===================================================================== Match: Bowles Source: SC-BUSHRIVERQUAKERS@rootsweb.com From: Standcedargrove@aol.com Subject: [SC-BUSHRIVERQUAKERS] Evidence that John Cook of Bush River Ran a I have been aware that my mailing of 8/8/2009 in response to a mailing by Bob Cooke may not have been very clear. It also included an error in a name. The somewhat elderly John and Anna (Sumner) (George) Cook, along with their son, Martin Cook and his young family, had moved to the new Bear Creek Friends settlement in Union Township, Dallas County, IA, probably in 1854. Here they built a one story frame house which stood until about 1960. I remember it quite well. The elderly couple and the young family of Martin Cook shared the house, perhaps also Martin Cook's teen age brother, Uriah. The family of Johua Newlin, his wife Dianah, and Dianah's four Cook sons by her first marriage to Robert Cook, son of John Cook, arrived in the Bear Creek community about 1857. The oldest of Dianah's son was Harmon Cook. Perhaps the Joshua Newlin family had not had opportunity to construct very satisfactory living quarters by the winter of 1859/60. The Summit Grove Friends settlement was centered in the vicinity of present-day Stuart, Iowa, about ten miles from the center of the Bear Creek settlement. Darius Bowles, a member of the Summit Grove Friends, was a teacher of significant reputation who conducted a school at Summit Grove. The young Harmon Cook, who evidently had literary aspirations, enrolled in this school. He evidently had a place to stay at Summit Grove during the week, but he came home to Bear Creek on week-ends. In a section called "The Underground Railroad", pp. 202-205 of D. B. Cook's _History of Quaker Divide_ (Cover title: _Memoirs of Quaker Divide_), Harmon Cook wrote: "In the winter of 1859-60, I was going to school to Darius Bowles, and one Friday evening was told if I wanted to go to Bear Creek, I would not have to walk, if I would drive a carriage and return it Monday morning. I drove the carriage and in it were two young colored women. They were sisters and from the west border of Missouri. Their master was their father, and they had both been reared in the family. War was apparent, and their master decided to sell them "Down south." They heard the plotting and found out that they were to go on the auction block, and made a run for the North Star.. They had been on the road seven weeks when they arrived at A. W. L.'s at Summit Grove. Before daylight Saturday morning they were housed at Uncle Martin's ---------- " It appears that it was more convenient to house the girls at the house shared by the Martin Cook family with the grandparents John and Anna Cook than at the Joshua and Dianah (Cox) (Cook) Newlin dwelling. This is the only recorded time that the John Cook home was used to shelter fleeing slaves, although it appears that Harmon Cook was engaged in transporting slaves on at least one other occasion. --------- In my previous mailing, I mentioned that Wells McCool, who styled himself as a "conductor" on the Underground Railroad, was probably a descendant of Gamaliel McCool of the Bush River Quaker community. I should have written Gabriel McCool. The earliest Quaker settlers at Bush River must have included the family of Thomas and Ann Pugh. According to my records, Ann Pugh was born 29 March 1725, the daughter of James Wright and Mary Bowater. In 1742 she married James McCool. They had five children: as listed in the Bush River Birth and Death records: Mary. John, James, Martha, and Gabril. James McCool, the father, died 2-9-1751, aged 42 years. Ann (Wright) McCool then married Thomas Pugh. Ann and Thomas had seven daughters, who are listed in the Bush River Birth and Death records. By 1735 James and Mary (Bowater) Wright and family had settled in the Apple Pie Ridge area near the Hopewell Friends Meeting six or seven miles from Winchester, Virginia. Ann (Wright) (McCool) Pugh was a sister of John Wright who had married Rachel Wells. John and Rachel may have settled at Bush River as early as 1763/64. Thomas Pugh and family were granted a certificate from Bush River MM to Hopewell MM, VA on 4 mo. 26, 1777. I do not know whether they ever returned to South Carolina. My records indicate that Thomas and Ann were both buried in Frederick County, VA. Gabriel McCool, youngest son of Ann's first marriage, evidently remained in South Carolina. On 4 mo. 24, 1773 he had been disowned by Bush River MM for marriage out of unity (to his first cousin). On 8 mo. 31, 1782 he readmittead to membership. Gabriel had married Elizabeth Wright, daughter of John and Rachel (Wells) Wright. On 6 mo. 30, 1798 Gabriel McCool requested a minute from Bush River MM to travel in Virginia with his mother, Ann Pugh. Ann seems to have been a recognized minister among Friends. On 8 mo. 10, 1806 Gabriel McCool and family were granted a certificate by Bush River MM to Miami MM, Ohio. ----Herbert Standing.