Sarah A. Bowman
Encyclopedia
Sarah A. Bowman was an American
innkeeper, restaurateur
, and madam
. Nicknamed "The Great Western", she gained fame, and the title "Heroine of Fort Brown", as a camp follower
of Zachary Taylor
's army during the Mexican–American War
. Following the war she operated an inn in Franklin, Texas
(now El Paso) before settling near Arizona City
(now Yuma, Arizona). Over the course of her life she was married multiple times, often without legal record or the blessing of a priest, and was known at various times by the names Boginnis, Bourdette, Bourget, Bourjette, Borginnis, Davis, Bowman, and possibly Foyle.
or Clay County, Missouri. Raised on the American frontier, she received no formal education, and is believed to have been illiterate due to her use of an X
on business and census forms. Despite the inability to read and write, she was bilingual by her later years, with a priest near Fort Yuma
noting she was the first American woman he had met fluent in Spanish
.
Physically, Bowman was an unusually large woman. Standing 6 feet (1.8 m) tall (some reports claim 6 in 2 in (1.88 m)) and reportedly weighing 200 pounds (90.7 kg), she was described as "a remarkably large, well-proportioned strong woman, of strong nerves, and great physical power." Other observers noted she had an hourglass figure. Due to her large size she was nicknamed the Great Western, an apparent reference to SS Great Western
, for a time the largest ship afloat. Bowman also possessed skills to complement her Amazon
-like physique. Texas Ranger
John Salmon Ford
said of her, "She could whip any man, fair fight or foul, could shoot a pistol better than anyone in the region, and at black jack could outplay (or out cheat) the slickest professional gambler."
Several tales are told of Bowman and her earlier years. The first is that she and her husband had accompanied Zachary Taylor
during his campaign during the Seminole Wars
. There is no record of a woman matching Bowman's description accompanying Taylor, but such an event would help explain her later loyalty to him.
A second tale claims Bowman was in love with Taylor. If this is true, there is no evidence the affection was returned.
, Missouri
. When her husband enlisted in the Seventh infantry, she signed on as a laundress, a position that included food, shelter, and the opportunity to earn a salary three times that earned by an Army private. From Jefferson Barracks she accompanied the army to Corpus Christi Bay
. By the time the army arrived in July 1845, her duties included cook and nurse in addition to the laundry.
The army remained encamped along the Nueces River
till March 1846 when they received orders to advance to the Rio Grande
. Instead of following her husband, who was ill, and most of the military wives on ships down the coast, Bowman purchased a wagon and mule
team and followed the army on land. She handled the trek with skills the "best teamster in the train might have envied."
The first encounter between American and Mexican forces came on March 21, 1846 during the crossing of Arroyo Colorado
. As the Americans approached the steep embankment, bugles rang out on the other bank accompanied by the warning, "Cross this stream and you will be shot!" Upon seeing the column halted, Bowman rode to the front and told the commander, "If the general would give me a strong pair of tongs, I'd wade that river and whip every scoundrel that dared show himself." (In addition to the tool
, tongs was at the time slang for men's trousers
.) Inspired by her example the American troops made the crossing, scattering the opposing troops in the process.
(later renamed Fort Brown) where she operated an officer's mess
. When Taylor withdrew the majority of his troops to confront the Mexican army near the coast, forces in Matamoros
, stationed directly across the Rio Grande, responded by besieging the fort
.
The Mexican bombardment began May 3 at 5 am. While most of the women in the fort retreated to the bunker
s to sew sandbags, Borginnes remained at her cooking fire and served breakfast at 7 am. For the next week she prepared food and coffee for the besieged fort, carrying buckets of coffee to the troops manning the fort's guns, even finding time to care for the wounded and other women. Her schedule of three meals daily was continued even though bullets struck both her bonnet
and bread tray. She also requisitioned a musket
in case the fort was stormed.
