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Facts and Events
http://jimmcmcl.home.att.net/Chapter5.htm The Descendants of William Ewing ______________________________________________ GENERATION NO. A 1. William Ewing {78} was born about 1660 in Scotland as indicated in other sources. Apparently William died in Ireland since no record has been found that would indicate he came to America. Based on his first child being born about 1693, if William was 26 years old at that time, he would have been born about 1667. At this time, a number of men are over thirty years old when they get married. The name of his first wife is not known.
Known child of William and first wife is: + 2. i. Nathaniel Ewing {80}, born about 1693, died 6 Sep 1748.
William married a second wife. Known children of William and second wife are: + 3. ii. John Ewing {82}, born about 1695, died about 1751.
+ 4. iii. William Ewing {89}, born about 1700, died 1782.
+ 5. iv. Joshua Ewing {83}, born about 1704, died Aug 1753.
+ 6. v. Samuel Ewing {84}, born about 1705, died 1758.
+ 7. vi. Ann Ewing {88}, born about 1707/1708.
+ 8. vii. James Ewing {87}, born about 1712, died 1788.
+ 9. viii. George Ewing {90}, born about 1715, died 1798.
In 1998, I was looking at a large chart that was quite old but the person that prepared the chart was not identified. The information on the chart states, “William and 3 others [not named] was in the Siege of Londonderry, Ireland, July 1690.” The 3 others could refer to his brothers.
Initially, I was going to indicate Eliza Milford to be the second wife of WilliamA Ewing {78} since that is the name that many descendants of Nathaniel and his half-brothers give as the second wife of William. In the minds of some Ewing researchers, Eliza Milford is not the wife of that WilliamA Ewing {78} but the first wife of William1 Ewing (1694-1796) of Rockingham County, Virginia. There appears to be evidence that supports that view. Some of the published information and some recent research information will be given. This information should be considered by those that are researching this family as well as the family of William Ewing of Rockingham County, Virginia.
In other publications the children of WilliamA Ewing {78} and his second wife includes additional children that are not shown above. After about twenty years of research Margaret Ewing Fife published Ewing In Early America in 1995. She used deeds, wills, tax, and other records to sort out the many early Ewing families. Based on her excellent research, I have given the children for William Ewing {78} as indicated above.
The families of the children of WilliamA Ewing have been treated in more detail in other genealogy publications. The main purpose for including this family in this genealogy record is Nathaniel Ewing married into the RobertA Ewing family. Also, the children of this family lived close to the descendants of Robert Ewing {74} in Cecil County, Maryland, Chester County, Pennsylvania, and in Virginia.
In the book Ewing - McCulloch - Buchanan Genealogy by Marguerite and Vernon Brown, they indicated that William {78} and Robert Ewing {74} were brothers and sons of another WilliamB Ewing of Stirling. However, research that has been done to this date in Ireland and Scotland, that I am aware of, does not bring those two families together.
The Browns do not give any basis for showing William Ewing of Stirling as the father of William and Robert. Clan Ewing of Scotland is probably considered by many to be the original "bible" of the Ewing families that we are writing about. After reviewing that book a number of times, I have not found any reference to a William Ewing of Stirling being the father of Robert and William Ewing. The Browns repeated information in several chapters in their book that was taken from Clan Ewing of Scotland.
A short time before Nathaniel3 Ewing (1772-1846) (George2, Nathaniel1, WilliamA), of Mount Clair (near Vincennes), Indiana, died he wrote an account of his family. That information along with additional information added by Col. Wm. A. Ewing was published in The Courier-Journal (February 28, 1897). Nathaniel moved from Maryland to Indiana in 1801. The article was published just over fifty years after the death of Nathaniel3. We will look at the information contained in that article. The paragraphs have been numbered for the ease of reference. The information written by Nathaniel Ewing follows:
(Paragraph 1) "At the request of my children I give the following history of my family as far back as I have any knowledge, either traditional or personal. My forefathers were originally from Scotland, their seat in that country being on the Forth, not far from Stirling Castle, whence they removed to the north of Ireland about the year ____, and settled near Londonderry. My great grandfather, whose name, I believe, was William, was twice married. By his first wife he had but one son, Nathaniel, who was my grandfather; by his second marriage he had several children, viz.: William, Joshua, James and some others whom I do not now recollect." Ewing, p. 142.
