ily researchers since its announcement. The site quickly
became one of the 50 busiest in the United States with
1.9 hits during the month of April. Included in the rec-
ords were:
Name of Passenger Residence Arrived Age
1. Mrs. Albert Y. Gowen 1922 26
2. Mrs. Caleb E. Gowen Cleveland, OH 1910 52
3. Mrs. Caleb E. Gowen Cleveland 1906 47
4. Mrs. F. B. Gowen London 1892 59
5. Frederick C. Gowen 1894 34
6. Mrs. G. L. Gowen 1908
7. Albert Y. Gowen Cleveland 1914 30
8. Albert Y. Gowen Cleveland 1906 23
9. Albert Y. Gowen 1922 39
10. Albert Y. Gowen Chicago, Ill. 1923 39
11. Alfred Thomas Gowen 1919 40
12. Alice Gowen Philadelphia, 1922 63
13. Alice K. Gowen Philadelphia 1923 64
14. Alice Robinson Gowen Philadelphia, 1924 65
15. Arthur Gowen London, England 1912 34
16. Arthur Gowen London, England 1913 32
17. Arthur Gowen 1913
18. Benjamin Gowen England 1900 35
19. Bridget Gowen Fermoy, Ireland 1907 20
20. Burrell Gowen 1922 25
21. Caleb E. Gowen 1893 38
22. Caleb E. Gowen 1894 36
23. Caleb E. Gowen Liverpool 1896 41
24. Caleb E. Gowen 1903 47
25. Caleb E. Gowen 1904 48
26. Caleb E. Gowen Cleveland 1906 50
27. Caleb E. Gowen 1909 52
28. Caleb E. Gowen Cleveland, Ohio 1910 54
29. Catherine Gowen 1920
30. Cora Gowen Somerville, Ma 1910 35
31. David Gowen 1896 18
32. Delnivis Gowen 1893 29
33. Dorothy Gowen 1915 13
34. Eleanor Gowen Cambridge, Mass 1924 23
35. Elizabeth Gowen 1915 7
36. Ella Gowen Warren, Me. 1922 47
37. Ellen Gowen Ballyhooly, Ire 1911 22
38. Elma Gowen Buenos Aires,AR 1911 47
39. Elvia Gowen 1903 39
40. Elwyn G. Gowen Sanford, Me. 1922 27
41. F. C. Gowen 1895 42
42. F. H. Gowen 1897 24
43. Francis Gowen Philadelphia,Pa.1917 27
44. Francis Gowen Philadelphia,Pa.1922 66
45. Francis J. Gowen 1906 47
46. Francis N. Gowen Philadelphia 1923 67
47. Frank Gowen Mel.sham 1905 26
48. Frank Gowen Melksham 1905 25
49. Frank Gowen Waterville 1905 35
50. George Gowen 1923 24
51. —- Gowen London 1892 20
52. Graffin Gowen 1921 22
53. Hannie Gowen Ballyhooley 1900 18
54. Hariette Gowen Cleveland, Ohio 1910 18
55. Harriett Gowen 1904 12
56. Harriett Gowen Cleveland 1906 14
57. Harriette Gowen 1909 16
58. Helene Gowen 1915 11
59. Helene B. Gowen 1915 31
60. Howard Gowen 1908
61. Isabel E. Gowen 1909 51
62. James Gowen 1919 21
63. James Gowen 1919 21
64. James B. Gowen 1915 42
65. James B. Gowen Hatiesburg, MS 1917 45
66. James E Gowen Philadelphia 1916 21
67. James Emmet Gowen Phila., Pa. 1919 24
68. John Gowen Achill 1903 26
69. John Gowen Fermoy, Ireland 1913 17
70. John Gowen 1924 17
71. John E. Gowen 1893 68
72. John Gilroy Gowen 1921 20
73. Josephine Gowen Bristol, Eng. 1923 19
74. Katie Gowen Fermoy, Ireland 1908 21
75. Kenny Gowen 1922
76. Leonard Gowen Salhouse, Eng. 1910 21
77. Marg. Gowen Ballghannis 1905 28
78. Margaret Fischer Gowen Boston, Mass. 1921 30
79. Margaret H. Gowen Cleveland 1914 27
80. Mary Gowen 1905
81. Mary Gowen 1915 1
82. Mary M. Gowen Philadelphia,PA 1916 26
83. Maurice Gowen Philadelphia 1920 51
84. Michael Gowen Ballyhooly, 1906 20
85. Mildred Gowen 1915 10
86. Morrie W Gowen 1920 51
87. Morris W Gowen 1894 25