Following the siege, Borginnes came to the attention of U.S. newspapers who named her the "Heroine of Fort Brown". Stories of her exploits were published in both Philadelphia and New York City
. One correspondent even went out of his way to extol her virtues and fight any "tongues of slander" that might be directed at her character.
called the American House in Matamoros. In addition to food, lodging, and stables for soldiers' horses, the establishment also served as a saloon and brothel
. This establishment proved quite popular, with one soldier describing it as "the headquarters for everyone". As Taylor's force moved into Mexico the American House moved with the army, first to Monterrey
and then to Saltillo
.
While Borginnes was not involved in the Battle of Monterrey
, she did see action during the Battle of Buena Vista
. During the conflict she prepared food and coffee, reloaded weapons, and carried wounded off the field of battle. Her attention to the injured even earned her the nickname "Doctor Mary". Legend claims she received a saber wound to her cheek while working a cannon
position before slaying the Mexican soldier who cut her. Another incident involves a retreating private
. The soldier ran into Borginnes' restaurant yelling that Taylor had been defeated. She responded by punching the private in the face and telling him "You damned son of a bitch, there ain't Mexicans enough in Mexico to whip old Taylor. You just spread that report and I'll beat you to death."
During the battle Borginnes learned that Captain George Lincoln, a friend that had joined the army at the same time as her husband, had been killed. Not wishing to have his body stripped, she searched for him during the battle. Upon finding him, she brought the body back to Saltillo and made sure he was properly buried. After the battle she purchased Lincoln's horse at auction, beating a $75 bid with a $200 offer, and made arrangements for the horse to be sent to the captain's family.
Following her actions upon the field of battle, tradition maintains that General Winfield Scott
ordered a military pension for Borginnes.
in 1848, the U.S. Army prepared to depart Northern Mexico. By this time Borginnes' second husband had left her—whether by death or abandonment is unknown. She wished to accompany the departing troops to California
, but was informed that only military wives were allowed to join the column. In response she mounted her horse, rode through the soldiers, and shouted "Who wants a wife with $15,000 and the biggest leg in Mexico! Come, my beauties, don't all speak at once—who is the lucky man?" Eventually a dragoon named either Davis or David E. volunteered, on condition that a priest perform the marriage ceremony. Her response to this was, "Bring your blanket to my tent tonight and I will learn you to tie a knot that will satisfy you, I reckon!"
By early 1849, following a brief illness, the "Great Western" arrived in Franklin (now El Paso, Texas
) without a husband and again using her second husband's name. There she established an inn that catered to people traveling across the country as part of the California Gold Rush
. In the process she became known as El Paso's first Anglo
woman and the town's first madam
, gaining a reputation as a "whore with a heart of gold".
By early 1850, Borginnes had moved up the Rio Grande to the town of Socorro
. There she lived with a man named Juan Duran and five girls, possibly orphans, with the last name of Skinner. Shortly thereafter she married Alfred J. Bowman, a dragoon
in the U.S. Army. Following his discharge on November 30, 1850 the couple moved west.
while her husband prospected
. One of the fort's soldiers noted, "She has been with the Army twenty years and was brought up here where she keeps the officer's mess. Among her other good qualities she is an admirable `pimp'. She used to be a splendid-looking woman and has done good service but is too old for that now."
After a time Bowman opened a hotel near the fort, along with other businesses near Fort Buchanan
and Patagonia, Arizona
. In addition to her business interests, she adopted a number of Mexican and Indian
children.
Bowman died December 22, 1866 from a spider bite
. Following her death she was breveted
an honorary colonel
and buried with military honors in the Fort Yuma cemetery. In 1890, following the decommissioning of Fort Yuma, she was exhumed and reburied at San Francisco National Cemetery
in a grave marked "Sarah A. Bowman".
In 1998, the events of Bowman's life were used as the basis for the historical fiction
Fearless, A Novel of Sarah Bowman
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
innkeeper, restaurateur
Restaurateur
A restaurateur is a person who opens and runs restaurants professionally. Although over time the term has come to describe any person who owns a restaurant, traditionally it refers to a highly skilled professional who is proficient in all aspects of the restaurant business.-Etymology:The word...
