William Alexander Gowen alias Smith

William Alexander Gowen was born approximately 1634 in Scotland. Believed to be a Scottish soldier captured by troops of Cromwell in the Battle of Dunbar, 3 Sept 1650. Conflicting stories that he was a Scottish Highlander. He spoke English, was Protestant, and could read and write. He was listed on a manifest of prisoners arriving on the Unity which left England on 11 Nov 1650. He was subsequently sent to the Great Works sawmill in Berwick, Maine. Upon release in 1656, he settled in Berwick, formerly a part of Kittery, Maine. Children:

1. Nicholas Gowen (1667-1752);
2. John Gowen (1668-1773);
3. Patrick Gowen b.1670;
4. William Gowen (1672-1691);
5. Elizabeth Gowen (1673-1731); &
6. Margaret Gowen (Smith) 1678-1751
7. Lemuel Gowen 1680-1727
8. Sarah Gowen b.1684.

Another Scot, Battle of Dunbar POW indentured to the colonies—
Scottish Prisoners of War Society: "Gowen, William":—

BATTLE: Battle of Dunbar in Dunbar, East Lothian, Scotland
SHIP/ARRIVAL: Unity, Dec 1650
PRISONER AND LIST: William Gowen (alias Smith), #38 on George S. Stewart’s Captured at Dunbar list
NAME VARIATIONS: Gowen, Gowan, Gowin, alias Smith, “Elexander Gowing”
RESIDENCES: Oyster River and Dover New Hampshire; Kittery, Maine

"According to: Christopher Gerrard, Pam Graves, Andrew Millard, Richard Annis, and Anwen Caffell, Lost Lives, New Voices: Unlocking the Stories of the Scottish Soldiers at the Battle of Dunbar 1650, (England: Oxbow Books, 2018). Available at: WorldCat.org or Amazon (Kindle)

"On page 249, William is categorized as: Probable [that he is a Dunbar prisoner transported on the Unity]

"Appears: 1659. B.c.1634. D.1686. Clearly a Scot and acquires land in Kittery at about the same time as Scots likely to have been prisoners. [Exiles; Banks; DR; BCS; SPOWS; Ch.7 & 8]

Biographical Notes:
1. From Andrew Millard: “It seems William Gowen was initially convicted of fathering Elizabeth Frost’s child, and he subsequently married her. See Rapaport, D. 2004 Scottish Slaves in Colonial New England Part II. The Highlander 42:6 10-17.“
2. William was 51 years old in June 1685, so that means he was born before June of 1634.
{See also: Dobson, David, (1983). Directory of Scots Banished to the American Plantations, 1650-1775. Available at: Archive.org.}

FIRST GENERATION IN THE NEW WORLD
1. WILLIAM¹ GOWEN* (alias SMITH*), “a Scot*,” and “carpenter*,” born in Scotland* before June 1634* and died at Berwick on 2 Apr 1686. He married at Kittery*, Maine, on 14 May 1667*, ELIZABETH¹ FROST*, the daughter of NICHOLAS FROST and BERTHA CADWALLA. She was born at Kittery on 10 May 1640.

Children of William and Elizabeth (Frost) Gowen:
2. i. NICHOLAS² GOWEN, (William¹), b. at Kittery in 1667; married at Kittery in 1694, ABIGAIL HODSDON. (Was he born in Kittery?)
2. ii. JOHN² GOWEN, (William¹), b. 1668; d. 1733; married at Kittery on 3 Oct 1693, MERCY HAMMOND.
2. iii. WILLIAM GOWEN, (William¹), b. about 1672; killed by Indians on 12 Oct 1691.
2. iv. ELIZABETH GOWEN, (William¹), b. in 1673; m., ALEX FERGUSON.
2. v. JAMES² GOWEN, (William¹), b. 1675 m. at Kittery by 1701, MARY WHEELWRIGHT.
2. vi. MARGARET GOWEN, (William¹), 15 Nov 1678; m., DANIEL EMERY.
2. vii. LEMUEL GOWEN, (William¹), shopkeeper, b. 9 Feb 1680; m., SARAH MOUNTFORT.
2. viii. SARAH GOWEN, (William¹), b 30 Mar 1684; m., WILLIAM SMITH.

SECOND GENERATION [et cetera].