Bowker, Joseph 1834-1899

BOWKER, SKIFF, PATTON

Posted By: Volunteer Transcriber
Date: 4/14/2005 at 16:15:07

The Newton Record, Newton, IA, Thursday, March 30, 1899

Joseph Bowker died at his home in this city, soon after 7 o’clock on Monday morning, March 27th, aged sixty-four years, six months and thirteen days, his disease being laryngitis.

Thus again death has entered our midst and taken from us another of our truly good men; one who for nearly a half century has lived among us, taking an active part in everything that has tended toward the building up of the best interests of our city, and who by his spotless Christian life, his uniform kindness and courtesy toward everybody and the pure unselfishness of his disposition, have made for him a friend in everyone who has ever known him. No man was ever truer to his friends or more nearly succeeded in squaring his life by the “golden rule,” than Joe Bowker. He was quiet and unobtrusive, yet genial and social, making friends easily and always holding them. Those of us who have known him since he came to Newton, when he was but a boy in his teens and have been intimately acquainted with him through all the years since, know best the true nobility of his character and feel most keenly the pangs which his death has caused.

He was converted and united with the M. E. Church when he was a lad of ten years, and for fifty-four years had been faithful to his Christian vows and devoted to the church, which he loved. For over thirty years he was a member of the official board of the First M. E. Church on Newton and acted as its recording secretary, during all that time.

He served as a soldier for three years during the civil war and has been one of the most loyal and faithful members of Garrett Post, G. A. R. from its first organization, seldom missing a meeting of his comrades, and always ready and willing to bear his share of the work and responsibility of the post. At the last annual banquet only a few weeks ago, he spoke feelingly of the death of Major S. S. Patterson, which had just occurred, and of how rapidly the “old boys” were passing over to “Fame’s eternal camping grounds,” little dreaming that “taps” would soon be sounded for himself and that he would be the next to answer the great roll call on high.

Mr. Bowker was born in Birmingham, England, Sept. 14, 1834. In the spring of ’48, when he was 14 years of age, his parents emigrated to America, settling first in Muscatine, Ia., afterwards living in Iowa City and Rock Island. At the latter place his father, Samuel Bowker, died in 1852. In December 1854, he came to Newton, where he worked at his trade as painter until the spring of 1858, when he went down to St. Joseph, Mo., where on the first day of Feb. 1859, he was united in marriage to Miss Dimmis Skiff. In 1860 he and his wife moved to Ravenna, Ohio. On the 30th day of Oct. 1861, he enlisted in Company F, 42nd Ohio, of which regiment James A. Garfield was then Colonel. He was detached to the First Wisconsin Heavy Artillery, in May ’62, and served in that branch of the service until July ’64, when he returned to his regiment and was mustered out with his comrades Nov. 18, 1864. During his term of service he was engaged in 15 battles.

After his discharge he returned to Ohio, but the following spring moved again to Iowa, coming directly to his old home in Newton. His wife, a noble and devoted Christian woman died here Nov. 30, 1883. Of five children that had been born to them only two are living, Gussie and Blanche, the other having died in infancy. On the 22nd day of Sept. 1887, he was united in marriage to Miss Mary T. Patton, youngest daughter of the late J. D. Patton, for several years editor of the Newton Free Press. The union proved a happy one to both, each being peculiarly devoted to the happiness of the other.

His two daughters Gussie and Blanche, one employed as store keeper at the Institution for Feeble Minded Children, at Glenwood, the other as trained nurse in hospital at Ottumwa, were summoned home when the father’s condition became critical, and arrived a few days before his death, assisting the faithful wife in ministering to the loved one during the last days of painful illness.

The funeral services were held in the M. E. Church Tuesday afternoon, conducted by the pastor, Rev. Cowan, assisted by other pastors of the city. Excellent music was furnished by a quartette composed of Ernest Earley, Horace Shepherd, Evan Brooke and Henry Claussen, with Fred Jasper as organist. The members of Garrett Post and Relief Corpse attended in a body. After the services a large number of friends, with the G.A.R. comrades as an escort followed the remains to our beautiful cemetery, and as the casket was lowered into the grave, Geo. Townsend sounded the sad bugle call for “Lights out,” and all that remained of Joe Bowker was left to sleep beside his wife and children, until the grand reveille is sounded on resurrection morning.

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The Newton Record, Thursday, April 13, 1899 Page 1, Column 5.
Loving Tribute to Comrade Bowker
Washington, D. C.

Editor Newton Record: - Will you allow a correction in the record of, and permit a flower to be added to the wreath so gracefully laid upon the casket of Comrade Bowker by the Record?

Joseph Bowker came to the First Wisconsin Battery, Light Artillery, on detail from the 42nd Ohio Inft., Garfield’s Regiment, in the spring of ’62. The 1st Wisconsin Heavy Artillery was not organized until subsequent to that date and saw little front service. The battery saw one hundred twenty-eight days under fire and for more than two years Bowker was close up in front, doing his whole duty. The Center Section boys will be loath to see his name transferred from the rolls of their gun squads to embellish the rolls of an organization in which he did not serve. More, it might cast a cloud upon his military history requiring some future explanation, and Bowker’s history as a Christian soldier needs no explanation; it stands for all that a good soldier should desire.

He seemed to find an immediate congenial home with us and a close comradeship with our best representatives and stayed until he returned to his regiment to be mustered out with it. He placed in letters of gold the fifteen battles that you note, upon the on the bright stripes of our flag and his deft painter’s hand was ever at the service of a comrade to letter personal property or camp equipage. God gave, and he cultivated the sympathetic woman’s heart for the wounded comrade, or one in sickness or distress, and the calm, steady courage in the red line of fire of a Galahad. From the Atlantic to the Pacific, from the Great Lakes to the Gulf, gray heads will bow to hide misty eyes when they read Comrade Bowker’s final muster out. For in that old day we sang together:

And nothing on this earth can sever
The chain that is about us now.

And nothing did sever the bond that bound us until the Master called him. We believe, we know, that when Comrade Bowker’s eyes opened upon the other shore that morning of March 27, 1899, the gates of pearl swung open; Saint Peter returned his salute, St. Michael enrolled his name among the hosts of Heaven without inspecting his descriptive list and he was shown his place, “Close by the throne of God." Don C. Cameron