, and madam
Pimp
A pimp is an agent for prostitutes who collects part of their earnings. The pimp may receive this money in return for advertising services, physical protection, or for providing a location where she may engage clients...
. Nicknamed "The Great Western", she gained fame, and the title "Heroine of Fort Brown", as a camp follower
Camp follower
Camp-follower is a term used to identify civilians and their children who follow armies. There are two common types of camp followers; first, the wives and children of soldiers, who follow their spouse or parent's army from place to place; the second type of camp followers have historically been...
of Zachary Taylor
Zachary Taylor
Zachary Taylor was the 12th President of the United States and an American military leader. Initially uninterested in politics, Taylor nonetheless ran as a Whig in the 1848 presidential election, defeating Lewis Cass...
's army during the Mexican–American War
Mexican–American War
The Mexican–American War, also known as the First American Intervention, the Mexican War, or the U.S.–Mexican War, was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848 in the wake of the 1845 U.S...
. Following the war she operated an inn in Franklin, Texas
El Paso, Texas
El Paso, is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States, and lies in far West Texas. In the 2010 census, the city had a population of 649,121. It is the sixth largest city in Texas and the 19th largest city in the United States...
(now El Paso) before settling near Arizona City
Yuma, Arizona
Yuma is a city in and the county seat of Yuma County, Arizona, United States. It is located in the southwestern corner of the state, and the population of the city was 77,515 at the 2000 census, with a 2008 Census Bureau estimated population of 90,041....
(now Yuma, Arizona). Over the course of her life she was married multiple times, often without legal record or the blessing of a priest, and was known at various times by the names Boginnis, Bourdette, Bourget, Bourjette, Borginnis, Davis, Bowman, and possibly Foyle.
Background
Bowman is believed to have been born Sarah Knight sometime between 1812 and 1813 (the 1860 census indicates her birth may have occurred as late as 1818) in either TennesseeTennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
or Clay County, Missouri. Raised on the American frontier, she received no formal education, and is believed to have been illiterate due to her use of an X
X mark
An x mark is a mark used to indicate the concept of negation as well as affirmation...
on business and census forms. Despite the inability to read and write, she was bilingual by her later years, with a priest near Fort Yuma
Fort Yuma
Fort Yuma is a fort in California that is located in Imperial County, across the Colorado River from Yuma, Arizona. It was on the Butterfield Overland Mail route from 1858 until 1861 and was abandoned May 16, 1883, and transferred to the Department of the Interior. The Fort Yuma Indian School and a...
noting she was the first American woman he had met fluent in Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
.
Physically, Bowman was an unusually large woman. Standing 6 feet (1.8 m) tall (some reports claim 6 in 2 in (1.88 m)) and reportedly weighing 200 pounds (90.7 kg), she was described as "a remarkably large, well-proportioned strong woman, of strong nerves, and great physical power." Other observers noted she had an hourglass figure. Due to her large size she was nicknamed the Great Western, an apparent reference to SS Great Western
SS Great Western
SS Great Western of 1838, was an oak-hulled paddle-wheel steamship; the first purpose-built for crossing the Atlantic and the initial unit of the Great Western Steamship Company. Designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, Great Western proved satisfactory in service and was the model for all successful...
, for a time the largest ship afloat. Bowman also possessed skills to complement her Amazon
Amazons
The Amazons are a nation of all-female warriors in Greek mythology and Classical antiquity. Herodotus placed them in a region bordering Scythia in Sarmatia...
-like physique. Texas Ranger
Texas Ranger Division
The Texas Ranger Division, commonly called the Texas Rangers, is a law enforcement agency with statewide jurisdiction in Texas, and is based in Austin, Texas...
John Salmon Ford
John Salmon Ford
John Salmon Ford , better known as "Rip" Ford, was a member of the Republic of Texas Congress and later of the State Senate, and mayor of Brownsville, Texas. He was also a Texas Ranger, a Confederate colonel, and a journalist...
said of her, "She could whip any man, fair fight or foul, could shoot a pistol better than anyone in the region, and at black jack could outplay (or out cheat) the slickest professional gambler."
