Margaret Litz Kinnamon Bowles was born July 17, 1827 at Burke's Garden, Tazewell County, Virginia. Today, Burke's Garden sits against the state's border with West Virginia, but the two Virginias were still one when Margaret was born there in the years before the Civil War.

Her parents were of German descent and had been born in western Virginia around the turn of the century when that part of the state was still considered the frontier. Margaret's father, Col. Peter Gose Litz was a large plantation owner and slaveholders. Coming from a distinguished military family, he achieved the rank of colonel in the United States Army, and served in the Mexican War before resigning his post in 1861 when Virginia succeeded from the Union. Two of Margaret's brothers also wore the Confederate uniform.

Col. Litz had married his first cousin Sarah Gose and the couple had 10 children, of which Margaret was the oldest surviving (an older sister had died in infancy).

In 1844, after converting to Mormonism, Margaret married a fellow Mormon, Richard H. Kinnamon. Shortly thereafter, the young couple emigrated to Nauvoo, Illinois where a Mormon city had been established on the banks of the Mississippi River. Two daughters were born at Nauvoo: Sarah Jane (1845) and Julia Ann (1847). Shortly after Julia's birth, Mr. Kinnamon died when a well he was digging collapsed.

The young widow and her two girls returned to Virginia where she lived with her parents. In 1848 Margaret married Edward Augustus Bowles, and at the time of the marriage the couple was given 180 acres by her father, Col. Litz. Here, the couple farmed for many years and raised ten children: Henry Carmac (1849), Margaret Rebecca (1852), Susan Elizabeth (1854), William Archie (1856), Mary Catherina (1859), Robert Glassby (1861), Fannie Emaline (1863), Samuel Vincent (1866), Edward Augustus, Jr. (1869), and Leticia Carnian (1872). All of the children except Margaret Rebecca lived to adulthood.

Margaret and her family weathered the Civil War in Burke's Garden and sometime thereafter they lost the farm that Margaret's father had given them (family lore indicates it may have happened as a result of Mr. Bowles gambling habit). With little way to support their large family, Margaret again looked westward, and in 1882 made up her mind to join the other members of her faith in the Intermountain West. Her husband and all eleven of her children accompanied her, including several grandchildren. The family traveled by train, arriving in the Utah Territory on April 1, 1882.

They made their home in the small village of Lewiston, just a few miles from the Idaho border. Her husband and sons farmed in the area and one of her daughters taught school.

Margaret had spent much of her life longing to go west, and it took two separate attempts (35 years apart) to accomplish this goal. She loved Utah and enjoyed having her large family all around, but sadly her time there was brief. She died April 13, 1886, just four short years after arriving in her new home.

Her husband Edward continued living pleasantly among his Mormon friends and neighbors, even though he never joined the faith himself. All of his children were baptized Mormons and Edward's personal resistance seems but a side note in the family's history. He was happy in Utah and appreciated having the family nearby during his years as a widower. He and Margaret are buried together alongside a number of their descendants in a quiet rural cemetery near Lewiston, Utah.

It should be noted that although Margaret's dreams took her and her posterity across the nation, she maintained her cultural identity as a Southern woman. Even after moving to Utah she was outspoken in her continued Confederate sympathies. Stories, heirlooms, and even recipes that were passed on to later generations reflected the deep pride that Margaret held in her antebellum heritage.

Sources:
-Jarvis, Tyler. (no date). Life sketch of Peter Gose Litz
-Chadwick, Terry (2010). A short history of Margaret Bowles
-Facebook community: "Descendants of Peter Gose Litz"