The History of the Yakima Valley, Washington, Comprising Yakima, Kittitas and Benton Counties, The S.J. Clarke Publishing Co., 1919, Volume II, page 172 WILLIAM M. McGOWAN. William M. McGowan, the secretary and treasurer of the Toppenish Trading Company and an active factor in the continued development of its business, was born in Huron county, Ontario, Canada, in 1871, a son of Robert and Isabella (Cummings) McGowan, who in the year 1889 came to the northwest, settling at Salem, Oregon. The father was a farmer by occupation. Public school opportunities qualified William M. McGowan for the practical duties of life. In his youthful days he was employed in various ways and in 1889 accepted a position with the Wells Fargo Express Company at Salem, Oregon. In 1891 he removed to Portland, Oregon, and afterward was with the banking department of the express company, remaining in that connection until the company sold out to the United States Bank in 1905. Mr. McGowan was afterward identified with the United States National Bank of Portland until the fall of 1906, when he removed to Everett, Washington, where he embarked in business on his own account as a dealer in mens' and women's clothing and furnishings. In June, 1907, he came to Toppenish, where he entered into active connection with the Toppenish Trading Company, which was incorporated in 1908. He was elected its secretary and treasurer and has since served in this dual position, covering the period of a decade. Through the intervening years he has bent his energies to administrative direction and executive control and in all things he has advised a constructive policy in business, ever recognizing the fact that satisfied patrons are the best advertisement. He has not feared competition because of the reliable business methods of the company, displayed in the conduct of the business, and the growth of the trade has been most substantial. Mr. McGowan has also been vice president and one of the directors of the Traders Bank since its organization in 1908 and is likewise a director of the First National Bank. On the 1st of November, 1899, Mr. McGowan was married to Miss Ella Pohle, a native of Salem, Oregon. He belongs to the Toppenish Commercial Club and gives hearty endorsement to all of its well defined plans for the advancement of the city's business interests and for the promotion of its civic welfare. In politics he is a republican, and while he has never sought for desired political office he has served for six years on the school board and has done everything in his power to further the interests of the schools in this locality. His religious faith is that of the Methodist Episcopal church and he has been a devoted follower of its teachings, doing all in his power to promote the moral progress as well as the material development of the community in which he makes his home. ******************************** Submitted to the Washington Bios Project in December 2007 by Jeffrey L. Elmer. Submitter has no additional information about the subject of this article.