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Every family starts somewhere. Some families can trace their lineage back to the beginning of time.....or at least back to a foreign country. At the present time this line of the Bowman family can only be traced back to William H. Bowman of Montgomery County, VA. There is additional information that assumes that the parents of William were William Bowman and Elizabeth Croy, but I have not verified any primary source documents to determine if the connection is correct.
In the Virginia Marriages 1740-1850 the marriage of William H. Bowman to Margaret Jane Gilmore is recorded with a date of September 7, 1846 in Montgomery County, VA. The original record shows the "bondsman" as Elizabeth Croy, mother of William H. Bowman. The parent information from the death certificate of Julietta Ann Bowman Broce lists her parents as William Bowman and Elizabeth Croy.
This author does believe there is a connection between these two people based on the fact that Julietta Broce was living in the same township as William Bowman in the 1870 and 1880 census. Also, family members do remember the Broces as being a part of their extended family, but until primary sources documents can be found listing William's parents I can only assume that William Bowman and Elizabeth Croy were his parents. However, I can verify the family of William H. Bowman and some of the resulting lines with concentration on the families of their son, John Richard Bowman.
This information was complied with the assistance of many Bowman cousins over a period of several years only because I worked on it a little and then put it back in the drawer. In doing so I lost two of the family historians, Warren and JR Bowman, before this record was completed and I deeply regret this because their information was always a good starting point for me to use to find the documentation that I wanted and needed.
Family histories are meaningful to those of us who are "in to" genealogy, but I hope those who aren't will also enjoy reading about their family. It has been an enjoyable experience learning about this family and in doing so it has made me more than just an "in-law".
LaDonna Gentry Duncan
Wife of Richard Duncan whose mother was Flora Nadine Bowman
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