Madora Lewis married Merritt Bowman 18 Dec 1851 in Sni-a-Bar Twp, Jackson, Missouri.Their first child was born Jan 1853.Later in the year 1853 the Bowmans and several other families set out from Kansas City, Missouri on the long and arduous trail west, hoping to carve a better future from an unknown frontier. The wagons were drawn by oxen and the journey took six months to complete.
The hardships of the trail were appalling and many turned back or died in the attempt, but the Bowmans pressed stoically on through the Platte River Valley of Nebraska, accross the plains and into the Rockies at South Pass. An exhausting pace of 15 miles per day, often on foot, was required in order to cross the last mountain range before the autumn snows. In Idaho the Bowmans left the main trail to Oregon and headed south west on the California trail, travelling along the Humboldt and over the Sierra Nevada, At length Sutter's Fort on the Sacramento was reached and the weary pioneers had arrived at their journey's end.
Merritt and Madora Bowman remained in California 7 years and two more daughters were born to them during that time. In 1860, however, they decided to move north and after settling briefly at Woodland in Washington, they finally established a homestead at Brush Prairie. A fourth daughter and three sons were born to them in Clark County where they were to remain fot the next forty years.
By the turn of the century, three of the Bowman children were living in Portland, Oregon, and it was there that Merritt and Madora moved in their declining years. Madora died on 20 May 1902 in her 70th year, shortly after the couple celebrated their Golden Wedding Anniversary and was buried in the Fourth Plain Cemetery, Orchards, WA. Soon after, Merritt Bowman visited Missouri for 18 months and on returning to the West, resided with his son Hiram at Falls City, Oregon, until his death on 19 July 1912 at the age of 85. He was buried beside his wife in the Fourth Plain Cemetery, though only Madora's grave bears a headstone.
Written by Rex Harrison, printed in 1988 in TRAILBREAKERS, a publication of the Clark County Genealogical Society
The hardships of the trail were appalling and many turned back or died in the attempt, but the Bowmans pressed stoically on through the Platte River Valley of Nebraska, accross the plains and into the Rockies at South Pass. An exhausting pace of 15 miles per day, often on foot, was required in order to cross the last mountain range before the autumn snows. In Idaho the Bowmans left the main trail to Oregon and headed south west on the California trail, travelling along the Humboldt and over the Sierra Nevada, At length Sutter's Fort on the Sacramento was reached and the weary pioneers had arrived at their journey's end.
Merritt and Madora Bowman remained in California 7 years and two more daughters were born to them during that time. In 1860, however, they decided to move north and after settling briefly at Woodland in Washington, they finally established a homestead at Brush Prairie. A fourth daughter and three sons were born to them in Clark County where they were to remain fot the next forty years.
By the turn of the century, three of the Bowman children were living in Portland, Oregon, and it was there that Merritt and Madora moved in their declining years. Madora died on 20 May 1902 in her 70th year, shortly after the couple celebrated their Golden Wedding Anniversary and was buried in the Fourth Plain Cemetery, Orchards, WA. Soon after, Merritt Bowman visited Missouri for 18 months and on returning to the West, resided with his son Hiram at Falls City, Oregon, until his death on 19 July 1912 at the age of 85. He was buried beside his wife in the Fourth Plain Cemetery, though only Madora's grave bears a headstone.
Written by Rex Harrison, printed in 1988 in TRAILBREAKERS, a publication of the Clark County Genealogical Society
Madora Lewis married Merritt Bowman 18 Dec 1851 in Sni-a-Bar Twp, Jackson, Missouri.Their first child was born Jan 1853.Later in the year 1853 the Bowmans and several other families set out from Kansas City, Missouri on the long and arduous trail west, hoping to carve a better future from an unknown frontier. The wagons were drawn by oxen and the journey took six months to complete.
The hardships of the trail were appalling and many turned back or died in the attempt, but the Bowmans pressed stoically on through the Platte River Valley of Nebraska, accross the plains and into the Rockies at South Pass. An exhausting pace of 15 miles per day, often on foot, was required in order to cross the last mountain range before the autumn snows. In Idaho the Bowmans left the main trail to Oregon and headed south west on the California trail, travelling along the Humboldt and over the Sierra Nevada, At length Sutter's Fort on the Sacramento was reached and the weary pioneers had arrived at their journey's end.
Merritt and Madora Bowman remained in California 7 years and two more daughters were born to them during that time. In 1860, however, they decided to move north and after settling briefly at Woodland in Washington, they finally established a homestead at Brush Prairie. A fourth daughter and three sons were born to them in Clark County where they were to remain fot the next forty years.
By the turn of the century, three of the Bowman children were living in Portland, Oregon, and it was there that Merritt and Madora moved in their declining years. Madora died on 20 May 1902 in her 70th year, shortly after the couple celebrated their Golden Wedding Anniversary and was buried in the Fourth Plain Cemetery, Orchards, WA. Soon after, Merritt Bowman visited Missouri for 18 months and on returning to the West, resided with his son Hiram at Falls City, Oregon, until his death on 19 July 1912 at the age of 85. He was buried beside his wife in the Fourth Plain Cemetery, though only Madora's grave bears a headstone.
Written by Rex Harrison, printed in 1988 in TRAILBREAKERS, a publication of the Clark County Genealogical Society
The hardships of the trail were appalling and many turned back or died in the attempt, but the Bowmans pressed stoically on through the Platte River Valley of Nebraska, accross the plains and into the Rockies at South Pass. An exhausting pace of 15 miles per day, often on foot, was required in order to cross the last mountain range before the autumn snows. In Idaho the Bowmans left the main trail to Oregon and headed south west on the California trail, travelling along the Humboldt and over the Sierra Nevada, At length Sutter's Fort on the Sacramento was reached and the weary pioneers had arrived at their journey's end.
Merritt and Madora Bowman remained in California 7 years and two more daughters were born to them during that time. In 1860, however, they decided to move north and after settling briefly at Woodland in Washington, they finally established a homestead at Brush Prairie. A fourth daughter and three sons were born to them in Clark County where they were to remain fot the next forty years.
By the turn of the century, three of the Bowman children were living in Portland, Oregon, and it was there that Merritt and Madora moved in their declining years. Madora died on 20 May 1902 in her 70th year, shortly after the couple celebrated their Golden Wedding Anniversary and was buried in the Fourth Plain Cemetery, Orchards, WA. Soon after, Merritt Bowman visited Missouri for 18 months and on returning to the West, resided with his son Hiram at Falls City, Oregon, until his death on 19 July 1912 at the age of 85. He was buried beside his wife in the Fourth Plain Cemetery, though only Madora's grave bears a headstone.
Written by Rex Harrison, printed in 1988 in TRAILBREAKERS, a publication of the Clark County Genealogical Society
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