US Senator. Elected as an Unionist to represent Virginia in the US Senate, he served from March 1863 until his death in office. Bowden was born in Williamsburg, Virginia, where he graduated from William and Mary College, was admitted to the bar in 1838, and set up a successful law practice. He was a member of the State House of Delegates (1841 to 1846) and a delegate to the 1849 and 1851 Virginia Constitutional Conventions. Bowden's legislative career was effectively put on hold during the 1850s because of his pro-Union sympathies, which earned him the nickname "The Virginia Yankee". At the start of the Civil War he took up residence in Washington, DC, where his status as a Union loyalist won him some strong political connections. When Williamsburg fell under Federal occupation in May 1862, Bowden was immediately installed as Mayor; his arrival was greeted with a band playing a popular tune, to which a crowd shouted "Down with the traitor! If we ever recover our power...". He was elected to the Senate that November, only to die of smallpox in the Capitol nine months into his term. He was interred at Congressional Cemetery; his remains were never returned to his hometown. Joseph Segar was elected to succeed him but was not permitted to take his seat, and Virginia would have no representation in Congress from 1864 to 1870. Bowden's nephew George Edwin Bowden would later serve as a US Representative from Virginia's 2nd District.
US Senator. Elected as an Unionist to represent Virginia in the US Senate, he served from March 1863 until his death in office. Bowden was born in Williamsburg, Virginia, where he graduated from William and Mary College, was admitted to the bar in 1838, and set up a successful law practice. He was a member of the State House of Delegates (1841 to 1846) and a delegate to the 1849 and 1851 Virginia Constitutional Conventions. Bowden's legislative career was effectively put on hold during the 1850s because of his pro-Union sympathies, which earned him the nickname "The Virginia Yankee". At the start of the Civil War he took up residence in Washington, DC, where his status as a Union loyalist won him some strong political connections. When Williamsburg fell under Federal occupation in May 1862, Bowden was immediately installed as Mayor; his arrival was greeted with a band playing a popular tune, to which a crowd shouted "Down with the traitor! If we ever recover our power...". He was elected to the Senate that November, only to die of smallpox in the Capitol nine months into his term. He was interred at Congressional Cemetery; his remains were never returned to his hometown. Joseph Segar was elected to succeed him but was not permitted to take his seat, and Virginia would have no representation in Congress from 1864 to 1870. Bowden's nephew George Edwin Bowden would later serve as a US Representative from Virginia's 2nd District.
Bio by: Bobb Edwards
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