88. Norah Gowen Fermoy, Ireland 1907 22
89. Patrick Gowen Fermoy, Ireland 1913 29
90. Philip Gowen Brooklyn, N.Y. 1920 33
91. Philip Gowen 1923 36
92. Ralph E. Gowen 1911 31
93. Reginald Syden Gowen 1918 17
94 Sarah Gowen Gavan, Ireland 1907 28
95. T. C. Gowen U.S. 1922 27
96. Vincent Gowen 1897 4
97. Wilber L. Gowen 1915 28
98. William Gowen Norwich, Eng. 1912 33
99. William Gowen 1923 32
100. Mrs. Gowen 1904 46
101. Mrs. Gowen 1906 48
[To Be Continued]
4) THEORIES STILL ABOUND FOR ORIGINAL MELUNGEON ETHNICITY: AND THEORIES THEY ALL ARE
By Evelyn McKinley Orr
Editorial Boardmember
8310 Emmet Street, Omaha, Nebraska, 68134
402/571-3422 Jorre@juno.com
I was chair for Gowen Research Foundation’s Melungeon Re-
research Team from organization in December 1989 until
1997. I dedicated many hours to the Foundation’s goals
of finding the “lost key” or truth for what I still con-
sider to be one of America’s most interesting historical
mysteries.
The Foundation pledged then to print all views [of the
origin of the Melungeons], and still is doing so now. We
tried to clarify to members that not all Gowen related
families were tied to the Melungeons. In time I would
learn that there may be several partial truths from vari-
ous theories regarding the ethnicity of the original Me-
lungeons of Newmans Ridge, as well as ‘some’ their simi-
lar counterparts in the early Southeast. Until the mid
19th century, the first ones studied were the Appalachian
Melungeons, the Redbones of South Carolina, the Moors of
Delaware, and the Croatan [Lumbee Indians of NC].
Some of the original team members are still members of
GRF and we still have these same goals. Most serious re-
searchers who have controlled their human instincts to-
ward racial idealogy on this issue continue to believe
that the jury is still out.
Much has been discovered by many professionals since the
pioneer laymen of the 1990s took on the project. It rem-
ains incomplete as more theories surface, including Tim
Hashaws recent series. Yet, theories they all are. It
is such an emotional and complicated issue that it is
not unusual for different views on their ethnicity to be
disputed, with each giving many sources they consider ac-
curate and solid.
Hopefully the article regarding the DNA process by Dr. N.
Brent Kennedy in the April issue of the Newsletter may
resolve some of the questions. In the last few years
more of the so called experts have given us some convinc-
ing play on words to declare as fact who the Melungeons
were, and when minds are made up, even proper DNA results
may not change some minds.
A short critique of the Tim Hashaw Series: It is an ex-
tremely well written, fascinating story. One can under-
stand why Tim won journalism awards. I had hoped he
would cite original documents that show the early Angolan
Malange as Appalachian Melungeons, since his story was
written as historical fact.
The story of the first 20 Negroes to Virginia that Tim
ties to the Melungeon term was recently published in “The
William & Mary Quarterly” July 1998, by John Thorton,
and in “The New Light” April, 1997 by Engel Sluiter.
