Thomas Stowers Update

[waynew]

I see there was a thread on Stowers about four years ago but all the links are dead.  I have some additional information on him, if anyone is interested.  I wrote an article on him in 1987.  I was living in Tennesse where I heard of his claim to be the Sole Survivor of the Custer Battle.  I visited his grave outside Cookeville, and interviewed family members.  The resulting article was published in the Tennessee Conservationist.  It details what I found out about his story and his possible participation in the battle.  That was a long time ago and I'm working from memory right now.  I can dig out some of my research if there's interest.

[benteen]

Jun 28, 2013 10:35:01 GMT -5 waynew said:

I see there was a thread on Stowers about four years ago but all the links are dead.  I have some additional information on him, if anyone is interested.  I wrote an article on him in 1987.  I was living in Tennesse where I heard of his claim to be the Sole Survivor of the Custer Battle.  I visited his grave outside Cookeville, and interviewed family members.  The resulting article was published in the Tennessee Conservationist.  It details what I found out about his story and his possible participation in the battle.  That was a long time ago and I'm working from memory right now.  I can dig out some of my research if there's interest.

waynew,

Welcome aboard. Yes I believe there is always interest in any new material concerning this battle. Please share it with us. Of course we will put it to our intense scrutiny

Be Well
Dan

[waynew]

Thanks, Dan.  Maybe a good starting point would be for me to post my article as an attachment.  I'm presuming there won't be a copyright issue since I wrote it.  I actually have two articles.  I did a short follow up some months later based on information I found in the Walter Campbell collection that might have a bearing on Stowers' story.  I have more material that what's contained in the articles but they would be a good starting point.

It's an interesting story.  I'm pretty sure he was in the battle but his memory was so muddled that he can offer absolutely nothing about the battle itself.  The interesting part is speculating how he arrived at the story that's been passed down in his family.  I address this in the articles.

I'll upload the articles this evening.  I'm working right now and better get back to it.  I thought I had the articles scanned already but I'm not seeing them.  I do have some of my original research scanned.

I'll throw in a few quick tidbits.  The story in his family (again, I'm working just from memory here -- its been a while) was that he got drunk right before the battle.  He was left behind 'with the wagons" which made him the Sole Survivor of the battle.  This story is so mangled that my first reaction was that it was a complete fabrication since he obviously doesn't know anything about the battle.  That seemed to be confirmed when I could find no Thomas Stowers on the 7th Cavalry rolls.  I later found out that he enlisted under James Thomas.  He was present at the first muster after the battle, so he was definitely on the expedition.  Its just possible he was left behind on the Far West but I think that's unlikely.  I address that in the article but can't remember the details of my argument.

He was with Company B and would have been with the pack train.  There's a good chance he helped bury the men in Deep Ravine.  Unfortunately, he apparently couldn't remember any of that in his later years.   

[waynew]

Here are the  articles.  The copy quality isn't good but I think you can read them.

Attachments:

Stowers Article-2.pdf (631.08 KB)

Stowers Article-1.pdf (956.79 KB)

[benteen]

Jun 28, 2013 12:08:19 GMT -5 waynew said:

Thanks, Dan.  Maybe a good starting point would be for me to post my article as an attachment.  I'm presuming there won't be a copyright issue since I wrote it.  I actually have two articles.  I did a short follow up some months later based on information I found in the Walter Campbell collection that might have a bearing on Stowers' story.  I have more material that what's contained in the articles but they would be a good starting point.

It's an interesting story.  I'm pretty sure he was in the battle but his memory was so muddled that he can offer absolutely nothing about the battle itself.  The interesting part is speculating how he arrived at the story that's been passed down in his family.  I address this in the articles.

I'll upload the articles this evening.  I'm working right now and better get back to it.  I thought I had the articles scanned already but I'm not seeing them.  I do have some of my original research scanned.

I'll throw in a few quick tidbits.  The story in his family (again, I'm working just from memory here -- its been a while) was that he got drunk right before the battle.  He was left behind 'with the wagons" which made him the Sole Survivor of the battle.  This story is so mangled that my first reaction was that it was a complete fabrication since he obviously doesn't know anything about the battle.  That seemed to be confirmed when I could find no Thomas Stowers on the 7th Cavalry rolls.  I later found out that he enlisted under James Thomas.  He was present at the first muster after the battle, so he was definitely on the expedition.  Its just possible he was left behind on the Far West but I think that's unlikely.  I address that in the article but can't remember the details of my argument.

