Joseph Duncan Rowe (1789 - 1864)

Born 7 Jan 1789 in Botetourt, Virginia

Ancestors

Descendants

Died 16 Nov 1864 at age 75 in Cameron, Warren Co., IL.

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Joseph Rowe lived in Appalachia, in Virginia.

Biography

From Virginia to Indiana

Joseph Rowe was born in Botetourt County, Virginia on January 7, 1789, the eighth child and sixth son of James Rowe Sr.

He was married to Elizabeth (Betsy) Plymale,^[1] the daughter of Anthony Plymale and Elizabeth Bowen.

Joseph Rowe and Betsy Plymale apparently met in Giles County, Virginia in the early 1800's. The Rowe and Plymale families lived as neighbors on adjoining land in the New River Settlement of Spruce Run in Giles County. Joseph Rowe appears on the 1812 tax list for Giles County, VA.

Working for a while saving money to buy supplies and a canoe, Joseph and Betsy left Giles County by river. They had their first child Polly Rowe in Greenbrier County, Virginia on December 22, 1812 (now a county in West Virginia). The next we know of Joseph and Betsy Rowe is in Henry County, Kentucky where they had their second daughter Margaret Rowe, in 1814. Maitha Rowe was also born in Kentucky in about 1815, the county unknown, but probably also in Henry County.

Their son Rice Rowe was born in Crawford County, Indiana in 1819. Joseph Rowe appears on a voters list in Perry County, Indiana in 1820. Other children followed over the next decade : Caroline Rowe (1821), James Plymale Rowe (1823), Virginia Rowe (1825) and Elkhanen Winchester Rowe (1828). All were born in Indiana, probably in Crawford or Perry Counties, both of which are in the southern tip of Indiana. The family then migrated further west and are next seen in Knox County in far western Illinois in 1829 for the birth of their last child Joseph Duncan Rowe.

Black Hawk War in Illinois

In the spring of 1830, Joseph Rowe was the first European-American settler in Rio Township in Knox County, Illinois. Joseph Rowe made a claim on section 33, land covered in timber. In 1831, trouble began between the incoming European-American settlers and Native Americans. The settlers moved from their homes to nearby Fort Aggie, located in Henderson County, Illinois.

Joseph Rowe was one of four men who went to consult with General Edmund Gaines, the commander of the military post at Rock Island. On the way to the post, they encountered a Native American war party, who thought the men were spies, and held them captive for a while. One of the men with Joseph Rowe was able to speak their language and eventually convinced the Native Americans they were on a trading trip and the four men were finally let go. When Joseph Rowe and the other three men arrived at Rock Island, General Gaines assured them that they and their families were in no danger. Upon their return to Fort Aggie, they felt more at ease.

In April of 1832, Sauk Chief Black Hawk led a party of Sauk and Fox warriors across the Mississippi River, and the Black Hawk War began. Joseph Rowe and several other Rowe men fought in the war, although it is unclear if the other Rowe men were related to his Rowe family. The women and children stayed at Fort Aggie where it was safer. The Black Hawk War ended August 2, 1832, when the Native Americans were defeated. Some of the well known men that fought in the Black Hawk War were Abraham Lincoln, Winfield Scott, Zachary Taylor, and Jefferson Davis, although Lincoln did not see any combat during the brief "war".

Settling in Illinois and political ambitions

After the war Joseph Rowe then appears in Galesburg Township in Knox County, and made a claim on the extreme western end of Knoxville Grove. Joseph, Betsy and their children spent a lot of their time clearing land and planting crops during these years. Joseph Rowe lists his occupation on all of the U.S. censuses as a "farmer".

Joseph Rowe owned several parcels of land in Knox County, Illinois in the area of what is now known as Galesburg, Illinois and he was on the list of County Officials , as a County Commissioner. The following is a list of offices that Joseph Rowe held or ran for :

• August 1, 1831 Candidate for Constable
• August 6, 1832 Candidate for County Commissioner
• August 3, 1835 Candidatefor Justice of the Peace
• August 1, 1836 Candidate for County Commissioner
• August 6, 1838 Candidate for County Commissioner
• August 5, 1839 Candidate for Justice of the Peace (Knox District)
• August 29, 1839 Candidate for Justice of the Peace
• August 2, 1841Candidate for County Commissioner
• August 4, 1842 Justice of the Peace
• 1843-1847 Commissioned appraiser of the real estate belonging to the State Bank of Illinois
• August 3, 1846 Candidate for County Commissioner

Death

Joseph Rowe died November 16, 1864 at the age of 74, in Cameron in Warren County, Illinois and was buried in the Silent Home Cemetery.^[2]

Record ID Number

Record ID Number: MH:I45

User ID

User ID: 06F04DA1-CA3D-4D14-A4C0-F328BA216260

Genetic testing and YDNA

Tests results at FTDNA and 23&ME by multiple male line descendants of James Rowe Sr, including several male line descendants of Stephen Rowe, James Rowe Jr and Joseph Rowe, have determined that Joseph Rowes YDNA haplogroup was R-A195. This is part of a YDNA haplogroup known as "Irish Type 2" (haplogroup CTS4466),^[3] a lineage strongly associated with southern Ireland and the Uí Fidgenti in particular. (FTDNA Uí Fidhgeinte project). Research on this field of inquiry about the origins of the Rowe/Roe family is currently being coordinated at the FTDNA Rowe Surname Project.

Sources

1. ↑ FamilySearch Record: MXH1-RFS
2. ↑ Find A Grave: Memorial #18786314
3. ↑ R1b-CTS4466

• FamilySearch profile : Joseph Rowe