(Paragraph 2) "James I have seen, and had from him a portion of my information. He was at that time upwards of eighty years of age and lived in Prince Edward County, Virginia. Nathaniel Ewing my grandfather, was born about the year 1703. He married a cousin of his own, Rachel Porter, in the year 1723, and four years afterwards he emigrated to America, bringing with him his half-brothers and sisters, and a large connection of the Porter family, and also the Gillespies. The colony settled in Maryland, between Octorora Creek and the Susquehanna River, near the Pennsylvania line, about sixty miles from Philadelphia, this country at the time being the frontier settlement. My grandfather purchased a tract of land and commenced farming. His brother, Joshua, also purchased a tract adjoining him. Whether any others of the brothers purchased land there I do not know, but they did not remain long in Maryland, having removed to Virginia and settled on the waters of the Appomattox, Prince Edward County, where their posterity became numerous. Many of them afterward removed to Cripple Creek (subsequently in Montgomery and Wythe Counties, Virginia), or New Beaver (New River) and some to Potsdam, near Knoxville, (Tennessee). They are now scattered over the States of Tennessee and Kentucky." Ibid., p. 142.
(Paragraph 3) "Sometime about the year 1735 or 1740, two young men, cousins of my grandfather Ewing, came to America. Their names were Charles and Robert Ewing. Having gotten into an affray at a fair in Ireland they were so unfortunate as to kill a man, for which they were obliged to flee the country and came to my grandfather's where they concealed themselves for a length of time until one of my grandfather's half-brothers came from Virginia on a visit to his relations in Maryland. On his return they were put over the Susquehanna in the night and went with him to Virginia. It being a place less frequented by emigrants from Ireland than Maryland, and a proclamation having arrived offering a reward for their apprehension, their longer stay became dangerous." Ibid., p. 233.
(Paragraph 4) "Sometime after their arrival in Prince Edward County a new settlement was founded further back, what is now called Bedford County, near the Peaks of Otter. They joined the adventure and finally settled there and married sisters, daughters of Mr. Baker, a Presbyterian minister, and lived there until death. They both left large families, who are now settled in Kentucky, Tennessee and Missouri some of whom I have seen, viz. Baker Ewing, Young Ewing, Samuel Ewing, and Finis Ewing, the last is a Presbyterian Clergyman and resides in Missouri. I mention the family on account of their having become so numerous in the Western Country and to show the connection between them and my family." Ibid., p. 234.
(Paragraph 5) "My grandfather Ewing, as I said before, settled in Maryland on the eastern shore of the Susquehanna, now Cecil County, where he had a large family of ten children--six sons and four daughters, viz: Sarah, William, Ann, John and James (twins), George, Alexander, Rachel and Samuel, who died young." Ibid., p. 164.
The additional information added to the article by Col. Wm. A. Ewing will not be considered in this book. However, it is important to look at a number of statements included in the article.
Let's look at the contents of the article by Nathaniel Ewing (1772-1846
Paragraph 1:
"My forefathers were originally from Scotland"
That statement does not tell us how many generations lived in Ireland before the migration to America started. It could be William was born in Scotland and came to Ireland or one, two or more generations could have lived in Ireland after the ancestor migrated from Scotland.
"settled near Londonderry"
Their is a belief that WilliamA Ewing {78} was married in Ireland and he lived around or in Coleraine, Ireland. No written documents have been found that establishes exactly the area where William lived. If he lived close to Coleraine, he could have been in the county of Londonderry. Nathaniel1, a son of WilliamA by his first marriage, married a granddaughter, Rachel1 Porter, of RobertA Ewing. Robert lived in Elaugh Beg when his children were baptized. Elaugh Beg is a short distance west of Londonderry. Josias Porter, the father of Rachel, lived in Elaghmore when Rachel was baptized. How did they meet and finally marry each other? The distance between Coleraine, if that is where Nathaniel1 lived, and the location where Rachel lived has to be considered.
