Southern Cowdens

"The first pioneer settlement of the Cowdens in the South seems to have been made in Augusta County, Va., about 1740 by William Cowden, who was an Irish emigrant. He came from Londonderry, Ireland, where he appears to have been a man of standing and influence."--Page 11. "It is not know whether or not he was married before coming to Virginia; but, according the age of his children, he most likely married in Virginia ... Unless William Cowden remained in Virginia and became the ancestor of the Cowdens now living there, it is not know what became of him, as no further record of him has been found."--Page 13. Descendants lived in Virginia, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennessee, Alabama, Texas, Oklahoma and and elsewhere.