Douglas Bradshaw Fowler - A Photography Hobby

Grandpa Fowler took and developed his own photographs. I always thought of it as just a hobby he had.  However, when I read his life sketch that he wrote it tells of how he first started to develop film.

" In 1912, at age 14 he commenced as an apprentice in Pharmacy. An apprentice was only paid $10 a month. He had to find some way to pay his way through University.  He took on the extra job of Night Operator on the telephone exchange that was in the drug store.  He opened the store at 8 a.m. and got an hour for lunch and dinner and closed the drug store at 8 p.m., and went on the switchboard at 9 p.m. until 7 a.m.  .  He had a cot by the switchboard and could get some sleep between 1 a.m. and about 5 a.m.using a buzzer on the board to wake him up for calls. After he gave up the switchboard, he fixed up a dark room at home and developed and printed the films that were left in the drug store - often working in the dark room until 2 or 3 AM.  In this way and with some help from his  parents he was able to complete his University and graduated with the second class that the University of Alberta graduated.  He was then a Registered Pharmacist at the age of 18."

One of his philosophies of life - "one can accomplish anything one makes up their mind they can accomplish".

Sidetracked by Douglas Bradshaw Fowler

Sidetracked by my Grandpa Fowler

I spent a long time planning which ancestor I would research first.  I chose to do my first family history search about my maternal grandmother, Caroline McMurray Davies. She was a young, girl who grew up in southern Alberta, Canada,circa 1930.  Her family was of Scottish descent, and she married a young man whose family ancestors hailed originally from Wales.

I have enjoyed my memories of my dear grandmother, but as I search, I remember more. Questions come to mind, some I will have to research.  Luckily, I can still ask my mother for some of the answers, and I need to do that while her memories are still accurate.

However, today I got a little sidetracked.  I was moving some journals from one shelf to another and came across a wonderful picture of my paternal grandfather, Douglas Bradshaw Fowler. I knew him as my grandpa, but he was also a family doctor in southern Alberta, Canada.  The untold story is that he went to Pharmacy School at University of Alberta, in Edmonton, Alberta to become a Pharmacist, but after doing that work for a while, he left his wife and young family to go to Ontario to go to medical school and later returned as a Doctor.

I need to do some more research  to get all the details, so I will try to not get too sidetracked, but I need to find out all about it.

Friday Family Story... Birth Certificate

Allan King Fowler  -- gold dust, just a little family history tidbit

So I found out that my dad's birth certificate is wrong!

My father- Allan King Fowler, was born on February 28, 1928.  At least, that is what we always thought.
However, in talking to my Great-Aunt Doris, she tells me that he was actually born on February 29th. Doris Fowler Komm was the youngest sister of Douglas Bradshaw Fowler.

Douglas Bradshaw Fowler was my grandfather, but he was also the local family doctor in southern Alberta. So, when his wife, Louise King Fowler was ready to deliver their baby it was actually born on February 29th in a leap year. He didn't want his son to only have a birthday every 4 years, so he just changed the birth date on the birth certificate.

My Dad: Allan King Fowler

Parents: Douglas Bradshaw Fowler and Louise King Fowler

Born: February 28, 1928

Place: Magrath, Alberta, Canada

What Names Will I find?

• McMurray
• Orr
• Nowlin
• Davies
• Fowler
• King
• Bradshaw
• Stevenson

Off the top of my head, these are the family names that come to mind- however,  with the exception of my grandparents and  their fathers parents I am not sure exactly how some of the names fit.

I know Jabus Nowlin got his nose shot off in an Indian skirmish- my mom told me that when I needed an interesting ancestor story.  However, I am not quite sure how I am related to the Nowlins.  These are some of the things I want to know.