I had to see his grave. So, one winter day not so long ago, I made my way to Browns Chapel Baptist Church Cemetery in Pacolet Mills, SC. It’s not a large cemetery and I found the Fowler headstones easily.

I know he is one of mine, but conclusive proof still eludes me. Was he yet another Thomas GILLMAN Fowler and who was his father? (He did have a son named Gillman…) Was he the son of Ellis Fowler (b.1770), or John Fowler the Elder (d. 1818), or Mark Fowler (1785-1862)? These three men are all from the yHaplogroup I-Lineage IV and represent my best guess.

Ellis Fowler (b. 1770) was the son of Henry Ellis Fowler (1746-1808). Ellis and his wife Mary (b. 1780) had many children, but documenting them has been a difficult task. One of the sons was named Ellis Fowler (b. 1810) but I only have speculated on the names of any other sons. This Thomas G. Fowler may have been one. The children and grandchildren of Ellis Fowler (b. 1770) were found in Draytonville and Pacolet — same location as this Thomas G. Fowler and his children and grandchildren.

John Fowler the Elder (d. 1818) was likely a brother of Henry Ellis Fowler. John Fowler the Elder did have a son named Thomas who was named in John’s Last Will and Testament. Thomas G. Fowler is a good “fit” in the timeline to be the son of John Fowler the Elder.

It is also a possibility that Thomas G. Fowler was the son of Little Mark Fowler (1785-1862) who was the oldest son of John Fowler the Elder. Mark Fowler was married to a woman named Nancy and they had many children, — most remain a mystery to me. Mark Fowler married a much younger Mary O’Neal after the death of his first wife Nancy and had even more children. Several of Mark’s children and grandchildren lived in the Draytonville and Pacolet areas.

Am I right? I have no idea. It is possible that this could be a totally different line altogether. DNA testing will be the only way to confirm the lineage of this Fowler line. If direct Fowler male descendant is willing to do this, please message me.

I still have many questions. Were there two wives — Martha Williams and Martha Owens? Or was Martha one woman? There may have been a son, James Fowler, born in 1842. His death certificate lists Martha Williams as his mother. Martha, the wife buried beside Thomas G. Fowler, was born in 1829 and would have been 13 years old in 1842. We all know dates often got mixed up. Is that what is going on here? Or was the James Fowler born in 1842 even the son of Thomas G. Fowler of Pacolet SC? What about the eleven year old James Fowler (b. 1849) in the 1860 census? The James of the 1860 census fits within the family much better than the ten year gap between the birth of 1842 James and the next child in 1852. Like I said, I have many unanswered questions.

In the meantime, the descendants of Thomas G. Fowler as follows:

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