From my research so far, I would agree that Tim is right
to guess that the real Melungeons originally called them-
selves a name sounding similar to Melungeon. It may nev-
er have come from the French word “Melange” [meaning mix-
ed] as often suggested. There are several researchers
who have discovered this name being used in areas of the
world, other than guessing it came from the corruption of
Angolan “Malange.” {See “Origin of Name Melungeon,”
Newsletter, September 2000 and Carroll Goyne’s Melun Dag
Cyprus” story, May 2001.
Tim brought out an excellent point that has probably also
been a myth too long. All Negroes who come to the colo-
nies were not necessarily slaves. Freed endentured ser-
vants, black or white, were free to do as they wished and
inter marry as they pleased before the the anti-dark skin
laws began.
Tim seems to have taken the data from the Gowen Research
Manuscript, regarding the first Gowen Melungeons in Amer-
ica as solid fact to publish support for the ethnicity of
thousands of descendants. He leaves no room for “maybes”
or mistakes in genealogy. If possible errors are in the
manuscript as several members claim, the Foundation will
try to correct them. Honest mistakes or varying inter-
pretations have been made in research by most all of us.
The original Melungeon story has relied on guesswork of
scholars and lay writers since the 1880’s. Are we to do
no better?
5) JOHN PETER GOINS WAS ATTRACTED TO WAVING SEA OF GRASS RESULTING IN HIS MOVE TO WEST TEXAS FROM TENNESSEE
Teenage Johnny Goins listened spellbound to the pitchman
describing the “waving sea of grass, stirrup-high and 300
miles wide” on the High Plains of West Texas to neighbor
J. C. Ausmus on a September day in 1908.
Land agent B. W. Ellison, while extolling the fertility
of the virgin land, unfolded a map of 90,000 acres of
land owned by the C-B Livestock Company “as flat as a
pool table, on top of a sawed-off mountain.” Located in
newly-organized Crosby County, Texas, it could be bought
at the give-away price of $3 an acre.
When Ellison declared, “You’d have to ride a mile to
find a rock as big as your fist,” both Ausmus and Johnny
Goins were convinced. Both families had struggled with
the rocky, mountainside land in Campbell County, Tennes-
see, trying to scratch a living out of the hard-scrabble.
Johnny Goins raced home to tell his parents about his de-
cision to head west. John Peter Goins had been born
there March 21, 1889 to Preston Goins and Annie Smith
Goins. His father was less than enthusiastic. “I don’t
guess you will,” he firmly told his son. But the deter-
mined Johnny Goins won out. He left his parents’ home
on November 4, 1908, “the day William Howard Taft was
elected president of the United States.”
Although he failed to realize fully the impact this de-
cision would have on the remainder of his life, John Pe-
ter Goins became a pioneer in a developing country. His
life was changed forever, according to an article in the
March 12, 1961 edition of “The Crosbyton Review” of
Crosbyton, Texas.
The Tennessee farm boy informed his parents, “I’ll return
home in one year.” He didn’t! In fact, it was 16 years
before he returned to Tennessee for a visit.
Goins and the Ausmuses bought railroad tickets to Texas.
They changed cars in Kentucky and stayed overnight in
Kansas City where they turned south. The group “landed
in Seymour, Texas on November 4” and stayed at the B. W.
Ellison place three days. On the 11th, they hired John
Bradford to move them to Crosbyton with his wagon and
team. Ausmus paid Bradford $25 to deliver his family
and possessions, and Goins paid $10.
Leaving Seymour, they “didn’t see one soul until we got
to Benjamin.” They asked Bradford, “How could all these
counties get organized when nobody lived there?” Brad-
ford explained that all they had to do was to “throw a
dance,” and cowboys would ride ‘clear across three coun-
ties” to get there. Texas law required 75 residents to
organize a county, and the dance would continue until
they had 75 signatures on the petition. “Occasionally
a cowboy signed for his horse, as well.”
