Texas Legislators: Past & Present

William George Washington Jowers

Full Name: William George Washington Jowers
Birth date: 1812
Death date: June 30, 1892

Terms of Service

Senate, 11th ⁽³⁾ ⁽⁶⁾ ⁽⁷⁾ ⁽⁸⁾ Legislature
8/6/1866 - 2/7/1870
Senate, 10th ⁽⁴⁾ Legislature
11/2/1863 - 8/6/1866
Senate, 5th ⁽¹⁾ ⁽⁵⁾ Legislature
11/7/1853 - 11/5/1855
House, 4th Legislature
11/3/1851 - 11/7/1853
House, 3rd ⁽²⁾ Legislature
11/5/1849 - 11/3/1851

(1) Roster of members elect of the 5th Legislature, state elections, 1853. Texas State Gazette (Austin, Texas), 8/20/1853, p. 3, crediting Dolph Briscoe Center for American History. Portal to Texas History (University of North Texas Libraries) .
(2) Roster of members elect of the 3rd Legislature, Matthewson, R.C., Texas State Gazette (Austin, Texas), 9/29/1849, p. 6, crediting Dolph Briscoe Center for American History. Portal to Texas History (University of North Texas Libraries) .
(3) 11th Legislature - All 33 Senate districts listed in roll call presenting credentials, oath of office administered, 8/6/1866, pp. 2, 4-5. Senate Journal .
(4) 10th Legislature, Regular Session - Roll call of Senators elect, oath of office administered, 11/2/1863, p. 1. Senate Journal .
(5) 5th Legislature - Roll of Senators elected since the last adjournment presented their credentials, and being qualified, took their seats, 11/7/1853, p. 2. Senate Journal .
(6) Constitution of 1866, Article III, §§ 29, 30, retained the apportionment of 1860 for Senatorial districts. Texas Constitutions Digitization Project (Tarlton Law Library, The University of Texas at Austin) 2009.
(7) Entire Senate went up for reelection - Constitution of 1869, Article III, § 39. Texas Constitutions Digitization Project (Tarlton Law Library, The University of Texas at Austin) 2009.
(8) Entire Senate went up for reelection in 1866 - "Thirty-three senators were elected to the Eleventh Legislature," p. 58. The Texas Senate: Volume II, Civil War to the Eve of Reform, 1861-1889 1999.

Biographical Notes and Resources

Resolutions and Journal entries

5th Legislature - Roll of Members, W.G.W. Jowers, [age 44], native state North Carolina, emigrated from Mississippi in 1839, physician, postoffice Palestine, Anderson County. House Journal .
Member roster, 11th Legislature, Regular Session: G.W.G. Jowers, Parkersville, Anderson County, nativity North Carolina, farmer. W.G.W. Jowers on opening day of session, 8/6/1866, p. 1. Senate Journal . August 6, 1866 Roster

Photographs

Photograph. W.G.W. Jowers, By the Austin Photograph Co., Prints and Photographs Collection, [identifier number: di_03923, di_03924], The Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin

Other Resources

Biography, pp. 45-47. "He practiced medicine in Palestine till 1848, when he was sent to the Legislature. For sixteen years thereafter he was kept in public office, as representative or senator." A Centennial History of Anderson County Texas 1936.
Jowers was known to be favored by the Know-Nothing party, "if not actually selected and put forward by that party," during the campaign of 1855, pp. 37-38. A Comprehensive History of Texas, 1685 to 1897 .
Biographical sketch, W.G.W. Jowers, p. 475. Biographical Souvenir of the State of Texas, Containing Biographical Sketches of the Representative Public, and Many Early Settled Families 1889.
Confederate States Army, Captain, Company F, 32nd Texas Cavalry. Military grave marker, Captain W.G.W. Jowers, birth date 1812, death date 6/30/1892, burial in Palestine City Cemetery, Palestine, Anderson County. Includes photos, biographical sketch, and funeral notice. Find a Grave .
JOWERS, WILLIAM GEORGE WASHINGTON (1812-1892). Handbook of Texas Online .
Account of a campaign exchange between Isaac Parker and Dr. J.W. Jowers, pp. 4-10. Historical Sketch of Parker County and Weatherford, Texas 1877.
Mentioned, p. 133. C. Alwyn Barr, "The Making of a Secessionist: The Antebellum Career of Roger Q. Mills," The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 79, Number 2, October 1975, pp. 129-144, crediting Texas State Historical Association. Portal to Texas History (University of North Texas Libraries) .
Included on list of "Texas Know Nothing Leaders with a Summary of Biographical Data Taken from the . . . United States Eighth Census, 1860." The party was active at the state level in Texas in 1855 and 1856. "By 1857 the party had virtually disappeared in Texas." "An Analysis of the Texas Know Nothings," The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 70, Number 3, January 1967, pp. 414, 417, 446, crediting Texas State Historical Association. Portal to Texas History (University of North Texas Libraries) . Census list
Biographical sketch, p. 244, born in 1812. The Texas Senate: Volume I, Republic to Civil War, 1836-1861 1990.
Nominated for Lieutenant Governor by Know-Nothings, 6/11/1855, p. 257. The Texas Senate: Volume I, Republic to Civil War, 1836-1861 1990.
Dr. William George Washington Jowers, Senator in 5th Legislature and running mate on the Know-Nothing ticket in 1855, p. 34. The Texas Senate: Volume II, Civil War to the Eve of Reform, 1861-1889 1999.