Currituck Co., N.C. Houses

 

 Dr. Cowell Home

Located on N.C. 170 west of Sligo.  Present owner, V.S. Cowell.  His father was Dr. Will CowellV.S. Cowell, called "Doc", and his brother Will, who in fact was a doctor, and their sister, Susan, were born there.  Much of the original construction of the original house remains, although extensive remodeling has been done.

UPDATE 2/23/2006 from Anne Jennings:  Dr. Will Cowell’s home is no longer standing. Several times I have heard it told that when the owners were ready to tear down the house because of severe termite damage that the tenants refused to leave. The story told is that the operator of the bulldozer lifted one corner of the house to encourage the tenants to get out of the house. It worked. The house was torn down and a new brick home was built on the site. That home stands on the site today and is owned and occupied by heirs of V.S. Cowell.

According to records of Alma O. Roberts and Currituck County North Carolina Cemetery Records, published in 1995 by The Albemarle Genealogical Society, William Humphries Cowell (b. 5 Dec. 1831 - d. 30 Sept. 1895) married Elizabeth L. Morgan on 22 June 1858 and had one child who died in infancy. Dr. Will Cowell then married his second wife, Martha A. DeFord (b. 12 Nov. 1847 - d. 10 Nov. 1908) who is buried on the J. P. Morgan Farm in Shawboro and they had four children. Susanna D. Cowell (b. 10 Nov. 1885 - d. 5 Oct. 1947), who never married, and a boy named Pat were twins. Dr. William H. Cowell, Jr. (b. 6 March 1871 - 27 Dec. 1938) never married. Virginius St. Clair Cowell, called "V. S." or "Doc" was born 27 Aug. 1880 and married Ruth Sawyer on 15 Sept. 1945. Ruth Sawyer was married at one time to a man by the last name of Brown and had at least one son named Charles Brown. It is the heirs of Charles Brown who own and occupy the brick home now on the site where Dr. Will Cowell’s home once stood.

The Old Cowell Farm or plantation was large and covered land around Sligo and East Ridge Road. The Marshall P. Cowell Cemetery is located off of East Ridge Rd. and has been used continually since at least as far back as the Revolutionary War. I have attended an internment at this cemetery within the last ten years. Markers do not survive but according to the Ferebee records, Capt. Joseph Ferebee (b. 31 May 1754 - d. 20 Dec. 1820) of the Revolutionary War is buried here. Benjamin Cowell (b. 2 June 1804 - d. 15 March 1849) and his wife Amanda Ferebee Cowell Burgess (b. 25 Oct. 1811 - d. 28 Nov. 1863) are also believed to be buried here. Amanda Ferebee Cowell Burgess was also the wife of J. M. Burgess.

 

This photo and information are from the project "Old Homes in Currituck County to 1860" originally compiled June 1960 by Alma O. Roberts and Alice Flora of the Currituck County Historical Society.   We are indebted to Barbara B. Snowden, president of the Currituck County Historical Society for permission to reproduce this collection on the internet, and also to Gerri Andrews and Diane Ferebee of the Currituck County Public Library who provided digital copies of the photos.  No part of this document may be used for any commercial purposes; however, please feel free to copy any of this material for your own personal use and family research.  Images are for personal use only, not for redistribution.

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© 2005 Marty Holland