"My great grandfather whose name, I believe, was William, was twice married"
Almost all of the information that I have seen for this family of William Ewing {78} gives WiilliamA as the father of Nathaniel1, and a WilliamB of Stirling as the father of WilliamA. It is important to remember that Nathaniel Ewing wrote, "whose name, I believe, was William".
Paragraph 2
"By his first wife he had but one son--Nathaniel"
This piece of information has, it appears to me, been accepted by everyone that is a descendant of this family or has done some research for this family. Also, they accept the date Nathaniel was born. This is an important statement since we know that Nathaniel was born about 1693.
"James I have seen . . . He was at that time upward of eighty years of age and lived in Prince Edward County, Virginia"
This James1 Ewing (1712-c 1788) is a half-brother to Nathaniel1 Ewing and James is a great uncle of the Nathaniel3 that wrote the account of his family. Based on the statement "He was at that time upward of eighty years", it must have been reasonably close to the time that James died. James was only about 76 years old when he died. It would also make Nathaniel the writer about 15 or 16 years old since he was born in 1772. Nathaniel3, the author of the article, was the son of George2 Ewing, the seventh son of Nathaniel1 Ewing. George died about 1785. His will was probated in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.
Question: When Nathaniel, the son of George, saw his uncle James was he in Pennsylvania or Virginia? Did James possibly live longer than originally thought, 1788? How involved is a 15 or 16 year old boy in researching and knowing about his extended family?
"Nathaniel Ewing, my grandfather, was born about the year 1703"
"This is an error, as Colonel Ewing pointed out. That Nathaniel was born approximately near Coleraine and Londonderry, Ireland, in 1693. The mistake may have been made by the printer." Ibid., p. 142.
"He married a cousin of his own, Rachel Porter, in the year 1723. Four years after, he emigrated to America"
Additional research in Ireland has located the church records, Registers of Derry Cathedral Deirdre Speer, "Report Ewing - Appendix 6, Registers of DerryCathedral" A Research Report for Clan Ewing in America, 1995.
Paragraph 3 "Sometime about the year 1735 or 1740, two young men, cousins of my grandfather Ewing, came to America. Their names were Charles and Robert Ewing."
The above statement might contain more information than what "meets the eye". First, we do not know how Charles and Robert are cousins to Nathaniel. "Rev. Quincy Ewing, an Episcopal minister of Alabama, brother of Judge Ewing of Texas, who recently published The Ewing Genealogy, wrote to Joseph Lyons Ewing in 1906:
"My grandfather, Ephraim Ewing, was a nephew of Finis Ewing, one of the founders of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. I saw a letter years ago from General Thos. Ewing, of Ohio, in which he stated that he and my grandfather were distantly connected." Ewing, p. 147.
When Nathaniel and the others came to America, I believe about 1727, James, a half brother to Nathaniel, was about 15 years old and George, a brother to James, was about 12 years old. That appears to be too young for a twelve and fifteen year old boy to leave home and go to another country. I have never heard or read anything about Nathaniel or anyone raising those two boys (James and George). Also, no mention has been made that both parents had died by the time Nathaniel and the others came to America.
In one place, it was noted that James came to America fifteen years after Nathaniel immigrated. Is it possible that James and George came to America with Charles and Robert? In 1735, James would have been twenty-three and George would have been twenty years old. Their father, WilliamA, would have been about seventy-five if he was born in 1660. William could have been born later. What age would you guess William was when he got married? One year or so after William’s marriage Nathaniel was most likely born.
“They were so unfortunate as to kill a man, for which they were obliged to flee the country and came to my grandfather’s where they concealed themselves for a length of time until one of my grandfather’s half-brothers came from Virginia on a visit to his relations in Maryland.”
Samuel Ewing was in Amelia County, Virginia by 1744. Based on land records, Samuel is the first of the half-brothers to purchase land in Amelia County, Virginia. It would appear that 1744 would be the earliest that a half-brother of Nathaniel would have had an opportunity to come back to Cecil County, Maryland for a visit. “A length of time” in this case could be several years. James was a witness to a will in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania in 1741/42. James purchased land in Amelia County, Virginia on 16 May 1746 (Deed Book 2 page 315).