Several tales are told of Bowman and her earlier years. The first is that she and her husband had accompanied Zachary Taylor
Zachary Taylor
Zachary Taylor was the 12th President of the United States and an American military leader. Initially uninterested in politics, Taylor nonetheless ran as a Whig in the 1848 presidential election, defeating Lewis Cass...
during his campaign during the Seminole Wars
Seminole Wars
The Seminole Wars, also known as the Florida Wars, were three conflicts in Florida between the Seminole — the collective name given to the amalgamation of various groups of native Americans and Black people who settled in Florida in the early 18th century — and the United States Army...
. There is no record of a woman matching Bowman's description accompanying Taylor, but such an event would help explain her later loyalty to him.
A second tale claims Bowman was in love with Taylor. If this is true, there is no evidence the affection was returned.
Mexican–American War
The first documented record of Bowman occurs in 1845 at Jefferson BarracksJefferson Barracks Military Post
The Jefferson Barracks Military Post, located on the Mississippi River at Lemay, Missouri, which is just south of St. Louis, Missouri,was, at first owned land by the DeGamache's then borrowed by military leaders, but after war, the land was not returned. It was an important and highly active U.S....
, Missouri
Missouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
. When her husband enlisted in the Seventh infantry, she signed on as a laundress, a position that included food, shelter, and the opportunity to earn a salary three times that earned by an Army private. From Jefferson Barracks she accompanied the army to Corpus Christi Bay
Corpus Christi Bay
Corpus Christi Bay is a scenic semi-tropical bay on the Texas coast found in San Patricio and Nueces counties, next to the major city of Corpus Christi. It is separated from the Gulf of Mexico by Mustang Island, and is fed by the Nueces River and Oso Creek from its western and southern extensions,...
. By the time the army arrived in July 1845, her duties included cook and nurse in addition to the laundry.
The army remained encamped along the Nueces River
Nueces River
The Nueces River is a river in the U.S. state of Texas, approximately long. It drains a region in central and southern Texas southeastward into the Gulf of Mexico. It is the southernmost major river in Texas northeast of the Rio Grande...
till March 1846 when they received orders to advance to the Rio Grande
Rio Grande
The Rio Grande is a river that flows from southwestern Colorado in the United States to the Gulf of Mexico. Along the way it forms part of the Mexico – United States border. Its length varies as its course changes...
. Instead of following her husband, who was ill, and most of the military wives on ships down the coast, Bowman purchased a wagon and mule
Mule
A mule is the offspring of a male donkey and a female horse. Horses and donkeys are different species, with different numbers of chromosomes. Of the two F1 hybrids between these two species, a mule is easier to obtain than a hinny...
team and followed the army on land. She handled the trek with skills the "best teamster in the train might have envied."
The first encounter between American and Mexican forces came on March 21, 1846 during the crossing of Arroyo Colorado
Arroyo Colorado
Arroyo Colorado is a river in Hidalgo, Cameron and Willacy Counties, Texas that flows mostly eastward some 85 kilometers from Lake Llano Grande into the Laguna Madre.-References:**USGS Hydrologic Unit Map - State of Texas...
. As the Americans approached the steep embankment, bugles rang out on the other bank accompanied by the warning, "Cross this stream and you will be shot!" Upon seeing the column halted, Bowman rode to the front and told the commander, "If the general would give me a strong pair of tongs, I'd wade that river and whip every scoundrel that dared show himself." (In addition to the tool
Tongs
Tongs are used for gripping and lifting tools, of which there are many forms adapted to their specific use. Some are merely large pincers or nippers, but the greatest number fall into three classes:...
, tongs was at the time slang for men's trousers
Trousers
Trousers are an item of clothing worn on the lower part of the body from the waist to the ankles, covering both legs separately...
.) Inspired by her example the American troops made the crossing, scattering the opposing troops in the process.
Heroine of Fort Brown
By May 1846, Bowman was married to her second husband, a man named Borginnes (spellings vary). Her husband was assigned to Fort TexasFort Brown
Fort Brown was a military post of the United States Army in Texas during the later half of 19th century and the early part of the 20th century.-Early years:...
