David Bower

The name Bower may have come from the German name Bauer, meaning farmer. The Bowers lived in a community of predominantly German heritage. The ancestry of David Bower is unknown as yet.

According to the records of the Salem Lutheran Cemetery Association, Clarion County, PA, he was the second of nine children, parents names not known: Dr. John Bower (m. Mary Giltner), David (m. Caroline Snyder), Rachel (m. John Aungst), Barbara (m. Reuben Disler), Reuben (m. Lydia Disler), Jesse, Charles, Elizabeth, Samuel.

In this record, the children of Dr. John Bower and Mary Giltner are given as Peotus Bower( b. 1859), infant dau. (b. 1861), Rhodes Bower (b. 1864), Lou Bower (m. ___ Updegraff), Catherine Bower (m. ____Plain), John, Mary, Giltner, and Frank.

The five children of David Bower were also listed (see below).

	Date	Location	Notes	Sources
Birth	1825
Marriage			To Caroline Snyder
Death	1866
Burial		Salem Lutheran Cemetery, Clarion County, PA

Ancestry chart segment

 Generation 4               Generation 5      Generation 6
 
                                          +-- [unknown]
                                          |   (????-????)  
                        +-- David Bower --+
                        |   (1825-1866)   |
 Olive Samantha Bower --+                 +-- [unknown]
 (1862-1895)            |                     (????-????)
                        +-- Caroline Snyder
                            (1831-1905)

Sources:

Children

Children with Caroline Snyder:

Name	Gender	Date of Birth	Birthplace	Spouse	Notes	Sources
Paris Bower	M	about 1853		Maria Rugh
Laura Bower	F	about 1856		James Tyler
Emma Bower	F			[unknown] Tyler
Arthur Bower	M	about 1858		Mattie [unknown]
Olive Samantha Bower	F			James Francis Beals	Direct Line
Tase Bower	F			Peter Shakely

Places of Residence

Location	Dates	Notes	Sources

Sources

Ref. Num.	Description	Image of original
1	1860 United States Federal Census, Salem Twp., Clarion Co., PA, Page 20, lines 5-9 lists David Bower, 34, married to Caroline Bower, 29. They live with three children: son Paris A. Bower, 7; daughter Laura Bower, 4; and son Arthur Bower, 2. David Bower is a farmer. Everyone was born in PA. Paris A. Bower and Laura Bower attended school within the census year. This census is dated July 4, 1860.
2	Gravestone for David Bower and Caroline S. Bower reads: "David Bower, 1826-1866, Caroline S., His wife, 1831-1905"
3	Cemetery Association Record listing the siblings of David Bower, 1826-1856. It also lists his wife, Caroline Snyder, 1881-1909, and their children Paris Bower (m. Maria Rugh), Theresa (Tacy) Bower (m. Peter Sheakley), Olive Bower (m. James Beals), Irvin Bower, and Laura Bower (m. [unknown] Tyler).	transcription
4	History of Clarion County , edited by A. J. Davis, 1887, 'History of Salem Township' p.610, "The doctors that have practiced in Salem township are in order, five: Dr. Meaker, Dr. Bower, Dr. Knight, Dr. Clover, and Dr. Fitzgerald."
5	Personal correspondence from Elizabeth Wilson Williams.	N/A

Conjecture

Since so many families is the Clarion-Venango Counties border area migrated from Lehigh County, it is worth noting that Michael Brey, (whose daughter married Olive Bower's son), owned land in Upper Milford township, (in then Northampton, later Lehigh County) in 1806, near land of a Henry Bauer. Also a land transaction by one Joseph Klein in October of 1865 mentions land of the "late John Bower', in Salisbury township.