One point that the author of Clan Ewing of Scotland makes more than once in his book is the Ewings are "Scotch-Irish". As he explains, "they were called Scotch-Irish, there in Ireland, meaning a Scotchman living in Ireland" Ibid, p. 114.
From the pages of Clan Ewing of Scotland, we find the following:
page 162 ". . . Nathaniel Ewing statement, noticed in the previous chapter, published in The Courier Journal, Colonel Ewing, (see above) who subsequently indicated Eliza Milford as the second wife of this William Ewing. . . ." page 182 "To recapitulate a second, we recall that (2) William Ewing and second wife, Eliza Milford (if that were her maiden name). . . ." page 280 "In another letter I find this: "A memorandum made in 1865 from information given me by my paternal aunt, Eliza Milford (Ewing) Dunaway, states that she was named after her great-grandmother whose maiden name was Eliza Milford. This was William's first wife.""
The William referred to above, page 280, here is known as William Ewing of Rockingham County, Virginia. He was born in 1694 in Scotland and died 1796 in Rockingham County, Virginia.
page 282 "It is true that it is tradition that an ancestor of William1 of Rockingham married Eliza Milford, and it is also true that Col. W. A. Ewing gave to William, the father of the Cecil County family, Eliza Milford as one of his wives. In this Col. Ewing has been widely followed; but he, too, may have confused generations."
"Andrew [should be William] Ewing, the ancestor of the Virginia and Tennessee Ewings, emigrated to America from the city of Belfast, Ireland, about 1720, and first settled in Pennsylvania, and thence moved to Rockbridge County, Virginia., and there resided until his death. Before leaving Ireland he married Eliza Milford." Robert Gray, The McGavock Family, A genealogical History ofJames McGavock and His Descendants From 1760 to 1903 Richmond:Wm. Ellis Jones, Book and Job Printer, 1903), p. 133.
"When Eliza Milford Ewing died sometime after 1740 then William1 Ewing married 2nd Anne Shannon daughter of Thomas Shannon, Sr. who died in Sadsbury twp. Lancaster Co., Pa. in 1737. . . ." Margaret Ewing Fife, Ewing in Early America, (Atlanta, Georgia:Private Printing, 1995), p. 287.
In 1991, Clan Ewing in America had some research done in Scotland. The researcher was given information indicating that William and Robert Ewing were brothers and their father was William Ewing of Stirling. Also, James, the father of Findlay, was indicated as being a brother to William and Robert. In that report, the following was stated by the researcher, John Harrison:
"We have no evidence for the marriages of the earlier generation beyond the suggestion that William's (the younger) second marriage was to Eliza Milford. If so, I would be quite certain that she was Irish; Milford is not found as a surname in 17th century Scotland but is well established in Ireland.
Based on the definition of Scotch-Irish birth, and the name Milford not being found in Scotland in the 17th century, there appears to be reason enough to doubt that Eliza Milford is the step-mother of Nathaniel and the mother of the half-brothers and sister of Nathaniel. Here, you have to accept one point, Scotch-Irish, or the other point, maiden name of Milford, over the other, but, you can not accept both since both points do not appear to be true in this case.
Before we leave this family, I will include some information from the research report done in Scotland. The researcher writes:
"THE EWINGS IN IRELAND" Harrison, p. 1.
"I can add little to what previous writers have said about the Ewings in Ireland, except that the following are recorded in the most recent edition of the IGI for Ireland available to me."
Baptism of Thomas Ewing, son of Findlay and Jane Porter in Londonderry in 1695. Baptism of Robert Ewing, son of Findlay and Jane Porter, in Londonderry 1718. Marriage of Nathaniel Ewing to Rachel Porter in Templemore, Londonderry on 2nd Mar 1721.
