We were four weeks on the road going to Wisconsin. We landed in Sauk City Nov. 6 and stayed there through the winter.

In the spring we moved up on the prairie on a farmed owned by Calvin Danforth and lived there five years.

Father saved some money and in order to keep it safely had placed it in the Baraboo bank.  That failed and away went his savings.

In the meantime, he had invested in land in Richland county and we moved there in 1861.

Allison helped move to the new home and then went back to Sauk county, where he and Jim enlisted in the Sauk County Riflemen, sixth regiment Wisconsin volunteers, and they went to fight for their country.

Later on Dick enlisted in the Eleventh regiment, Wisconsin Volunteers, and as soon as Burgess was old enough he enlisted in the Seventeenth regiment.

That left us at home with very little help, with a new wooded country farm to clear up and our father getting up in years, but we managed to live through those trying days.

Allison was wounded several times and allowed to come home on furlough. James contracted rheumatism and became so ill that he was discharged. He came to his home on Sauk Prairie, where he had married Isabelle Jameson.

After his condition improved he re-enlisted in the 17^th regiment so he and his brother, Burgess, were together.

Allison recovered from his wound and was still in service around Washington and on to Richmond. He was killed in the battle of Hatch's (Hatcher's) Run near Richmond so he is buried in Virginia soil.

Richard is buried in North Dakota;

James in Sauk county, Wisconsin;

Mary in Royalton, Minn;

John W., with father and mother in Richland Center, Wis.

We are rather a mixed race as father was of Scotch-English decent, and Mother was Pennsylvania Dutch and of long lineage. My grandfather on my mothers side lived to be 100 years of age, or would have been 100 years old on the day he was buried.

(According to our Allison cousins, whom we are pleased to meet online as of this writing, our esteemed grandfather above would be James Allison of Prince George County, MD, born 30 Mar 1747, died 27 March 1847, married Nancy ____.  Son of James would be Jonathan Jackson Allison, married Sarah Harmon, the parents of our Sarah Allison Fowler.)

My mother and father lived to be about 80 years of age. I, Sarah, am the only one left and am still here at the age of 82 years on Nov. 8, 1930.

John Fowler was born July 25, 1812; died May 13, 1893.

Sarah Allison Fowler was born June 15, 1816; died Feb. 12, 1897. They were married Sept. 3, 1835.

Richard was born Nov. 1, 1836; died Feb. 27, 1892.

Allison Dec 12, 1838; killed during Civil War on Feb. 5, 1864. (1865?)

Note, 2003 : Rufus Dawes book, "A Full Blown Yankee of the Iron Brigade"  notes that Allison was wounded three times; South Mountain, Gettysburg and Weldon Rd, and that he was killed at the Battle of Hatcher's Run, February 6, 1865.  He was commended by Dawes on Page 313.   See link to Allison on left.

James born Nov. 9, 1840; died March 30, 1895.

Note, 2005: From Interment.net

James is buried in the Pioneer Cemetery (Kern's Corners Cemetery)
Sumpter Township, Sauk County, Wisconsin, inside Badger Army Ammunitions Plant (Badger Ordnance Works) and currently unaccessible to the public (Apr, 2003)

James and Isabell died within 2 days of each other.

Fowler, Isabel C. (Jameson), d. Apr 1, 1895, 52y, s/w James B. Fowler
Fowler, James B., d. Mar 30, 1895, 54y, s/w Isabel C. Fowler

Mary born Aug 28, 1842; died Jan. 12, 1923.

Burgess born Nov 30, 1844; died July 30, 1914.

Sarah born Nov 8, 1848; still living. (as of 1931)

John W., Oct. 31, 1850; died June 24, 1890.

Richard married Mary Mick. They had two children, Clarence and Irwin.

Allison did not marry.

James married Isabelle Jameson. They had two children, Billy, who died when small, and Elizabeth, who married Henry Miesner. They live in California.

Mary Fowler married Tyler Ayres. They had seven children, Flora, Charlie, Herb, Bird, John, Freddie and Frankie (twins).

The twins died when infants. Flora married Frank Renick. To them were born Winnie, Charlie, Rilla, and Lucy, all of whom are living and married. One other child, Ernest died when a baby.

Sarah married Albert E. Joslin in 1868. They had six children: Minnie Icyphene, Flora Iona, Almariah Edith, John Carlos, Mary Charlotte, and Verne Ellsworth.

