Eugene Adelbert Mower

Eugene Adelbert Mower at age 34

Eugene Adelbert Mower, my great grand-uncle, has been sort of an enigma.  He’s the one child of George and Lizzie (Eastman) Mower that left the hometown of Bangor, Maine, and headed west to find his fortunes.  He surely could have relocated to Minnesota where a few aunts and uncles had migrated to, but he passed that by and resettled in California.  I’m not sure what the pull was, but it may just have been a spirit of adventure.

Eugene was born on 10 Jun 1862, the second of 7 children.  His older brother, Charles Martin Mower, lived only 3 months, so Eugene fulfilled the role of the eldest child.  He grew up on the family farm on the Pushaw Road in Bangor, Maine, the homestead established by his grandfather, Martin.  He attended public schools in Bangor and we find him in the 1880 census working as a driver for a team at the age of 17.   He then attended the Eastern State Normal School in Castine, Maine, where he graduated in 1882.

After graduating, Eugene’s employment bounces around a little bit while he was apparently trying to figure out life.  He taught school for a year, but then returned home to the farm where he labored for a couple years.  It was in 1885 when Eugene felt the pull of the west and moved to San Francisco.  His first job there was working in a wholesale produce commission house, William H. Rouse and Company.  In 1889, he accepted a new position as Superintendent of the California Fruit and Wine Land Company, located in Reedley, California.  After serving in that capacity for a few years, he tried his luck at mining in Tuolumne County. 

Classified Ad - The Herald (Los Angeles), 17 Jan 1895, p. 8.

He then finally settled in Fresno, where on 10 Jan 1899, County Auditor Horace E. Barnum appointed Eugene as his deputy.  He worked as Deputy County Auditor for the remainder of his career life, with a couple leaves for serving as County Expert for a couple years and a short stint as Deputy County Treasurer.   

While living in Fresno, Eugene boarded in the Barnum home.

Horace Barnum passed away in 1914.  His son, Charles Barnum, succeeded him in the position of County Auditor and Eugene continued working in the office as Chief Deputy.  Eugene obviously had developed a close relationship with the Barnum family and on 11 Nov 1915 married his late boss’s widow, Mary E. (Dearing) Barnum.  They had no children.

Eugene died on 10 Sep 1927 at the age of 65.  The cause of death according to his death certificate is arteriosclerosis of coronary arteries.  He is buried in an unmarked grave in Mountain View Cemetery in Fresno, California.  His widow passed away on 15 May 1954 and is buried with her first husband in the same cemetery.

Line of descent: 1-Richard Mower, 2-Samuel Mower, 3-Samuel Mower, 4-Jonathan Mower, 5-John Mower, 6-Martin Mower, 7-George Mower

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Sources: 

• Ancestry.com. Find-A-Grave. Database with digital images. www.findagrave.com : 2008.
• California. Fresno. Fresno Morning Republican. 11 January 1899.
• California. San Francisco. San Francisco Chronicle. 16 November 1915.  
• County of Fresno. Bureau of Vital Statistics. California State Board of Health. Death certificate.
• United States. California. Fresno County. 1900 U.S. census, population schedule. Digital images. Ancestry.com. www.ancestry.com : 2017.
• United States. California. Fresno County. 1910 U.S. census, population schedule. Digital images. Ancestry.com. www.ancestry.com : 2017.
• United States. Maine. Penobscot County. 1870 U.S. Census, population schedule. Digital images. Ancestry.com. www.ancestry.com : 2017.
• United States. Penobscot County. 1880 U.S. Census, population schedule. Digital images. Ancestry.com. www.ancestry.com : 2017.
• Vandor, Paul E.. History of Fresno County, California: with Biographical Sketches of the leading men and women of the County who have been identified with its growth and development from the early days to the present. Los Angeles, California: Historic Record Company, 1919. Digital images. Google Books. books.google.com : 2017.