“Perhaps also relevant is the marriage of Samuel Ewing, to Margaret Lennox, also in Templemore, Londonderry 9th July 1685. There are numerous other Ewing entries in the IGI for this area, from the mid 17th century onward; but the information is quite inadequate for sure identification. None correspond with what we otherwise know; this is not to say they are not relevant, merely that their place in the scheme cannot be ascertained.”
“Given that Findlay was a father by 1695, he is unlikely to have been born much after 1670 or 1675 at the very latest. In the previous generation, James is likely to have been born by 1650 or 1655 and in a yet earlier one, William by 1635 or 1640 and probably considerably earlier.”
"Clearly William of Glasgow (if there really was a Glasgow phase) cannot have emigrated to America with all his family in 1713, since Nathaniel was still in Ireland in 1721. I think this must put the other emigration dates into doubt."
"Cousin marriage was common at this period amongst Scots, though perhaps second cousin marriage was preferred; but the term 'cousin' was very wide and the marriage of Findlay to Jane Porter would have made a whole swathe of Porters 'cousins' in popular parlance. In Scotland a full cousin was usually called a 'cousin-german', for distinction from the wide range of 'cousins' who might be 2nd or 3rd removes and perhaps only cousins by marriage."
"We have no evidence for the marriages of the earlier generation beyond the suggestion that William's (the younger) second marriage was to Eliza Milford. If so, I would be quite certain that she was Irish; Milford is not found as a surname in 17th century Scotland but is well established in Ireland. "
"A wide search (Burgess Lists, IGI and Indices of Testaments, General Register of Sasines, General Register of Deeds, Retours, Great Seal etc) has shown no William, living in Scotland, with three sons, James, Robert and William. In the same way, I have searched for a James, father of Findlay, a William father of Nathaniel and so on. All without success. Of course, this does not mean the people did not exist, since the national records are far from complete. Since search at a national level proved futile, I turned to the local level and to Stirling in particular."
When the researcher in Scotland was asked to do Ewing research, the information given to him indicated that a William was the father of a William, James, and Robert. As indicated above the research did not support that claim.
Marguerite and Vernon Brown bring up an interesting point in their book They say "Since Alexander Ewing was considerably older than Nathaniel and his half brothers, he is believed to have been one of the leaders of this group of Ewings, Caldwells, Porters, and Gillespies, and possibly others in their migration to America." Marguerite and Vernon Brown, Ewing - McCulloch - BuchananGenealogy (Dallas, Texas: Royal Publishing Company, 1957) p. 13.
Alexander Ewing's (1676/7-1738) sister, Margaret, was the mother of Rachel Porter. Being her uncle, he became the uncle, in a reference sense, of Nathaniel Ewing when he married Rachel.
In Clan Ewing of Scotland on page 142, we find this statement, "He (Nathaniel) married a cousin of his own, Rachel Porter, in the year 1723, and four years afterwards he emigrated to America...."
It depends on where you find information for the immigration of Nathaniel and others, you may read it was 1725 or it was 1727. To me, it really doesn't matter if the year was 1725 or 1727.
When the year of emigration was published as 1727 in Clan Ewing, there must have been a basis for that date. It could have been that someone said the Ewings got to America in 1727 four years after Nathaniel married. Therefore, the author, or someone else, could have calculated the marriage year for Nathaniel to be 1723. We know that 1723 plus four years of marriage would be 1727.
From Church records mentioned earlier, we know that Nathaniel married Rachel Porter on 2 March 1721/22. If they emigrated to America four years after they were married in March 1721 then our math of adding four to 1721 would be 1725. Just those simple cases can easily be understood.
The calendar was changed in 1752. Knowing that Rachel and Nathaniel did get married on 2 March 1721 in Ireland; we also know that twenty-three days after they got married it was the first day of 1722, March 25th, being the first day of the year before 1752.
I believe that the statement that Nathaniel and Rachel emigrated four years after they were married is a valid statement. I do not think they left on their anniversary date, 2 March, but left sometime during the year after they had been married four years. It could have been four years and one week or it could have been four years and ten months.
