Jacob Z. Bowman
Jacob Z Bowman represents an ancestor where we begin having many more 'primary documents' to refer to. We suspect the Z in Jacob represents Zent, the maiden name of his mother, but there is no primary documents yet found that can substantiate this claim.
Early Years
Jacob Z was born on 8/18/1828 in Wooster, Wayne County, Ohio. This is referred to in the family bible, as the first record as the bible was began by his wife somewhere after their marriage. If, as I suspect, Jacob's father came to Ohio from Pennsylvania in the late 1820's, Jacob Z could have been born shortly after their arrival in the Ohio area. This could have forebode for a pretty rough childhood as the family began establishing a homestead in the Ohio territory.
Family
Jacob Z was married to Catherine Ault on 10/9/1853 per Ohio Marriage records as well as the family bible entry. Census records have Jacob Z, his wife, 2 children, and his mother in Brighton, Washington, Iowa in 1856. In 1857, Jacob is recorded as establishing the town or Eureka in Washington County Iowa.
During this time, Jacob Z was also very busy filing for land in Iowa. Between 1854 and 1856, he filed for land totaling 320 acres in Linn, Jones and Cedar counties in Iowa. Higher resolutions copies of these land deeds for these filings are available upon request.
Jacob Z Enlisted in the 31st Iowa Volunteers in spring of 1862. Leaving from Marion, Iowa and making a grueling march in to reach , Jacob became sick and was returned to Springfield Missouri and died of disease on Nov. 2, 1862 . A great diary of the history of the 31's Iowa is available for review at archives.org. Pension records and roll of honor index listings also support this. Jacob Z is buried in plot 16,0,926 at Springfield National Cemetery, Springfield, Missouri. This is supported by the this Dept. of Veterans Affairs Burial Ledger as well.
Changes
The death of Jacob Z appeared to be the onset of the second major phase of fatherless times in the our Bowman lineage as well as the apparent ending to the land ownership/farming lifestyle in the family. Because it appears Jacob Z did not leave a will, a 37 page probate file is available which describes the selling of land and inventory of assets which appears to have been a long process. This left his wife Catherine with 4 children between the age of 7 and 0 (a son, Jacob Andrew, being born actually after his father Jacob Z.'s death) husbandless and fatherless moving ahead. His wife remarried a Hiram Protsman approximately 10 years later.
Demographics:
The decade of 1852-1862 appear to have been a rough decade for the Bowmans but perhaps a re-definition as well from land owners/farmers to education/travelers as laid out in here.