Camping overnight at Benjamin, Texas, the Tennesseeans
met east-bound Henry Leatherwood. “Mr. Leatherwood was
the first Crosby County man I met” the slightly-built
Goins remembers. He also got acquainted rapidly with
the rawness of West Texas, observing Leatherwood handl-
ing wild mules. Stock back home in Tennessee was
“raised right in the pen and was always tame.”
Isolation and primitiveness were all around. Goins re-
called that Mrs. Ausmus cried all night long when they
were camped at Benjamin, expressing a desire to “go back
home to Tennessee.” The Ausmus family “didn’t stay long;
they compromised and went to Illinois.”
Despite the adversities of this austere, pioneer land,
Johnny Goins stayed! The 19-year-old lad had “$15 in
cash when I got to Crosbyton. I bought a little food,
and we stayed that night in a half dugout on B. W. El-
lison’s place west of town. Along about midnight, Har-
ley Coffey, Ewing Lawson and Luther Collier reached the
dugout to overnight.”
Early the next morning, “Harley Coffey made breakfast.
He cooked the first biscuits I ate in Crosby County.
Ausmus killed an antelope, and we had fresh meat.”
Goins met ranch foreman Jay Walling, “one of the finest
men I ever knew” and became a cowboy. “When Mr. Walling
hired me, he sent me to Crawfish Ranch to feed cattle.
That ranch was in Fairview Community where Goins six
years later purchased land, which became his home for
the next 63 years.
While working for Walling on the ranch Goins helped “lay
off the route from Crosbyton to Petersburg.” A sled
pulled by four mules was utilized to blaze a trail and
to outline the road. “We went across many farms; most
land owners were agreeable. There was a lot of give-and
-take in opening up a new land. It was hard, but there
were also some fond memories.”
Johnny Goins remembers driving a chuck wagon with the
crew which was building the road. Goins jumped from the
chuck wagon to open a gate. He was unprepared to see
the half-broke horses running off with the chuck wagon.
The mounted cowboys soon had the runaway team under con-
trol.
Goins became friends with Frank White, newspaper editor
and helped him distribute the first issue of the “Cros-
byton Review” in January 1909. In fact, he had spent
part of Christmas Day in White’s office watching him
handset type for that initial publication. A copy of
the first issue of the paper was sent “to my father in
Tennessee.” Six decades later, Johnny Goins owned the
longest-running subscription the newspaper ever had.
The former Tennessee farmboy worked as a freighter in
1909. He hauled freight on a wagon, going to Plainview on
a route. The job had its good points. “You could get
good meals for 25 cents at a boarding house in Plainview.
It also had its bad features. “I had a full load of
Irish potatoes when it came up a freeze, and they all
spoiled. I burned out on that job because of the weather.
One night, me and my team nearly froze. We had some hard
winters. I took 90 hides to Plainview one time, hides of
cattle which had froze or starved.”
With the arrival of barbed wire, Crosby County began to
change from ranchland to farmland. By 1910, it was evi-
dent that the fertile land was ideal for rowcrop produc-
tion.
John Peter Goins was married about 1910, wife’s name, No-
ra L. “John Goen” was the father of an infant born in
Crosby County November 30, 1911, according to Texas Bu-
reau of Statistics File 19418. A son was born to them
in 1915.
After seven years in Crosby County, Goins, now a full-
fledged Texan, became a landowner. He made a deal with
the C-B Livestock Company for 160 acres of land in the
Fairview community. Actually it was an agriculture
lease for five years. The agreement called for $1 per
acre lease the first year, $1.25 the second year, $1.50
the third year, $1.75 the fourth year, and $2.00 the
fifth and final year.
At the end of the lease, the land contract was marked,
“Paid in Full.” Goins moved to Fairview community in
1912 and “broke out the sod with a walking plow.” He
farmed there until 1959.
“Exceptionally dry years” prevailed across West Texas in
1917 and 1918. And World War I was declared in 1917.
