Milestone 39
An overview of the stones location. The dark green car is parked at the entrance to the Hugh Cowan - Richmond - Stoltzfus House. The utility pole on the right and the bush around the stone keep it concealed most months of the year. At bottom right is a close-up of the milestone. *Above banner image was taken near St Paul's Episcopal Church west of Frazer, PA.
Rainbow Tavern/Inn between the 38th and 39th Milestones
The Rainbow Tavern/Inn, known as a wagon and drover stand, sat on the north side of the road at about the 38 1/2 mile point. It appears to be a private home now. Is it haunted? Legend has it that a man shot and killed in a bar fight there in the 1800's does haunt it. The Rainbow name comes from a local farm, Rainbow Farm, that had its land in the shape of a rainbow. My research didn't reveal the farms location.
The John Cowan House (1736)
The core of this house was built in 1736. Most of the information about it came from the Chester County Architecture Inventory Form done in 1981. An Ann Snider took pictures of it as part of that process. On the Breou Farm Atlas map of 1883 the property is shown as being owned by William T. Long(S). I believe the (S) on the end of Long indicates Salisbury Township as opposed to a plural of the Long surname. The site was also a tannery at one time. There is also a question as to whether the house had its front to the north or south. An addition was made to the East end which just about doubled its original size and later an addition was made on the South side. Other buildings on the site included a Springhouse, a carriage house and a barn or shed. All those were gone in 2009. What appears to be a stone with peeling stucco wall stands to the West of the house. Did it lead into a garden long gone, an enclosure for animals or maybe the tannery?
Since the early 1970's Breuninger Insurance and Estate has occupied the building located at 1140 West Lincoln Highway. It's located on the South side of the old pike.
The 4 Cowan brothers, Hugh, John, David and William of Derry County, Ireland arrived in Sadsbury Township in 1720. Hugh appears to be the one that we have the most information on. In addition to his 1730's house - much enlarged but still standing we know that he was a church elder. He had eight children between his two wives. The first wife Ann died in 1734 at age 33 and was the first person buried in the Octorara Church cemetery. David and William, Hugh's brothers married the Fleming sisters Mary and Susanna.
The rest is bits and pieces - a Jacob Cowan was a private in the War of 1812.
Adam Cowan b. 1801 had a son, John, who went into the ministry and died of disease in September 1862. He was a chaplain at the military hospital in St Louis when he died. His two sons John and Edward went into the ministry as well.
Hugh Cowan - Richmond - Stoltzfuz House (1732 or 1736)
This 1732 or 1736 home is just down the driveway from the 39 Milestone. The crumbling walls of a barns can be seen just to the West of the house. The oldest part from the 1730's was added to on the West end, 1813, to the East end, 1956 and again in 1958 when changes were made to the roof and porch. There is also a five light transom over the front door - aah colonial air conditioning and stencil work inside the house. It's described as being five bays wide with a center hall and made of fieldstone. A massive sycamore sits in front of the house.
One of the homes last owners was a Chris Stoltzfus. In a 1963 letter she said the homestead patent was issued to Hugh Cowan by Penn's son on October 3,1739 for 270 acres. It stayed in the Cowan - Richmond family until 1897. In 1897 James Wright took possession and it passed to August Saabach in 1921 then on to Philip Wagner on May 1, 1924. In 1925 it became part of the Antlers Country Club. It then passed to a Chriatian Domshon and then to the Stoltzfus family.
Link to HABS HAER for Stoltzfus House: http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage?collId=hhphoto&fileName=pa/pa0200/pa0259/photos/browse.db&action=browse&recNum=0&title2=Stoltzfus%20House,%20U.S.%20Route%2030%20vicinity%20(Valley%20Township),%20Coatesville%20vicinity,%20Chester,%20PA&displayType=1&itemLink=D?hh:1:./temp/~ammem_bDJY
http://www.werelate.org/wiki/Person:Hugh_Cowan_(4)) Link for genealogy tree with Hugh Cowans
http://www.visitcowan.com/CowanFamily.html Link for genealogy tree with Cowans branch in Franklin County, TN. This link mentions 7 brothers who migrated to Chester County, PA. not 4 and has a date of 1726, not 1720. Hugh is also not mentioned as one of the brothers.
The Joseph Cowan House (1756) was at 1113 Lincoln Highway in 1980 when a PA. Historic Resource Survey was done on it. It now appears to have been transformed in to four store strip mall and a sizable warehouse. Joseph had a son in the Revolutionary Army who returned with a friend during the Winter that the American Army was spending at Valley Forge. The friend had some type of fever and getting out of Valley Forge gave him a chance to recover. The friend did recover but young Cowan caught the fever and died at the age of 28. There was another location given for the house. According to the Breou Farm Atlas map of 1881Joseph Cowan's stone house and stone barn were located about 3/16 miles East of Buck Run where it crosses the turnpike. I wasn't able to locate that structure either.
The James Cowan House was shown in the in the 1881History of Chester County. I wasn't able to locate it either but it may be located off the pike.
A Hybrid map with the salmon colored stickpin showing the general location of Milestone 39