Thomas Bowles Thomas Bowles carved out a life defined by family, farmland, and steadfast determination. Born on November 5, 1826, in Kentucky amid the rugged terrain of what became Owsley County, Thomas entered the world as the son of William Anderson Bowles, a Virginia-born settler, and Lucy Ann Thomas Alumbaugh. His father had previously been married to Mary Tudor, and the blended household reflected the patchwork families common on the frontier. Thomas grew up among sibli