(later renamed Fort Brown) where she operated an officer's mess
Mess
A mess is the place where military personnel socialise, eat, and live. In some societies this military usage has extended to other disciplined services eateries such as civilian fire fighting and police forces. The root of mess is the Old French mes, "portion of food" A mess (also called a...
. When Taylor withdrew the majority of his troops to confront the Mexican army near the coast, forces in Matamoros
Matamoros, Tamaulipas
Matamoros, officially known as Heroica Matamoros, is a city in the northeastern part of Tamaulipas, in the country of Mexico. It is located on the southern bank of the Rio Grande, directly across the border from Brownsville, Texas, in the United States. Matamoros is the second largest and second...
, stationed directly across the Rio Grande, responded by besieging the fort
Siege of Fort Texas
The Siege of Fort Texas marked the beginning of active campaigning by the armies of the United States and Mexico during the Mexican-American War. The battle is sometimes called The Siege of Fort Brown, but this is not entirely accurate — the name Fort Brown was taken from Major Jacob Brown,...
.
The Mexican bombardment began May 3 at 5 am. While most of the women in the fort retreated to the bunker
Bunker
A military bunker is a hardened shelter, often buried partly or fully underground, designed to protect the inhabitants from falling bombs or other attacks...
s to sew sandbags, Borginnes remained at her cooking fire and served breakfast at 7 am. For the next week she prepared food and coffee for the besieged fort, carrying buckets of coffee to the troops manning the fort's guns, even finding time to care for the wounded and other women. Her schedule of three meals daily was continued even though bullets struck both her bonnet
Bonnet (headgear)
Bonnets are a variety of headgear for both sexes, which have in common only the absence of a brim. Bonnet derives from the same word in French, where it originally indicated a type of material...
and bread tray. She also requisitioned a musket
Musket
A musket is a muzzle-loaded, smooth bore long gun, fired from the shoulder. Muskets were designed for use by infantry. A soldier armed with a musket had the designation musketman or musketeer....
in case the fort was stormed.
Following the siege, Borginnes came to the attention of U.S. newspapers who named her the "Heroine of Fort Brown". Stories of her exploits were published in both Philadelphia and New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. One correspondent even went out of his way to extol her virtues and fight any "tongues of slander" that might be directed at her character.
Battle of Buena Vista
Following Fort Brown, Borginnes briefly established a boarding houseBoarding house
A boarding house, is a house in which lodgers rent one or more rooms for one or more nights, and sometimes for extended periods of weeks, months and years. The common parts of the house are maintained, and some services, such as laundry and cleaning, may be supplied. They normally provide "bed...
called the American House in Matamoros. In addition to food, lodging, and stables for soldiers' horses, the establishment also served as a saloon and brothel
Brothel
Brothels are business establishments where patrons can engage in sexual activities with prostitutes. Brothels are known under a variety of names, including bordello, cathouse, knocking shop, whorehouse, strumpet house, sporting house, house of ill repute, house of prostitution, and bawdy house...
. This establishment proved quite popular, with one soldier describing it as "the headquarters for everyone". As Taylor's force moved into Mexico the American House moved with the army, first to Monterrey
Monterrey
Monterrey , is the capital city of the northeastern state of Nuevo León in the country of Mexico. The city is anchor to the third-largest metropolitan area in Mexico and is ranked as the ninth-largest city in the nation. Monterrey serves as a commercial center in the north of the country and is the...
and then to Saltillo
Saltillo
Saltillo is the capital city of the northeastern Mexican state of Coahuila and the municipal seat of the municipality of the same name. The city is located about 400 km south of the U.S. state of Texas, and 90 km west of Monterrey, Nuevo León....
.
While Borginnes was not involved in the Battle of Monterrey
Battle of Monterrey
In the Battle of Monterrey during the Mexican-American War, General Pedro de Ampudia and the Mexican Army of the North was defeated by U.S...
, she did see action during the Battle of Buena Vista
Battle of Buena Vista
The Battle of Buena Vista , also known as the Battle of Angostura, saw the United States Army use artillery to repulse the much larger Mexican army in the Mexican-American War...
