Lemuel Jackson Bowden (January 16, 1815January 2, 1864) was an American lawyer and politician from

Williamsburg, Virginia Williamsburg is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it had a population of 15,425. Located on the Virginia Peninsula ...

Early life

Bowden was born in 1815 in Williamsburg, Virginia, and graduated from the

College of William and Mary The College of William & Mary (officially The College of William and Mary in Virginia, abbreviated as William & Mary, W&M) is a public research university in Williamsburg, Virginia. Founded in 1693 by letters patent issued by King William III a ...

in 1831-1832.

Career

As an adult, Bowden settled in Williamsburg and practiced law there. He was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates three times, serving from 1841 to 1846. In 1850, Lyons was elected to the

Virginia Constitutional Convention of 1850 The Virginia Constitutional Convention of 1850 was an assembly of elected delegates chosen by the voters to write the fundamental law of Virginia. It is known as the Reform Convention because it liberalized Virginia political institutions. Backgro ...

. He was one of two delegates elected from the Tidewater delegate district made up of Essex, King and Queen, Middlesex and Mathews Counties. In 1860, he was a presidential elector from his Congressional District. During the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

Bowden served as mayor of Williamsburg, Virginia from 1862 to 1863 in a region occupied by Federal troops. Following the creation of West Virginia organized by Unionist Virginians in 1863, the

Restored Government of Virginia The Restored (or Reorganized) Government of Virginia was the Unionist government of Virginia during the American Civil War (1861–1865) in opposition to the government which had approved Virginia's seceding from the United States and join ...

chose Bowden to represent

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

in the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

in 1863 as a member of the Unionist Party. There he served until his death.

Death and family

Bowden died on January 2, 1864 of smallpox while in office at Washington, D.C. and he is buried in the

Congressional Cemetery The Congressional Cemetery, officially Washington Parish Burial Ground, is a historic and active cemetery located at 1801 E Street, SE, in Washington, D.C., on the west bank of the Anacostia River. It is the only American "cemetery of national m ...

there. Bowden's son, Thomas Russell Bowden, served as

Attorney General of Virginia The attorney general of Virginia is an elected constitutional position that holds an executive office in the government of Virginia. Attorneys general are elected for a four-year term in the year following a presidential election. There are no ter ...

in both the Restored Government and the post-war

Reconstruction era The Reconstruction era was a period in American history following the American Civil War (1861–1865) and lasting until approximately the Compromise of 1877. During Reconstruction, attempts were made to rebuild the country after the bloo ...

government, and his nephew,

George E. Bowden George Edwin Bowden (July 6, 1852 – January 22, 1908) was a United States House of Representatives, U.S. Representative from Virginia, nephew of Lemuel Jackson Bowden. Biography Born in Williamsburg, Virginia, Bowden attended a private scho ...

, represented

Virginia's 2nd congressional district Virginia's second congressional district is a U.S. congressional district in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It currently encompasses all of Accomack, Northampton, and York Counties; all of the independent cities of Virginia Beach and Willia ...

in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

from 1887 to 1891. Congressional Bioguide, "Lemuel Jackson Bowden"

References

Bibliography

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External links