These were troubled years. The war ended November 11,
1918. The situation was improving. “The drought broke,
and we had a good crop in 1919.” He planted and harvest-
ed “wheat, oats, and high-gear” [heigera, a form of
maize].
Goins “bought my first car” October 11, 1921. He retain-
ed his original registration papers issued by the late B.
W. Mitchell, then sheriff and tax collector, 40 years
later. He has “my first poll tax receipt from 1910.” He
also kept his first auto license plates and his registra-
tion cards from two World Wars.
The spry pioneer points out that he vividly recalls
events from his childhood in Tennessee — recalling the
Bible verse from his final Sunday school lesson there–
and “things when I first came out here are fresh in my
mind, but I don’t remember other things” more recent.
Addressing the changing times, Goins says “people start-
ed gathering at Fairview before sundown to get a seat for
plays” presented at school. Community life was strong in
those days. He served 12 years on the Fairview school
board “before it was consolidated with Ralls in 1948.”
Admitting that he “strongly opposed” the consolidation
move, Goins is emphatic that “when we lost our school,
we lost our community life.”
Goins comes down hard on “farmers who talk about hard
times. Lord o’ mercy, in the early days, many people
lost their land and did well to just live. We didn’t
have disaster payments, or Social Security or anything.”
Continuing on the changing times, Goins remembers “I
helped break out lots of sod land. I had three horses
to a plow and walked behind. “The first cotton I raised,
I hauled to Floydada in 1921 and sold for six cents a
pound.”
John Peter Goins was remarried to Miss Ruth Pratt Febru-
ary 15, 1942, according to Crosby County Marriage Book 3,
page 451. This pioneer man who will celebrate his 92nd
birthday on March 21 “if the Lord let’s me live,” says.
“when farmers lived on a quarter or a half section, they
had milk cows, chickens, and meat hogs. They had their
living at home. They took milk and eggs to town on Sat-
urday and sold them. This kept the little man on the
farm.”
Goins and his third wife, the former Alice Holmes “who I
met by accident November 14, 1964 and married June 18,
1966” will be allowed to maintain their residence on the
Fairview farm for the remainder of their lives. “I hated
to sell the land after living here 73 years because I
knew we’d never own another home,” the pioneer admits.
Children born to John Peter Goins and Nora L. Goins
include:
Samuel Preston Goins born in 1915
6) GENEALOGICAL RESEARCH IN THE 2000 CENSUS WILL BE MORE DIFFICULT IN THE NEXT CENTURY
The federal census of 2000 suggests that genealogy may be
a little more complicated when family researchers a hun-
dred years from now begin to discover their 20th century
roots. It is because more and more couples are living
together “without the benefit of clergy.”
Five and a half million unmarried couples were living to-
gether in 2000. That’s almost double the three million
singles living together in 1990, according to the U.S.
Census Bureau.
Over 25% of the U.S. population now live alone. In 1960,
only eight percent of the population lived alone. Today
the typical family of father, mother and 1.6 children
compose only 25% of the total; In 1960, they composed 40%
of all households in America.
There seems to be no consistant pattern of determining
surnames for children of unmarried parents and unwed mo-
thers. Perhaps genetic genealogy will have to be used
in 22nd century research.
7) Dear Cousins
The 11 children of Shadrack Going named in his 1805 Pat-
rick Co., VA, will: Obadiah, Keziah, John, David [David
Smith], James, Claborne, Laban/Leeborne, Shadrack Jr.,
Caleb, Fanny (w/o Edward Bowlin), and Hannah (w/o Thomas
Beasley). There were at least two others: Jerusha, not
named in her father’s will but named in an 1807 deed in
which she and Keziah jointly released claim to their fa-
ther’s estate; and Nathan, who was murdered September 21
1793 by Robert Hall (who struck him in the head with a
weeding hoe).