. During the conflict she prepared food and coffee, reloaded weapons, and carried wounded off the field of battle. Her attention to the injured even earned her the nickname "Doctor Mary". Legend claims she received a saber wound to her cheek while working a cannon
Cannon
A cannon is any piece of artillery that uses gunpowder or other usually explosive-based propellents to launch a projectile. Cannon vary in caliber, range, mobility, rate of fire, angle of fire, and firepower; different forms of cannon combine and balance these attributes in varying degrees,...
position before slaying the Mexican soldier who cut her. Another incident involves a retreating private
Private (rank)
A Private is a soldier of the lowest military rank .In modern military parlance, 'Private' is shortened to 'Pte' in the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries and to 'Pvt.' in the United States.Notably both Sir Fitzroy MacLean and Enoch Powell are examples of, rare, rapid career...
. The soldier ran into Borginnes' restaurant yelling that Taylor had been defeated. She responded by punching the private in the face and telling him "You damned son of a bitch, there ain't Mexicans enough in Mexico to whip old Taylor. You just spread that report and I'll beat you to death."
During the battle Borginnes learned that Captain George Lincoln, a friend that had joined the army at the same time as her husband, had been killed. Not wishing to have his body stripped, she searched for him during the battle. Upon finding him, she brought the body back to Saltillo and made sure he was properly buried. After the battle she purchased Lincoln's horse at auction, beating a $75 bid with a $200 offer, and made arrangements for the horse to be sent to the captain's family.
Following her actions upon the field of battle, tradition maintains that General Winfield Scott
Winfield Scott
Winfield Scott was a United States Army general, and unsuccessful presidential candidate of the Whig Party in 1852....
ordered a military pension for Borginnes.
Later life
Following the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe HidalgoTreaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo
The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo is the peace treaty, largely dictated by the United States to the interim government of a militarily occupied Mexico City, that ended the Mexican-American War on February 2, 1848...
in 1848, the U.S. Army prepared to depart Northern Mexico. By this time Borginnes' second husband had left her—whether by death or abandonment is unknown. She wished to accompany the departing troops to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, but was informed that only military wives were allowed to join the column. In response she mounted her horse, rode through the soldiers, and shouted "Who wants a wife with $15,000 and the biggest leg in Mexico! Come, my beauties, don't all speak at once—who is the lucky man?" Eventually a dragoon named either Davis or David E. volunteered, on condition that a priest perform the marriage ceremony. Her response to this was, "Bring your blanket to my tent tonight and I will learn you to tie a knot that will satisfy you, I reckon!"
By early 1849, following a brief illness, the "Great Western" arrived in Franklin (now El Paso, Texas
El Paso, Texas
El Paso, is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States, and lies in far West Texas. In the 2010 census, the city had a population of 649,121. It is the sixth largest city in Texas and the 19th largest city in the United States...
) without a husband and again using her second husband's name. There she established an inn that catered to people traveling across the country as part of the California Gold Rush
California Gold Rush
The California Gold Rush began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The first to hear confirmed information of the gold rush were the people in Oregon, the Sandwich Islands , and Latin America, who were the first to start flocking to...
. In the process she became known as El Paso's first Anglo
Anglo
Anglo is a prefix indicating a relation to the Angles, England or the English people, as in the terms Anglo-Saxon, Anglo-American, Anglo-Celtic, Anglo-African and Anglo-Indian. It is often used alone, somewhat loosely, to refer to people of British Isles descent in The Americas, Australia and...
woman and the town's first madam
Pimp
A pimp is an agent for prostitutes who collects part of their earnings. The pimp may receive this money in return for advertising services, physical protection, or for providing a location where she may engage clients...
, gaining a reputation as a "whore with a heart of gold".
By early 1850, Borginnes had moved up the Rio Grande to the town of Socorro
Socorro, New Mexico
Socorro is a city in Socorro County in the U.S. state of New Mexico. It stands in the Rio Grande Valley at an elevation of . The population was 9,051 at the 2010 census...
