Mary Frances (Bowen) Ward (abt. 1830 - 1881)

Born about 1830 in District of Columbia, United States

Died 28 May 1881 at about age 51 in Washington, District of Columbia, United States

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Biography

Mary (Bowen) Ward is a part of US Black heritage.

Mary was born about 1830. She was the daughter of Anthony Bowen.

Mary married Robert Ward in 1861. Mary and Robert had one child, Martha Josephine (Ward) Gant (abt.1862-1943). The family lived in SW Washington, D.C.

She passed away in 1881. Mary was buried at Columbian Harmony Cemetery, Washington, D.C., her remains have been removed to Harmony Memorial Park Cemetery, Hyattsville, Maryland.[1]

Research Notes

• Mary's family information is confirmed through her father's will and her own will. Images of her death notice are also available on Ancestry.com.

• Mary came from a family of Free People of Color and she has a marriage record from 1861 which suggests that she was also Free, but 1850 and 1860 U.S. Census records have not been located for Mary.

• Mary's mother is not certain. Her father's marriage record with Mary Collins is from 1839. This suggests that Mary and her sisters Josephine and Henrietta possibly had a different mother from the other children in the family.

• Mary inherited property from her father in 1871 and willed that property to her husband and daughter in 1881.^[1][2]

Sources

1. ↑ "Washington, D.C., U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1737-1952," Ancestry.com, online resource with images accessed 10 Sep 2023, Mary F Ward, Relationship: Daughter, Item Description: Wills, Boxes 0041 Hodge, William H - 0045 Scott, George W, 1869-1871; Probate Records (District of Columbia), 1801-1930; Author: District of Columbia. Register of Wills, Washington, D.C., District and Probate Courts., Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015, Lehi, UT, USA
2. ↑ "Washington, D.C., U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1737-1952," Ancestry.com, online resource with images accessed 10 Sep 2023, Mary Frances Ward, Residence Place: Washington, D.C., Will Date: 21 May 1881 (corrected from transcript), Probate Date: 13 Nov 1891 (corrected from transcript), Probate Place: District of Columbia, Washington, D.C., USA, Inferred Death Date: 1881, Inferred Death Place: Washington, D.C., USA, Spouse: Robert Ward, Child: Martha Josephine Ward, Item Description: Wills, Boxes 0127 Norment, Samuel - 0133 Lynch, John, 1891-1892; Probate Records (District of Columbia), 1801-1930; Author: District of Columbia. Register of Wills; Probate Place: District of Columbia, Washington, D.C., Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015, Lehi, UT, USA

• "District of Columbia Marriages, 1811-1950", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XLDT-8L4 : Fri Aug 18 14:47:38 UTC 2023), Entry for Robert Ward and Mary F Bowen, 25 Apr 1861.

• Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/135869227/mary-frances-ward: accessed 10 September 2023), memorial page for Mary Frances Bowen Ward (1830–28 May 1881), Find a Grave Memorial ID 135869227, citing National Harmony Memorial Park Cemetery, Hyattsville, Prince George's County, Maryland, USA; Maintained by Emile and Charlotte (contributor 47676085).Find A Grave: Memorial #135869227

• "United States Census, 1870", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MN4S-75F : Tue Aug 22 00:54:22 UTC 2023), Entry for Robt Ward and Mary F Ward, 1870.

• "United States Census, 1880", database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M6CC-8VS : Thu Aug 03 01:31:51 UTC 2023), Entry for Robert Ward and Mary F. Ward, 1880.