Mother's Day Gift Idea, 1922

My wish today is that all mothers, stepmothers, foster mothers, and all who have a maternal role take a little time for themselves on this Mother's Day. No housework!

The Kansas City Kansan, May 11, 1922
[CLICK TO VIEW LARGER]

Cowden Land for 200+ Years

There are a lot of Cowdens in Washington County, Pennsylvania. I haven't tried yet to figure out how these cousins are exactly connected to my husband, but this chapter of the family story begins in 1787 with 154 acres that are still owned by Cowdens today.

Warrantee Township Map (partial)
Mount Pleasant, Washington County, Pennsylvania

This image from the Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission and PA State Archives shows the parcel of land called "Horn Head" in Mt. Pleasant, Washington County, that was owned by Mary Reynolds Cowden, my husband's 5th great-grandmother. Mary moved the family here from Guilford, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania (now Franklin County), several years after her husband John died.

After Mary died, her oldest son John--my husband's 4th great-grandfather--owned the farm. It then passed to his oldest son (another John) and remains with his descendants today. My husband's branch eventually left rural life and moved to Allegheny County for work in steel mills.

It's fantastic that the original 1787 farm is still owned by the Cowden family, more than 200 years after its brave matriarch moved to this unfamiliar part of the state.