Gees, not the sheep again, I hope
its not our ancestral occupation or a vocational interest in the wooly
little beggars that has any significance to our history. I have heard
and read that the known name of Ewart has various spellings such as:
-
EWER,
-
EWERS
-
EWAR,
-
EWARS, 
-
EWARD,
-
EWERD,
-
EWERT
-
STEWART
This could probably explain why
so many non-Ewarts have such a difficult time spelling a five letter
name let alone pronounce it properly!! I have heard it said and I have
also read some material that has our name tied to an area in the borders
that has to do with the rivers "glen and till" and specifically land
surrounded or bordered on three sides by water. It also has been said
that the name is a very old derivative English pronunciation of a Gaelic
word to describe a persons occupation involving water, or the
transportation of water. If anyone can add to this or dispel this
---please do. It sure sounds a lot better than sheep.
My grandfather used to tell us that
the "Ewarts" were once part of the "Stewart" clan, but there being no
saints in our branch of the family, they were forced to drop the first
two letters. Another explanation he used to give (the inventiveness of
his explanations being directly proportional to the amount of Robbie
Burns "gargle" he had used) was that during the attempt to restore
Bonnie Prince Charlie a branch of the Stewarts was cut off by the
British, and when captured avoided certain death by claiming that they
were not to be confused with the "Stewarts" even though their name
sounded the same.
Probably a more accurate origin of the name was
the occupation of the family as sheep herders in the borderlands of
Scotland. They raises ewes, hence were "ewers." Over the years this name
became Ewart.
----Ned Ewart
The town was established by three
Ewart brothers; Robert, Thomas and Matthew. They only allowed settlers
of Irish descent, so the nearby town of Grinnell grew much larger. When
the railroad came and passed through Grinnell rather than Ewart, the
town became a footnote in the history of Poweshiek County. Today the
largest feature in the town is the cemetery!
From the
History of Poweshiek County, IA:
Ewart, Matt
-- Of the firm of Ewart Brothers, agriculturists and
stock raisers. Was born in Morrow County, OH, in 1839, and came to
this county in 1866. Himself and brother Robert own about 2,500
acres of land in Poweshiek County; the town of Ewart, on the Grinnell
and Montezuma Railroad, was laid out by them, and their lands surround
it. Ewart Bros. are well and popularly known throughout this
district, and are numbered among the leading stock-men of the West.
The
Ewart Mansion
pictured on the link page was built by Robert and Matthew. Matthew never
married and lived in the house with Robert & his family and, later,
Robert's son and his family. The house was quite a show place in its day
and even had a cork surface tennis court. It was built some years after
the founding of the town.
Robert's son was my grandfather. My
father was born and lived in the house until he went to college.
Unfortunately the house burned while he was a student at Grinnell
College.
--------Information supplied by
Ned Ewart