. There she lived with a man named Juan Duran and five girls, possibly orphans, with the last name of Skinner. Shortly thereafter she married Alfred J. Bowman, a dragoon
Dragoon
The word dragoon originally meant mounted infantry, who were trained in horse riding as well as infantry fighting skills. However, usage altered over time and during the 18th century, dragoons evolved into conventional light cavalry units and personnel...
in the U.S. Army. Following his discharge on November 30, 1850 the couple moved west.
Fort Yuma
Bowman arrived at Yuma Crossing in 1852. Yuma's first business operator, she cooked and did laundry for the officers of Fort YumaFort Yuma
Fort Yuma is a fort in California that is located in Imperial County, across the Colorado River from Yuma, Arizona. It was on the Butterfield Overland Mail route from 1858 until 1861 and was abandoned May 16, 1883, and transferred to the Department of the Interior. The Fort Yuma Indian School and a...
while her husband prospected
Prospecting
Prospecting is the physical search for minerals, fossils, precious metals or mineral specimens, and is also known as fossicking.Prospecting is a small-scale form of mineral exploration which is an organised, large scale effort undertaken by mineral resource companies to find commercially viable ore...
. One of the fort's soldiers noted, "She has been with the Army twenty years and was brought up here where she keeps the officer's mess. Among her other good qualities she is an admirable `pimp'. She used to be a splendid-looking woman and has done good service but is too old for that now."
After a time Bowman opened a hotel near the fort, along with other businesses near Fort Buchanan
Fort Buchanan, Arizona
Fort Buchanan, was a United States Army post founded in 1856 three miles west of present day Sonoita, Arizona in what is now called Hog Canyon. The fort was located on the east slope of the canyon and under constant attack by native Americans. It was officially abandoned in 1861 but during the...
and Patagonia, Arizona
Patagonia, Arizona
Patagonia is a town in Santa Cruz County, Arizona, United States. As of 2010 Patagonia had a population of 913. Patagonia was formerly a supply center for nearby mines and ranches. Currently, it is a tourist destination, retirement community and arts & crafts center. The Nature Conservancy's...
. In addition to her business interests, she adopted a number of Mexican and Indian
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
children.
Bowman died December 22, 1866 from a spider bite
Spider bite
A spider bite is an injury resulting from the bites of spiders or other closely related arachnids.Spiders are active hunters and rely heavily on their bites to paralyze and kill their prey before consuming it. They also bite in self defense...
. Following her death she was breveted
Brevet (military)
In many of the world's military establishments, brevet referred to a warrant authorizing a commissioned officer to hold a higher rank temporarily, but usually without receiving the pay of that higher rank except when actually serving in that role. An officer so promoted may be referred to as being...
an honorary colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
and buried with military honors in the Fort Yuma cemetery. In 1890, following the decommissioning of Fort Yuma, she was exhumed and reburied at San Francisco National Cemetery
San Francisco National Cemetery
San Francisco National Cemetery is a U.S. National Cemetery, located in the Presidio of San Francisco, California. Because of the name and location, it is frequently confused with Golden Gate National Cemetery, a few miles south of the city....
in a grave marked "Sarah A. Bowman".
In 1998, the events of Bowman's life were used as the basis for the historical fiction
Historical fiction
Historical fiction tells a story that is set in the past. That setting is usually real and drawn from history, and often contains actual historical persons, but the principal characters tend to be fictional...
Fearless, A Novel of Sarah Bowman
Fearless, A Novel of Sarah Bowman
Fearless, A Novel of Sarah Bowman is a 1998 novel of historical fiction by Lucia St. Clair Robson.The novel tells how Sarah Bowman arrived in Corpus Christi, Texas in 1845, to work as a laundress for the army that Zachary Taylor had assembled to invade Mexico in the Mexican-American War...
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External links
- Bowman, Sarah, Handbook of TexasHandbook of TexasThe Handbook of Texas is a comprehensive encyclopedia of Texas geography, history, and historical persons published by the Texas State Historical Association .-History:...