Menin Gate
Colin McMillan has provided the following:
Thomas Bates Bowman’s birth was registered in the Jan-Feb-Mar quarter of 1879. He was the second child of William Bowman who in 1871, when Thomas was 2, was a 28 year old Stonemason married to 26 year old Margaret. Thomas’s siblings were 8 year old Robert William Bowman who was still at school, and Frederick who was only months old. Every member of the household was born in Morpeth and they were living at 6 Union Place, Morpeth at the time.
By 1891 the family numbered seven with the addition of Emily Bowman who was 8, Frederick Bowman (a different boy of that name as the original would have been 10) was 2, and Percival B Bowman was 3 months old. William (38), the head of the household was still a stonemason and the only other person working was 18 year old Robert William Bowman who was a miner. Thomas (12) was still at school. They were then living at Forrest’s Buildings, Morpeth.
Regrettably there is no information about this family on the 1901 census. However, by 1911 Thomas Bates Bowman was head of the household and had started his own family. He was a 31 year old coal miner hewer and married to Margaret Ann Bowman. They had been married for 7 years and had four children: William Bowman was 7, Sarah Ann Bowman was 5, Thomas Bates Bowman (jnr) was 3 and Doris Bowman was 6 months old. All were born in Morpeth. A boarder, 32 year old coal miner hewer William Potts, was also there at their address of 6 Dacre Court, Morpeth.
Thomas Bates Bowman enlisted at Newcastle and served in the 2nd Battalion of the Northumberland Fusiliers. He died on 8th May 1915 in the France and Flanders Western European Theatre of WarThomas Bates Bowman is remembered in Morpeth on M17.01, M17.02, M17.09 and M17.29
