I recently ran across a document dated January 22, 1861 from the Union District, SC Legislative Committee.  The report was a rejection of a petition from the District’s Commissioners of Roads who had requested a share of the official bond of Union District Tax Collector G.H. Fowler.  It was thought that G.H. Fowler had absconded tax monies from Union District.

Who was this G.H. Fowler?  Could it be Gillman H. Fowler, son of Thomas Gillman Fowler and Susannah Hames?  Was Gillman’s middle name Henry?

I found many instances where G.H. Fowler collected taxes from estate settlements.  A few examples are listed below:

I didn’t have to look far.  In 1850, Gillman Fowler lived with his mother’s brother, William B. Hames.  His occupation was respectable: a teacher.  This indicated to me that he could read and write in an age where most could not.  Is it possible that he later used these skills to become a tax collector?

I found Gillman Fowler in 1860 census records in the household with his parents Thomas G. Fowler and Susannah Hames.  His occupation was tax collector.

My next research project regarding Gillman Fowler will be to look through all estate settlements beginning in 1850 to discover when he began collecting taxes, and when his duties formally ended.

Spartan
Spartanburg, South Carolina
24 Sep 1857, Thu  •  Page 2

There is an entry in the family bible stating that Gillman H. Fowler was killed in Springfield, Missouri on August 10, 1861– the exact date of the Civil War Battle of Wilson’s Creek near Springfield.  I have not been able to find any military records for Gillman Fowler, nor any evidence that troops from South Carolina engaged in that battle.  It is possible that he enlisted with a Confederate regiment in Arkansas or Missouri.