John McDowell born around 1725, was of Scotch-Irish stock, came from the North of Ireland about 1755, and for some time resided in the vicinity of Carlisle, Pennsylvania, USA.
In 1770, or earlier, he married Miss Elizabeth Reed, of Shavers Creek, Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania. Both were devout members of the Presbyterian Church. Mr. McDowell died in 1809 at the age of seventy-five years, and his wife in 1812 at sixty-five.
Their oldest son and my 4th great-grandfather was also named John McDowell and may have also used his middle name of Alexander. John was born in Northern Ireland around 1747 and died 19Dec1825 in Wharton Township, Fayette County, Pennsylvania, USA. His spouse was the former Elizabeth Mary Read.Any information on the McDowell/MacDowell family would be greatly appreciated. It is unknown at this time the County of residence for the family during the 18th century.
Thank you
dennym0202
Saturday 29th Dec 2012, 11:11PMMessage Board Replies
-
Hi,
Thank you for your message.
Without a more specific place in Ulster it may be hard to find information on your McDowells. Also, the reality of finding documentation pertaining to births/baptisms/marriages/deaths in Ireland prior to 1800 ? particularly in rural areas ? is that they simply may not exist.
Have you tried doing a search of the surname? I ran it through the irishtimes surname database. It shows how many households had a specific surname in Ireland in the mid-19th centruy. You can see the results here:
http://www.irishtimes.com/ancestor/surname/index.cfm?fuseaction=Go.&UserID=
However, as you can see from these results, the name was quite common-even 100 years after John left Ireland!
Perhaps you could try contacting the Ulster Historical Foundation for some assistance-however a fee may apply for their services. Here are their contact details:
Ulster Historical Foundation,
49 Malone Road,
Belfast BT9 6RY,
Northern Ireland.
Phone: +44 (0) 28 9066 1988
I hope that this helps. If you find any mor information please post it-especially if you find a placename. The more information you post, the more likely it is that one of our volunteers will be able to advise or assist you.
Kind regards,
Genealogy Support
Friday 22nd Feb 2013, 04:24PM -
My 4th great grandmother was Jane McDowell of the Parish of Ballyhalbert, County Down, Ireland. She was born on January 17, 1763. Her father was Robert McDowell who was a Presbyterian minister of the Glastry Church (according to family history). She had a sister, Isabel, and a brother, Robert. She married Hugh Crawford about 1794. They emigrated to the US and settled in Carlisle, Pennsylvania where they lived until 1817 when they moved to Ohio Township near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The family history also states that they had relatives in Carlisle, Pennsylvania that preceded them. I would like to find out more about the McDowells. Thank you.
Sunday 9th Mar 2014, 05:18PM -
Hugh Crawford is listed on the 1800 U.S. Census for Dickenson Twp., (beside Carlise) Pa. See the attached. There was also a Hugh Crawford age 60 with his family, living in Ohio Twp., Allegheny County, Pa during the 1860 U.S. Census. This could be a son to the immigrant Hugh Crawford, as he was born in Pa.
CRAWFORD, HUGH (1860 U.S. Census)
PENNSYLVANIA , ALLEGHENY, OHIO TWP
Age: 60, Male, Race: WHITE, Born: PA
Series: M653 Roll: 1065 Page: 532Will update you if I locate any of your McDowell ancestors. My McDowell ancestors settled in Fayette and Somerset Counties in Pennsylvania. I've also heard of the McDowell clan migrating to the state of Kentucky. To this date, I am unsure of dates or locations of their arrival and where they were from in Northern Ireland.
Dennis McDowell
dennym0202
Sunday 9th Mar 2014, 10:08PM