He was with Company B and would have been with the pack train.  There's a good chance he helped bury the men in Deep Ravine.  Unfortunately, he apparently couldn't remember any of that in his later years.   

waynew,

We have a forum member Capt Frederic C. Wagner lll who after years of research wrote a book "Participants in the Battle of the Little Big Horn" in it he lists all the soldiers, scouts etc and over 1000 warriors and gives a short sometimes lengthy bio on them. I looked for Pvt. Stowers and sure enough he is listed and just as you say he was aka James Thomas and was in fact assigned to Company B and was with the pack train. So that part of your research certainly checks out, and I am looking forward to the rest of your article and research on this individual.

Be Well
Dan

[benteen]

Jun 28, 2013 12:41:22 GMT -5 waynew said:

Here are the  articles.  The copy quality isn't good but I think you can read them.

waynew,

I read the article and this man could certainly be telling the truth, but with due respect and not to sound rude, what is the significance of it.There were hundreds that survived with Reno/Benteen. I honestly thought that this man said he was a survivor of the Custer fight. He is not claiming that. But it is an interesting article anyway, thanks for sharing it with us.

Be Well
Dan

[waynew]

 Dan,

I thought it was pertinent because his tombstone reads "Sole Survivor of the Gen. Custer Massacre", and his family has passed down that tradition.   As I stated in my second post, he doesn't tell us anything about the battle itself.  I'm sure a lot of people lose interest at that point. 

[mac]

Very well written and readable story Wayne. I enjoyed both the story and your detective work!
Cheers

[Diane Merkel]

In his booklet, I Survived Custer's Last Stand, Mike Nunnally explained why Stowers' story was unbelievable. He claimed to have survived the battle because he was drunk in the back of a wagon. Mike gives him the benefit of the doubt by saying the story may have started as a joke among the soldiers and that the townspeople were the ones who had his tombstone engraved.

[waynew]

Mac,

Thanks.

Diane,

I know his claim, as told, is impossible. That's covered in my article. I haven't seen Mike Nunnally's booklet so I don't know what it's based on (I've been out of the LBH loop for a while). I interviewed Stowers family members who still live close to the cemetery. I don't believe I looked into the history of the tombstone itself but I'd have to check my notes to be sure. What makes the story interesting for me is trying to figure out how the story got so confused. Does Mike have some basis for claiming it started as a joke? What would the joke be? I don't get that angle. Stowers was not left behind as an individual but as part of a group (Company B guarding the pack train)so what basis would there be for creating a joke directed at him?

I gave my speculations about it in the article.

[waynew]

I'll upload more of my research just to have it archived online in case someone else is interested.

[waynew]

This story has some puzzlers. How did his story get so big in that area when he admits in his own story that he wasn't in the battle at all? How can you be a sole survivor of a battle you weren't in?

Thomas Stowers was at the Little Big Horn, fought with Reno and Benteen, and probably helped bury Custer's men. Why wouldn't you tell that truthful story instead of claiming you missed the battle because you were drunk? Isn't it more heroic to be in the battle than miss the battle?

My best guesses are some combination of:

1) His memory failed in his later years possibly to the point of dementia

2) He got tired of explaining to people how he could have been in the 7th Cavalry yet survived the LBH. Everyone knows all of Custer's men were killed so if you
were one of Custer's men and are still alive, you must be the sole survivor. Maybe he finally said "OK, I'll go with that." (ha)

3) The story was changed in the re-telling by his family.

[montrose]

We have been discussing strategy and tactics as an art and a science. The same is true of soldier's tales.

One of the funniest stories I ever heard was at a retirement party at the Green Beret Club at Fort Bragg. It was a classic tale of an overseas mission that went sideways and the hapless Captain in charge. It wasn't til late in the story that I realized that that was my team and I was the clueless Captain. The odd thing was, I had never seen this guy in my life.

So I checked him out. He had joined the Army and SF years after this incident. He had served in the same company, in the A team directly across the hall from mine. He must have picked up the story from my guys who were still there.

I have to admit, his version is far more funnier than my version.

There is an art to story telling. A lot of it is on inside jokes. Stowers tale sounds like it was designed to tweak outsiders.

[benteen]

Jun 28, 2013 12:08:19 GMT -5 waynew said:

I'll throw in a few quick tidbits.  The story in his family (again, I'm working just from memory here -- its been a while) was that he got drunk right before the battle.  He was left behind 'with the wagons" which made him the Sole Survivor of the battle. 

waynew.....I wasn't aware that Custer had any wagons for this man to get drunk in. I always believed that he just took pack mules. The wagons and sabers were left behind at PRD.

Be Well
Dan

[waynew]

Dan.

The key words: "The story in his family..."

That's correct.  They didn't have wagons.  I discuss it in the article.

(edited to sound less like a jerk)