Dyar Lamotte Cowdery, the last-named, son of William and wife Rebecca Fuller, was born in 1802 and died in 1881. He married in 1825 Eliza, daughter of Robert Alexander and Catharine Campbell. He was admitted to law practice, served a term as county clerk, and a few months as county judge. The children were Helen Mar (Mrs. Darius Coman), Sophia Amanda (Mrs. Francis A. Liter), Dyar L., Lyman Emmet. Mrs. Cowdery was learned in all household wisdom and well experienced in ways of neighborly goodness; wherefore the Judge was used to say that Dyar was his mother’s boy. and in this he judged mother and son truly and kindly. She was born in 1805 and died in 1879.
Dyar was born at Arcadia, New York, January 5, 1833. The family came in 1846 from Kirtland, Ohio, to Elkhorn. The common school, the printing office, and a few years in California filled his time until 1859. He worked at the Independent office as foreman and at times as editor-substitute from that year till 1875, when he followed Mr. Dewing as county clerk and served until his death, May 10, 1900. He had married at Richmond, Illinois, Lydia Malvina, daughter of Sylvanus Aldrich and Lydia Crandall, November 24, 1864. Of their two children Edith Aldrich died in bright young womanhood, and Kirke Lionel is a professor of the French language and literature at Oberlin. The county clerk’s records show the minutely nice habits of mind and hand which had made Mr. Cowdery a skillful and tasteful printer. His thorough knowledge of the county’s business made him for long an invaluable county-seat correspondent of the Whitewater Register, of whom Mr. Coe often spoke with his characteristically generous judgment.
Judge Cowdery’s brother, Dr. Warren A. Cowdery, married Patience Simonds. of Pawlet, Vermont. Of their children Martius Dyar Cowdery, long a resident of the town of Geneva, was born at LeRoy, New York, October 29, 1819; married, first, Caroline B. Craig; second, Vesta L. Lawrence. He died April 26, 1898.
Oliver Cowdery, one of the prophet Joseph Smith’s “witnesses,” was another son of William Cowdery. After the prophet’s death he left the stricken church, and a few years later died also.
From: Beckwith, A.C. (1912). History of Walworth County Wisconsin