Of the 12 surviving children, 8 were in Grainger Co., TN,
at the time of their father’s death. Keziah, Jerusha,
Obadiah, and Hannah were still in Patrick County. Obadi-
ah was the major beneficiary of Shadrack’s will; in mid-
1806, six of his brothers in TN signed over power-of-at-
torney to a Patrick County lawyer to break the will.
They finally made an out-of-court settlement in late
1807, at which time the land was sold and Obadiah, too,
moved to TN. Kesiah [Keziah] was in Patrick as late as
1813; not sure what became of her. Jerusha was there too,
listed with Kesiah on the special 1813 free persons of
color tax list.
She was counted in neighboring Stokes Co., NC, in 1820,
and registered as a free woman of color in Patrick in
1821, at which time she, her daughter, and her grandson
moved to Ohio.
This left Hannah (Going) Beasley the last of Shadrack’s
children in Virginia. Thomas Beasley’s 1835 will lists
his six children. They were: Polly (bc1790, never mar-
ried, but had a family in Patrick County); Shadrack
(bc1790, m1821 in Surry County to Martha Harris); Harden
(b. 1790s); Hannah (m1831 in Patrick County to Seaton
Chandler); Catherine (m1821 in Surry County to Benjamin
Harris) and Thomas Jr. (inherited bulk of his father’s
estate but washed out financially in Patrick in 1845-46).
All of these folks moved freely around between Patrick,
Surry, and Stokes. Catherine and Shadrack left the area,
I think, Catherine about 1848 and Shadrack in the 1860s.
Thomas Beasley, Sr.’s widow, Hannah (Going) Beasley, died
in early 1845 (estate sale in Patrick County).
Some of the other Beasleys you will see in Stokes & Pat-
rick Counties are the families of Benjamin Beasley (c1762
-1841), who was Thomas’s brother, and his wife Rachel
Prather; and the family of Robert Beasley & Caty Beasley.
Robert may have been another brother–not sure.
Hope this helps,
G. C. Waldrep III
Box 687
Yanceyville, NC, 22379
gcwaldrepiii@hotmail.com
==Dear Cousins==
The Tim Hashaw report was certainly an informative and
well researched report for all our quests of our Melun-
geon origins. These types of documented materials stimu-
late many of us to continue the ever elusive search for
selected minorities in our great melting pot called the
United States of America.
Unfortunately,we must take his papers as yet another
speculative study that is yet to be resolved. We cannot
start with a hypothetical premise that the core of what
we call Melungeons came from Angola, Africa and then
trace their migrations throughout the Eastern Seaboard.
The last Gowen newsletter with Mr. Hashaw’s conclusions
included Brent Kennedy’s management of new studies of
DNA at the University of Virginia. This type of research
is probably our best hope to eventually solve the Melun-
geon mystery. This group is collecting selected Melun-
geon DNA materials for present and future studies. Cur-
rently even this study has its shortcomings as our genet-
icists are just now mapping the entire DNA makeup of the
human species. Most researchers feel we will understand
our genetic map in the near future. Eventually there is
hope that through genetics we can actually trace the ex-
act paths of the first man from Africa, as well as iden-
tify migratory routes of and origins of many different
peoples over our entire planet.
There is still some hope that archeologists will make
some unique find to help identify the source of the Me-
lungeons, but with limited labor and resources, as well
as little interest in this minority this does not seem
too feasible at this time. Surveillance equipment will
improve for looking under the ground and sea, but cur-
rently only a limited amount of people are interested in
this mystery. Perhaps future finds of artifacts of an-
cient peoples in selected sites of the coastal waters or
lands of America will add confirmation to new knowledge
and understanding of genetic findings.
We must applaud cousin Tom Hashaw for his fine work and
added stimulation for our thoughts. At this time,we must
not take his fine investigative efforts and theories as
gospel as we store away his materials in our libraries
for future reference. We do not yet know whether we are
Portuguese, Turkish, Angolan, or one of the many others
theorized in history. We must all continue to follow
the quest!
