Joseph Bowman the elder child of Mary Jane Chinn and Isaac Bowman was born September 1793 in Shenandoah County, VA, at the old Fort Bowman stone house. He was Isaac's sixth child. In the 1810 census of Shenandoah County Joseph, age 17, was still a resident in his fathers Fort Bowman Plantation home. In the War of 1812 Joseph Bowman was made Ensign in the Shenandoah County Militia replacing Peter Gatewood.

Joseph married 1819 to his first cousin, Elizabeth "Betsy" Bowman. She was the daughter of his uncle Abraham Bowman and wife Sarah Henry of Fayette County, KY. This marriage strengthened the bond between Bowman brothers Abraham and Isaac in their pioneering management of their Kentucky land grants and joint family holdings.

The uncle as well as father-in-law of Joseph, Abraham Bowman was raised in Shenandoah County, VA and migrated as a pioneer to Kentucky. He was a Colonel in George Washington's Army of the American Revolution, having served with distinction, and received several thousand acres of meritorious military land grants in Kentucky for his service. Abraham led 30 pioneer families to KY in 1779 establishing them at Bowman's Station. In 1781 he established his permanent home in Fayette County, KY on South Elkhorn creek having purchased some 8,000 acres. It was here Abraham planned his life and located his family members through his legacy.

"Betsy" and Joseph lived near Lexington, KY, off the Harrodsburg Pike, on Bowman's Mill Road. This home was across the road from where she was raised on Colonel Abraham's plantation home on the South Elkhorn creek – today called "Helm Place". Betsy was the youngest of Abraham's seven children and most of her siblings settled on close by acreage from their father Abraham.

The first child of Joseph & Betsy was born in 1820 as they were farming adjacent land in Fayette County, KY with eight slaves and considerable support from family legacies. Joseph's legacy from his father will of 1824 was a portion Isaac's military land grant in the State Of Indiana, which he shared as the sole heirs with his brothers John H. and Abraham. Undoubtedly these three brothers began caring for their legacy in the west around 1816 and well before their father Isaac's death in 1825. This inheritance seems to tie together for life these three siblings in various business and family ways.

Joseph and his wife were heirs (individually as relatives) to the property of their first cousin John Bowman (Jr), the son of pioneer Colonel John Bowman of Bellevue plantation in Mercer County. In the 1825 inheritance each received a 1/6th share of John's Henry County, KY, lands.

Along with his brother-in-law's William Bowman and George H. Bowman, Joseph was a charter members of the respected "Kentucky Association" formed in 1828 for promoting and breeding of horses. By the 1830 census the family of Joseph and Betsy was growing. Although they had lost two children there were two young boys and four young girls in the household. Joseph was working his plantation and raising horses with fifteen slaves.

Elizabeth "Betsy" Bowman died in June 1835, at her home in Fayette County, KY. Three of her children were named Elizabeth having deceased as infants. Betsy's death occurred at the time of the last baby's death. She was first buried alongside her deceased babies in the Bowman Family graveyard near South Elkhorn and the home of her father. By the 1840 census Joseph, a widower, was residing in his home with his two sons and five daughters - all his children that reached maturity. He was still farming and raising horses with 25 slaves.

Betsy and Joseph had ten children between 1820 and 1835. Their oldest child was Dr. Isaac Bowman who decided to seek a wife somewhere apart from all the kissing cousins near his home, so he relocated to Louisiana. Here he married 1847 in New Orleans and raised his family in Louisiana's St. Mary Parish (the line of the writer's heritage).

In the 1850 census of Fayette County, Joseph is residing at home with his Children Abraham, Kate and Amanda. He was still farming with land valued at $22,000 and 26 slaves maintaining the plantation along with his horse stables.
{Amanda is also found in the 1850 census of Shenandoah County, VA, visiting in the home of George and her aunt Mary Ann Brinker. Mary Ann Brinker inherited and now occupies the old Stone home of the Fort Bowman plantation, built by pioneer George Bowman in 1753. Here Amanda met John S. Hupp and they were married May 1851 but unfortunately Amanda deceased 4 months later September 1851.}

At the age of 66 Joseph Died 25 August 1859 at his home in Fayette County, KY. He was buried near his wife, Betsy, in the old Bowman Family graveyard near the family home of his father–in-law Abraham Bowman. The Lexington Kentucky Cemetery began opening in 1849. Then on 19 Sept 1867 the remains of Joseph, Betsy, and the three infants named Elizabeth were taken from the old Bowman family graveyard and re-interred in the Lexington Cemetery. Colonel Abraham Bowman and quite a number of Bowman family members were also first buried in the family graveyard and later re-interred in the Lexington cemetery.

Joseph's will was dated Aug 1859 with the Settlement in March 1867. His children shared equally in the estate, which had a cash value of some $15,000 excluding land. These heirs were Isaac, Abraham B, Sarah (deceased w/heirs), Nancy, Mary (deceased w/heirs) and Kate, but deceased Amanda's name was not mentioned. Half his children deceased before him.

Children:
1. Isaac (1820-1858) Doctor - moved to Louisiana
2. Abraham, (1821-1861)
3. Sarah (1823-1847) m. Wm. F Satnhope
4. Mary Elizabeth, (c1825-1825)
5. Nancy C. (1826-1889) m. widower Wm. F Stanhope
6. Mary Ann (1828-1857) m. Robert Hayes
7. Elizabeth (1829 –1829)
8. Catherine "Kate" (1830-c1901) m. Richard Downing),
9. Amanda (1833-1551) m. John Hupp of Shenandoah County VA
10. Elizabeth (1835-1835)
Seven of the children survived to adulthood and all but two of these children lived their life in near proximity of their father's home.

by/Roquey Jobes

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