Henry Moseley Bowden was born on April 10, 1819, in James City County, the son of William Bowden and Mildred Davis Bowden, and he grew up on his father's farm near Williamsburg. As a young man he engaged in farming and built houses. On December 24, 1839, he married Elizabeth A. M. White. After her death he married Esprella Eugenia Ann Ware on December 23, 1841, and they had one daughter. Sometime after his second wife's death on April 17, 1850, Bowden was married a third time, to a widow, Henrietta Susan Stevens Stubblefield. Their one child, George Edwin Bowden, served in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Time Line
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April 10, 1819 - Henry Bowden is born in James City County to William Bowden and Mildred Davis Bowden.
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December 24, 1839 - Henry Bowden and Elizabeth A. M. White marry.
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December 23, 1841 - Henry Bowden, a widower, and Esprella Eugenia Ann Ware marry. They will have one daughter.
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1850–1851 - Henry Bowden serves as sergeant at arms of the Senate of Virginia.
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April 17, 1850 - Esprella Ware Bowden, wife of Henry Bowden, dies.
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After April 17, 1850 - Sometime after the death of his second wife, Henry Bowden marries Henrietta Susan Stevens Stubblefield. They will have one son.
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1852–1853 - Henry Bowden serves as sergeant at arms of the Senate of Virginia.
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January 1852 - Henry Bowden joins the board of the Eastern Asylum, in Williamsburg.
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May 1862 - Henry Bowden becomes clerk of the Eastern Lunatic Asylum.
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June 1862 - Henry Bowden becomes steward of the Eastern Lunatic Asylum.
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Summer 1862 - Henry Bowden emancipates his slaves.
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August 20, 1862 - Henry Bowden abandons his home and property in York County and flees with his family to Norfolk. He takes with him most of the food and supplies from the Eastern Lunatic Asylum.
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June 1863 - Henry Bowden becomes the clerk of Norfolk's hustings and corporation court.
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January 1866 - An investigative committee of the General Assembly concludes that during his wartime management of the Eastern Lunatic Asylum, Henry Bowden used or disposed of the hospital's money and foodstuffs without an adequate accounting and improperly kept possession of the institution's records. The committee takes no action against Bowden.
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April 17, 1867 - More than 300 Republicans convene at Richmond's First African Baptist Church to plan campaign strategy for the election of delegates to the upcoming state constitutional convention.
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October 22, 1867 - Thomas Bayne and Henry Bowden are elected to represent the city of Norfolk in the upcoming state constitutional convention.
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December 3, 1867–April 17, 1868 - Henry Bowden, a representative from the city of Norfolk to the constitutional convention, serves on the Committee on Internal Improvements and chairs the Committee on County and Corporation Courts and County Organizations.
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1869 - Henry Bowden serves by military appointment as a commissioner in chancery for the Norfolk City Hustings Court.
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July 6, 1869 - Henry Bowden is elected to one of Norfolk's two seats in the House of Delegates.
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October 1869 - In the General Assembly session that convenes this month, Henry Bowden, delegate from the city of Norfolk, serves on the committees on Finance and on Resolutions.
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December 1870 - In the General Assembly session that convenes this month, Henry Bowden, delegate from the city of Norfolk, serves on the committees on Finance, on Resolutions, and on Immigration.
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December 1870 - President Ulysses S. Grant appoints Henry Bowden assessor of internal revenue for the Norfolk district.
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April 11, 1871 - Henry Bowden dies aboard a train in Isle of Wight County. He is buried in Norfolk.
References
Further Reading
Cite This Entry
- APA Citation:
Gunter, D. W., & the Dictionary of Virginia Biography. Henry M. Bowden (1819–1871). (2014, August 17). In Encyclopedia Virginia. Retrieved from http://www.EncyclopediaVirginia.org/Bowden_Henry_Moseley_1819-1871.
- MLA Citation:
Gunter, Donald W. and the Dictionary of Virginia Biography. "Henry M. Bowden (1819–1871)." Encyclopedia Virginia. Virginia Humanities, 17 Aug. 2014. Web. READ_DATE.
First published: August 17, 2014 | Last modified: August 17, 2014