Alma died at the age of 6 years. Lottie died of peritonitis. The others are all living and married. 

Minnie has eight children: Glen, Georgia, and Floy Vrooman from her first marriage (to George Vrooman who took his own life after killing his daughter Floy) and Theo, Jo, Emmet, Elden, and Donald from her second marriage, which was to Milo Deeter.

Elden died when small. They live in Spokane, Wash. Glenn Vrooman is a mail clerk on a run from Seattle to Spokane and lives in Seattle.  (For a transcription of Carlos Joslin Family History, see this link. THE CARLOS JOSLIN PAMPHLET )

John W. Fowler married Eva Renick (Evaline Margaret Renick.)

Here the Fowler & Joslin connection is again strong, for Eva was the niece of Albert Joslin, who married Sarah Fowler.  Two Fowler children married Joslins.  The connection in detail is:

Their children were:  Lucy Halibut, who married Lattimore Renick;  William Henry, who married Margaret Gillam;  Wallace James, who married Emmaline Thompson;  Adaline, who married Octavius Carle;  Albert Ernest, who married Sarah S. Fowler, (the writer of the 1931 Fowler & Joslin histories.)

Lucy's children were:  Mary Louisa, who married I. N. Bingman;  William Henry Clay, who did not marry;  Emmaline Melissa, who married Frank Bingman;  Evaline Margaret, who married John W. Fowler.

John and Eva had two children, David and Bertha, and to David is given credit for the dates and the greater part of this history.

John W. Fowler and Eva Renick Fowler are buried with John and Sarah at the Fowler monument in Richland Centre, Wisconsin.  It must have been David and Bertha who so lovingly created the Fowler stone in honor of their parents and grandparents. 

(The following is an update to the original document, May 2003.)

Burgess Fowler (our grandpa) was married twice, the first time to Mary Jane Norman on Dec. 7, 1870 in Juneau County, Wisconsin.  Her parents were George and Mary Norman.  We hope to find out more about her.

His second marriage was to Mary Bulin of Greenwood in Vernon County, Wisconsin.  Her parents, Mary and Joseph Bulin were from "Bohemia" or near Prague, Czechoslovakia.  Mary was born Aug 21, 1869 and was 25 years younger than Burgess.  She died on Feb. 17, 1959 and is buried with Burgess in New Lisbon, Wisconsin. They had 5 children:

Charles Alfred, born July 24, 1890, died December 28, 1975 in San Francisco.   He married Myrna Ritchart on June 21, 1922 in New Lisbon, WI.  

Myrna was born Nov. 18, 1892 and died July 6, 1984, buried in New Lisbon, WI.    Uncle Charlie is buried in Golden Gate National Cemetery in San Bruno, CA.  Charlie and Myrna adopted a son, Billy, who was reunited with his birth father and left to live with him.  Charlie and Myrna lived apart; she in New Lisbon and Charlie for 30 years in California.  I wonder why.  We never had the chance to meet.

Wesley G. born Feb. 18, 1892, married Ferne Knutson, Jan 1, 1924.   They had a son, Robert, who married Ellen___.  Robert and Ellen were killed in a hit and run accident in St. Petersburg, FLA.  They had 2 children, Mary Ellen and James.

Burgess E. (Elgin) born June 21, 1889, married Agnes Hintz, June 4, 1923.   We believe their kin are in Washington State.

Bess Mae, the only daughter of Burgess, was born May 16, 1894, married John C. Grable, June 4, 1920.  They lived in San Francisco.  Aunt Bess was artistic. We have some of her paintings.  Uncle Charlie lived with her until he died.  She died Sept. 22, 1987 in San Francisco.  Mom tried to find her for years, but we never got to meet her.

Jesse ("Jess") McKinley Fowler born June 29, 1896, Hillsboro, Wisconsin, died Jan 30, 1969, Princeton, IL.  

Married Mabel Rikke Robertson, New Lisbon, WI, in July, 1926, divorced July 19, 1943.  They had one daughter, Mary Fowler, born Jan 10, 1933 (who has 2 daughters, 1 son and 4 grandchildren as of this writing in 2003.)

Jesse married again to Ruth Phillips and had 2 children, John P. and Nancy.  Grandpa Jesse is buried in Rock Island County National Cemetery, IL.