Jim Callahan
696 E. Freeman Ridge
Nashville, Indiana, 47448
812/988-9337
melungo@aol.com
==Dear Cousins==
Your Revolutionary ancestors will come to life in South-
ern Vermont during the 9th Annual Ethan Allen Days on
June 16, & 17, 2001. Whether your ancestors served in
the Revolution or supported it from home, you will be
able to see how they lived and fought for independence
as the roar of revolutionary cannons and the crack of
musket fire echo along the old Ethan Allen Highway
(Historic Route 7A) and through the historic Battenkill
River Valley in Sunderland, Vermont, where Allen mustered
his band of Green Mountain Boys. The weekend will fea-
ture battle reenactments, music, food, crafters, arti-
sans, and fun for the entire family as Ethan Allen Days
returns for its ninth year.
Information is available from:
ethan01@sover.net
==Dear Cousins==
I am still perusing cousin’s Gowen/Gowan emails; and hav-
ing absolutely no luck finding the elusive William Gowen
/Gowan/Goban/Gobin of Island Creek District, Granville NC
His daughter Susannah, born 04/23/1769, was married to
John Greenway c1793, but no marriage record exists. John
& Susannah had 5 children in Granville County, moved to
Rutherford County, NC c1805, then had 3 more children.
Does anyone have information on them?
Susan Georgion
sesilvertree@mindspring.com
==Dear Cousins==
All of the early-day Gowen/Goins/etc descendants of East
Tennessee pioneers are invited to a get-together June 16
and 17 at Bell’s Campground in Powell, TN. Entertainment
will continue from noon until ’til dark.
Bring a picnic lunch and drinks and your lawn chair(s)
and join the fun. This “reunion” will include descend-
ants of any and all of the earlist settlers of the Pow-
ell area as well as pioneers of all of Knox Co., Jeffer-
son Co., Grainger Co., Union Co., Blount Co., Sevier Co.
as well as early Greene Co., Hawkins Co., and Washington
Co., Tennessee.
We are hoping that this will become an annual affair so
please try to join us if your family was in any of these
counties in early 1800’s ’til present times. Lots of gen-
ealogy..lots of entertaiment..lots of good times…and we
hope lots of new cousins found.
Thanks and hope to see many of you there.
Terri Brown Jurca
For details, contact Terri Jurca: TeddyB_52@webtv.net
http://community.webtv.net/TeddyB_52/TerrisSearchPage
==Dear Cousins==
Announcing the Fifth Annual Angelina College Genealogy
Conference Friday & Saturday, July 27-28, 2001. Fea-
turing Alvie L. Davideson, CGRS of Lakeland, Florida.
Pre-Conference activities begin Thursday, July 26, An-
gelina College Community Services Conference Center.
Highway 59 South [3500 South First], Box 1768, Lufkin,
Texas, 75902. Phone 409/663-5206.
For details:
fkanke@angelina.cc.tx.us
___________________________________________________________
NOTE: The above information produced by the Gowen Research Foundation (GRF), and parts of the “Gowen Manuscript” they worked on producing. It has tons of information – much of it is correct, but be careful, some of it is not correct – so check their sources and logic. I’ve copied some of their information in the past researching my own family, only to find out there were some clear mistakes. So be sure to check the information to verify if it is right before citing the source and believing the person who researched it before was 100% correct. Most of the information I found there seems to be correct, but some is not.
Their website is: Internet: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~gowenrf
There does not seem to be anyone “manning the ship” at the Gowen Research Foundation, or Gowen Manuscript site any longer, and there is no way to contact anyone about any errors. The pages themselves don’t have a mechanism to leave a note for others to see any “new information” that you may have that shows when you find info that shows something is wrong, or when something has been verified.
Feel free to leave messages about any new information found, or errors in these pages, or information that has been verified that those who wrote these pages may not have known about.
Goyen Family Tree 