Walkinshaw Cowan (1808 - 1888)

Born 25 Dec 1808 in Borrowstounness and Carriden, West Lothian, Scotland, United Kingdom

Husband of Elizabeth (Dyer) Cowan — married 14 Jun 1842 in Perth, Western Australia, Australia

Descendants

Died 22 Jan 1888 at age 79 in Fremantle, Western Australia, Australia

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Biography

Walkinshaw Cowan came free to the Colony of Western Australia (1832-1900)

Walkinshaw was born in 1808 in Bo'ness. He was the son of Thomas Cowan and Janet Shippard^[1]

Walkinshaw Cowan was appointed as private secretary to Western Australian Governor John Hutt. In April 1836. He emigrated to the Western Australia on the ship Brothers, arriving on the 1st of January 1839. He first lived with and then married Elizabeth Dyer (on 14 June 1842) with whom he would eventually have at least 11 children.

Walkinshaw Cowan was also later appointed clerk of the councils, that is, the Legislative Council and the Executive Council of the Western Australian Colony, from 1846 to 1848,

He also served as private secretary to later Governors Andrew Clarke and Frederick Irwin.

In 1848 he was appointed Guardian of Aborigines and a Justice of the Peace, and then Resident Magistrate at York from 1863 to 1887.

Walkinshaw Cowan died at Fremantle in the Western Australian Colony on the 22nd January 1888.

From the The West Australian newspaper of Thursday 26 January 1888, we see a small Obituary:

MR. WALKINSHAW COWAN, a notice of whose recent death appears in our columns to-day, was born at Kinniel House, Borrowstounness, Scotland, and was a son of the late Mr. Thomas Cowan, Comptroller of Customs, Borrowstounness, by his second wife, Miss Jessie Shippard, grand daughter of Mr. John Walkinshaw, of Scotstorm, and niece of Ad-miral Alexander Shippard. Mr. Cowan ar-rived in the colony by the ship Brothers on the 1st January, 1839, OB Private Secretary to Governor Hutt, and acted subsequently as Private Secretary to Governors Irwin, Clarke, and Fitzgerald. He was also clerk to the Executive Council for many years. He was afterwards appointed Native Protector at York and, later, Resident Magistrate of that town and district, which post he held until his retirement from the service a few months.

Sources

1. ↑ Walkinshaw Cowan Gender: Male Birth Date: 25 Dec 1808 Baptism Date: 29 Dec 1808 Baptism Place: , Bo'ness, West Lothian, Scotland

   Father: Thomas Cowan

   Mother: Janet Shippard

   FHL Film Number: 1066614 Reference ID: 2:17GWJGB. Ancestry.com. Scotland, Select Births and Baptisms, 1564-1950 [database on-line].

• Walkinshaw Cowan from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. first accessed online on the 21st of March, 2021 at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walkinshaw_Cowan

• Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/105462261/walkinshaw-cowan : accessed 21 March 2021), memorial page for Walkinshaw Cowan (25 Dec 1808–22 Jan 1888), Find a Grave Memorial no. 105462261, citing East Perth Cemeteries, Perth, City of Perth, Western Australia, Australia ; Maintained by Aussiegenie (contributor 47224840) . no gravestone photograph.

• Item 021 - Return of persons on the premises of Walkinshaw Cowan. from the State Records Office of WA's 'Series S4162 - 1859 CENSUS RETURNS {YORK CENSUS RETURNS}. first accessed online on the 17th of March, 2021 at: https://archive.sro.wa.gov.au/index.php/return-of-persons-on-the-premises-of-walkinshaw-cowan-21

• Walkinshaw Cowan basic information form GENI. first accessed online on the 21st of March, 2021 at: https://www.geni.com/people/Walkinshaw-Cowan/6000000047261075161

• Justice of the Peace list in the Government Gazette of Western Australia no 30 Tuesday June 19 1883. first accessed online on the 21st of March, 2021 at: https://www.slp.wa.gov.au/gazette/gazette.nsf/searchgazette/97060CEFB46930E648257DB8000F2F43/$file/Gg030.pdf

• NEWS AND NOTES from The West Australian (Perth, WA : 1879 - 1954) of Monday 23 January 1888, Page 3. first accessed online on the 21st of March, 2021 at: https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/3116206?searchTerm=%22Walkinshaw%20Cowan%22

• NEWS AND NOTES. from The West Australian (Perth, WA : 1879 - 1954) of Thursday 26 January 1888, Page 2. first accessed online on the 21st of March, 2021 at: https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/3116269?searchTerm=%22Walkinshaw%20Cowan%22

• Cowan, Hendy, The Swan River Colony and the Cowan Family, from the Early Days: Journal of the Royal Western Australian Historical Society, Vol. 12, No. 4, 2004: [446]-462

• Peter Cowan: A Colonial Experience: Swan River 1839–1888, From the Diary and Reports of Walkingshaw Cowan, Perth, Peter Cowan, 1978,

• Old York Cemetery transcribed by Lorraine Larment, via the OZBURIALS website first accessed online on the 21st of March, 2021 at: http://www.ozburials.com/CemsWA/York/oldyork.htm

• WESTERN AUSTRALIAN SHIPPING: A directory of ships bringing passengers to Western Australia. from the Perth Dead Person's Society website first accessed online on the 21st of March, 2021 at: http://www.perthdps.com/shipping/index.html