1 Writer and journalist Evelyn Cowan was born in the Gorbals in 1921, when the area was the heart of the city’s Jewish community. Her books, including an autobiography and her newspaper articles about her childhood – many of which were published in our sister title The Herald - brought that community to life.
2 Evelyn was the youngest of 11 children and her childhood was marked by initial tragedy when her father died shortly after her birth, leaving her mother to bring up the large family single-handedly. Her lifelong dream was to become an author. In 1974, her autobiography, Spring Remembered - A Scottish Jewish Childhood, was published. It was dedicated ‘’to the memory of my most unforgettable character, my beloved mother’’.
3 In 1976 by her critically acclaimed novel set in the Glasgow Jewish community, entitled Portrait of Alice, was published. She also had many short stories published in the local and national press, and broadcast on BBC radio.
4 Evelyn married teacher Paul Cohen in 1950 and they had three sons and nine grandchildren, five of whom lived in Israel and the couple visited regularly. Paul sadly died in 1981.
5 Evelyn died, aged 77, in March 1998, after a long battle with cancer. Her obituary in our sister newspaper The Herald said: “In all of her writing, Evelyn’s love of her native city of Glasgow shone strongly through. She was also a well-known figure on the Scottish literary scene. A former president of the Glasgow Writers’ Club, she will be fondly remembered by many writers to whom she passed on her enthusiasm and encouragement in their early careers.”
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