Mrs. Cowan’s Spinning Wheel

In so many families, my own included, the once-busy and prevalent family spinning wheel ended up relegated to the attic or barn, and eventually disappeared over the years.  There is a photograph at the Grey County Archives that shows one of my ancestors, Mrs. Mary Cowan, sitting outdoors, working at her spinning wheel.  “Granny Cowan” was Scottish-born, nee Mary McLean, and was raised on the Isle of Mull.  She married John Cowan of Oban. They emigrated to Canada in 1853, with a six-week voyage across the Atlantic.  They lived for a while in Caledonia, and then settled in Grey County in the Dornoch area of Bentinck Township (they were residents there in the 1871 census).  John Cowan was a weaver by trade, and they eventually had fifteen children, so Mrs. Cowan had to accomplish the spinning and dyeing of a lot of woolen yarn for her household. She likely would have put her nine daughters to the tasks of carding, reeling or spinning as well when each was old enough to help out.  For a while, the family lived at Manitowaning, on Manitoulin Island.  Later on, the Cowans moved back to Grey County, and resided in Owen Sound, on the east hill area.  A history-minded artist / teacher, Miss Kate Andrew (b. 1872-d.1971), nostalgically kept the 1890s(?) photograph of Mrs. Cowan, who was a neighbour and friend of her mother, Mrs. Sarah Andrew.  Kate Andrew herself was interested in handicrafts, and likely could sense that the skills of the 19th century spinners were disappearing from the scene. She might also have liked the First Nations-made ash splint storage basket seen in the image, that Granny Cowan used to hold her carded wool in.   Kate Andrew also was interested in an early museum project in Owen Sound, and helped save other local items as well.  The photographer of the image, unfortunately, was not recorded on the mount.  It is also unknown what happened to Granny Cowan’s spinning equipment, or her lovely splint basket, but Grey Roots has examples of some 19th-century saddle-style spinning wheels, as well as some splint baskets, so whenever I see them, I am glad that some examples were saved, and that Dorothy Kirk had the foresight to protect some other amazing spinning wheels as well, to help encourage the remembrance of hand spinning traditions, and to inspire present-day spinners.

1963.005.013  Photograph of Mrs. John Cowan (nee Mary McLean, b. 1842-d. 1921) at Owen Sound, Ontario

Dorothy Kirk in 1998