Germantown Then and Now: Upton Bowman House

In 1888, the Bowman brothers, Charles, Eldridge and William Upton, opened a steam-powered mill next to the railroad tracks in Germantown. The mill was prosperous and the brothers, originally from Cedar Grove, decided to move to Germantown to be closer to the mill.

William Upton Bowman purchased six acres on the east side of the railroad tracks, and Clara Bowman, wife of Charles, purchased six acres on the west side of the railroad tracks on the main road about a block from the mill. Charles and Upton built houses, as well as a house for their father, Francis Alexander Bowman, on the Clara Bowman property, and in 1902 later gave the easternmost lot to the Methodist church (where the Buddhist Temple now sits). Eldridge built a house on the east side of the railroad tracks near the corner of what is now Bowman Mill Road and Walter Johnson Drive. This house was destroyed soon after it was purchased by the C & P Telephone Company.

The Charles Bowman, Upton Bowman and Francis Bowman Houses are still standing and were all recommended to be included in the Montgomery County Master Plan for Historic Preservation by unanimous vote of the Planning Board and the Historic Preservation Commission. The County Council, however, in 1988, eliminated the Charles and Francis Bowman Houses and included only the Upton Bowman House in the Master Plan. The reason given was that only the one would be needed “to represent the town,” even though each house has distinctive architecture.

The Upton Bowman House, 19219 Liberty Mill Road, was owned in the mid-20th century by the Lamberts. After Mrs. Lambert passed away in the 1990s the house passed through several owners, some of whom tried to restore the house, gutting the interior, installing a heat pump and connecting to county sewer and water, but the housing boom crashed and the house sat dormant for several years until it was purchased in 2010 by Scott and Jean Trefethen.

The Trefethens restored the house to its original appearance, modernizing the kitchen, replacing the floors, and adding 1 ½ bathrooms. They were able to retain much of the original interior trim. On the exterior, the stucco, shutters and other 1950s decorative items were removed. The result is a clean lined classical façade, an asset to any neighborhood. All of the external changes were approved by the Montgomery County Historic Preservation Commission. Interior changes are not under the control of the Commission.

Correction:  The Francis Alexander Bowman House was actually owned by his son, Lafayette Bowman.