A lot of times people left destination "A" for destination "B" after the crops had been harvested. If the Ewings and the other families left Ireland in late fall or early winter, we could have the following arrival date:
Assume they left 4 years 10 months after Nathaniel married, which would be about January 1726 (this would be 1727 using the new calendar) then add two months travel time and that gets you to about February or March 1726. Very close to 1727. After the calendar changed, could they have corrected the year to 1727 after the calendar changed in 1752?
Now, let's consider when the children of Rachel and Nathaniel may have been born. Let's assume that thirteen months after marriage the first child was born which would be April 1723. Assume the second child was born two years later, which is about the norm, that would make the second child born about April 1725. We know that the third child, Anne, was born at sea. Again, say she was born two years after the second child which would be April 1727. Now, you can say it was a little more or less than two years between the children. Or, it was not thirteen months after marriage before the first child was born. If you use a normal period for the birth of the children, the time frame for having three children will most likely add up to more than four years.
The following article is a record found that identifies several people and gives their approximate age. The ages for the half-brothers of Nathaniel Ewing is very helpful in establishing the sequence of birth and the approximate year they were born of the children of William by his second wife.
The commissioners are appointed for the purpose of establishing a land boundary for William Teague.
CECIL COUNTY COURT (LAND COMMISSIONS) 1724-1751
[page 265] Cecil County } The Justices of Cecil County afsd in Court June Court 1736 } Judicially Setting ~ Held for sd County } To Mr Randall Death Mr Wm Husbands Mr Nathaniel Ewing and Joshua Ewing of Cecil County Gent ~ Whereas William Teague of sd County planter by his humble petition to us the said Justices hath set forth that he is [not legible] in fee of a tract of land called Teagues Delight lying on the East side of Susquehana river in Cecil County afsd the bounds whereof depending on trees which are decayed and became obsolete and prayed us the said Justices to Grant a Commission and appoint Commissioners to Examine Evidences in relation to the bounds of the said tract of land pursuant to Act of Assembly of this practice.
We do upon the said Petition and by Virtue of the said Act impower you the said Randall Death Wm Husbands Nathaniel Ewing and Joshua Ewing or any three or two of you to be Commissioners you first taking an oath before this Court or some magistrate of this County duly and Impartially to Examine and certify such Evidence as shall be to you nominated by the petitioner or other person concerned upon their Corporal oaths by you the Commissioners as afsd to be administered and you are to issue Summons and give notice before your meeting on such land where all parties concerned live in the County or where they are not known by affixing publick notes at the parish Church where the above said land is [torn] days at the least before your meeting as afs intimating your intentions and the time you Shall appoint and you are ordered to [torn] the like notes to be set up in the most publick places in the County twenty days before Such meeting and that when all persons interested are known and any of them lives out of the County that then you must give notice by affixing a note at the Church Door of the parish in which the party resides forty days at the least before your meeting as afsd and that you then meet at [page torn] By you to be appointed and upon the place or places where the said bounds are said to be and what the Evidences that shall be brought before you shall upon their Corporall Oaths declare touching the premises that you carefully reduce the same into writing in the presence of the parties concerned that shall be there present and that you return the same together with a certificate of having given notice as the law requires to this County Court to be Recorded in perpetual memory given under the seal of the County aforesaid this Eleventh day of June Anno Domini 1736 By the Court Wm Knight [page 270](pages 266 through 269 are not in this article) October 28th 1736 The Deposition of James Porter aged about thirty years & Joshua Ewing aged about 32 and James Ewing aged about 24 & Samuel Ewing aged about 31 & Andrew Madow aged about 24 Saith being Solemly Sworn on the Holy Evanglest of Almighty God that a Certain Stoney Hill some Distance below the place where Abraham Colletts evidence was taken the fifth day of August last is the first Hill from the mouth of Conawingo Creek and the Descent of the Hill they understand to be the Brow thereof where we made a Small heap of Stones this day and further Swear that a certain Edward Mury told them this day that William Teague twenty one years ago showed him a white ash tree the which tree he said William Teague told him that it was one of his line trees and further Saith not Taken and Reduced into writing and Sworn on the Holy Evangelist of Almighty God this 28th day of October 1736 Before us Nathanl Ewing William Husband Randall Death Recorded 20th November 1737 Wm Knight
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