William Henry Bower was born about 1870 in Alabama of Georgia-born parents, and died in Texas in the late 30's or 40's. At the time of his death he lived in Beaumont, Texas. He had been employed by the railroad and retired from there. William managed a grocery store in Groveton, Trinity County, Texas prior to working for the railroad.

Around 1895, William married Augusta "Gussie" Eugenia SPENCE. She was born in Texas about 1877. They had at least eight children.

Grandma Gussie was diminutive. She had a great quantity of wiry, gray hair that she wore in a bun on the top of her head. No matter how tight she pulled it into control, it soon worked itself loose and looked like a gray mushroom. She was tight-fisted (stingy). The whole family was shocked when she went into her trunk of goodies and picked out a handkerchief when my husband and I married. She died within a year or two after 1957 - it certainly being before 1960. Gussie was in her eighties. Both her parents were also born in Texas. Gussie had a sister named Edna who married a portrait photographer named Jaycox. There may also have been a second sister, Maude E., who died 10 August 1946.

Their children:

I. Spence Bower, born about 1896, lived in Corpus Christi, Texas, and was employed either by the U.S. Navy during WWII or was employed by a contractor for the Navy.

II. Alma Bower died as a young woman before 1910

III. William "Willie" Henry, Jr., born about 1898, was known as Uncle Bud. He married Mae __?__. Uncle Bud was a shoe salesman for Sanger-Harris in Dallas, Texas. Prior to that, he worked for another department store bought out by Sanger-Harris. I believe the name of it was Washburns.

IV. Joseph, born about 1899, died in an automobile accident 28 December 1922. He was interred in Magnolia Cemetery in Beaumont, Texas.

V. Lacy Bower, born about 1901, married twice. By his first wife, he had either three or four children. Two of the children were fraternal twins named Robert and Carroll. I knew Lacy and his second wife (whose name escapes me at the moment though I can recall her tightly girdle-clad form as clearly as ever). Clara, that's her name! I met the twins at their father's funeral. Lacy died in about 1966.

VI. Earl K. Bower moved to Arizona, when he was a young adult. He worked for the railroad. His wife's name was Mary (or maybe he had a daughter named Mary). He had no interaction with the family after he went to Arizona - not an unusual thing for a Bower in this part of the family to do.

VII. Erma Drew

VIII. Robert Leggett was my husband's father. His birthday was in March. He was born after 1903. Leggett lived much of his life in Beaumont, Texas. He was an electrician at the shipyard in Beaumont during WWII. After the war he worked for the Texas Company loading petroleum into tank cars in Winnie, Texas until his retirement. He was argumentative on his good days and cranky the rest of the time. Leggett married Martha Alice WARREN when she was 16 years old.

Martha Alice was born in October, 1915. Her father was born a Carpenter but was adopted by the Warrens. His rather wealthy family lived in St. Louis. Martha's mother deserted her father and Martha Alice, taking with her an infant son. Martha Alice tried to locate her brother after WWII. I learned that he was a Navy pilot and was discharged in California.

Martha and Leggett had two sons:

Return to the Kitchen