Bowdre McDowell was born in October 1923 in Amite County in southwest Mississippi. He grew up on a cotton farm and milked cows twice a day no matter what the weather was. After high school graduation, he picked apples in the state of Washington. He later went to Glendale, California where his sister and her husband resided. Next was employment with Lockheed Aircraft in Burbank [Annotator's Note: Burbank, California] in the blueprint department. He wanted to enlist in the service, but it was not possible for him probably due to an induction freeze at the time. He returned to Mississippi and the farm. In December 1943, he received a notice from the draft board. Responding to the call, McDowell was given the responsibility of handling the paperwork for the passengers on the bus. Given an orientation at Camp Shelby[Annotator's Note: Camp Shelby in Hattiesburg, Mississippi], the new recruit was sent back to McComb [Annotator's Note: McComb, Mississippi] and Liberty [Annotator's Note: Liberty, Mississippi].

In early January [Annotator's Note: January 1944], Bowdre McDowell went to Great Lakes, Illinois [Annotator's Note: Naval Station Great Lakes in Lake County, Illinois] for boot camp. He enjoyed it despite the cold weather. Following training, he returned home for a leave [Annotator's Note: an authorized absence for a short period of time]. Going back to Chicago [Annotator's Note: Chicago, Illinois], he was sent to radio school at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. He was instructed in the use of code including Morse Code [Annotator's Note: a method of telecommunication encoding characters in a system of dots and dashes]. He made good grades. He was sent to Washington, D.C. and Cheltenham, Maryland nearby. He was there for eight weeks. It was very quiet. Guarded by Marines on horseback, it was private with few people. He was among only four men selected to go to AT&T [Annotator's Note: now AT&T Incorporated] in downtown Washington to learn to read the ticker tape. There were NSS people there [Annotator's Note: Naval Communications Station Cheltenham was given the abbreviation NSS]. McDowell was shocked that the activity was right next door, and he did not know it. Following the eight weeks, he was sent to San Francisco [Annotator's Note: San Francisco, California] where he boarded the Sea Fiddler [Annotator's Note: C3 type transport ship] and voyaged to the island of Oahu [Annotator's Note: Oahu, Hawaii]. Transferred then to Wahiawa [Annotator's Note: Wahiawa, Hawaii] which was a desert type place with pineapple fields. One section in the installation was involved with copying Japanese code. Security prevented personnel from visiting unauthorized sections. There were teletype machines where McDowell sent coded messages via ticker tape. He was free to roam around the island to Honolulu [Annotator's Note: Honolulu, Hawaii]. He was close to the Army base at Schofield Barracks [Annotator's Note: Schofield Barracks in Oahu, Hawaii]. Some of his colleagues flew to and from other islands using aircraft based there. McDowell and George Henger [Annotator's Note: phonetic spelling] from Kokomo, Indiana got into trouble when they did not stay at the YMCA [Annotator's Note: Young Men's Christian Association] near Waikiki Beach as they were approved to do. Staying at a hotel instead, they were discovered by the Shore Patrol and taken before the captain for interrogation. The officer was lenient, but the two sailors were restricted to base for eight weeks and not allowed to exit the installation. Living in a Quonset hut [Annotator's Note: prefabricated metal building] in a pineapple field, the men played cards and worked shift work across three shifts. It was like a regular job. McDowell remembers little of the code, but he recollects that HE-HE-HE meant an impending air raid. Joe Rochefort was a crypto analyst who became famous [Annotator's Note: US Navy Captain Joseph John "Joe" Rochefort]. Rochefort was a Mustang [Annotator's Note: a Mustang is a former enlisted man who has worked his way up the ranks to become an officer] based near Pearl Harbor [Annotator's Note: Pearl Harbor, Hawaii]. McDowell did not see him or any of the admirals. A guard stood watch over some of the accesses in McDowell's worksite. After the victory, there was very little code work being done and McDowell expected to be returned home.

Bowdre McDowell went home for three weeks [Annotator's Note: following the end of the war] and then returned to the west coast for assignment to a ship, the USS LSM(R)-505. Those type ships were slightly bigger than the Higgins [Annotator's Note: Landing Craft Vehicle, Personnel or LCVP; also known as the Higgins boat] and cleared the way for larger LSMs [Annotator's Note: Landing Ship, Medium]. In route to Japan for the planned invasion [Annotator's Note: Operation Downfall; proposed Allied plan for the invasion of Japan], McDowell's ship returned to the west coast following the surrender [Annotator's Note: of Japan]. He went from San Diego [Annotator's Note: San Diego, California] to Oregon with little to do but fish aboard the 505. The ship was put in mothballs in the Columbia River near Astoria [Annotator's Note: Astoria, Oregon]. It was later taken back into service and then sold. McDowell had to take a vow not to reveal his intelligence work [Annotator's Note: he had been based with a code breaking unit at Wahiawa, Hawaii]. He has maintained that oath through the years. Following discharge at Swan Island at Portland, Oregon, he was sent to the Naval Air Station at Algiers [Annotator's Note: in Algiers, Louisiana]. He was put in charge of the paperwork for the recruits sent with him in the beginning of his service, he had the papers for the 18 people being discharged with him. It was a few days before Easter 1946. He was discharged the Monday after Easter.

After Easter 1946, Bowdre McDowell returned home and pursued a college education. He graduated with a marketing degree in January 1950. He work for Pet Milk Company in sales. Part of a downsizing, he went to work for an organization called Employers Information Services. Unions hated the company because of its efforts to reduce workman's compensation cases. When work was reduced in the oil industry, McDowell moved to another company maintaining some of the same type records. In 1958, McDowell became a member of the Masonic Order [Annotator's Note: Freemasonry, a fraternal organization] and progressed up the ranks through the aid of a veteran member. He was called unexpectedly by the head of the Knights Templar [Annotator's Note: a fraternal organization named after The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon, also called the Order of Solomon's Temple or the Templars, a Catholic military order 1119 until 1312] and was installed as the Grand Recorder for the Knights Templar for the state of the Louisiana. He better understood how politicians were reelected through that role. As years progressed, McDowell found he did not have the computer knowledge to maintain the position. He found an appropriate successor. McDowell enjoyed the role while he held it across several different office relocations. He regrets he cannot talk more about the secrets he was involved with through the years [Annotator's Note: during World War 2, he had been based with a code breaking unit at Cheltenham, Maryland and Wahiawa, Hawaii].

Bowdre McDowell became a volunteer at the museum [Annotator's Note: The National World War Museum in New Orleans, Louisiana] in July [Annotator's Note: July 2013]. He had been a Charter Member but found he enjoyed the museum's mission. He was photographed on a flatbed one day [Annotator's Note: during The National WWII Museum opening ceremony parade of World War 2 veterans through the streets of New Orleans on 6 June 2000]. Gaston Andre [Annotator's Note: one of the original Museum volunteers] invited him to become a member of the museum volunteers. McDowell wanted to be a greeter because of his limitations with his mind wandering [Annotator's Note: a greeter at The Museum provides initial guidance to visitors upon their entry into the campus]. His niece, Joyce [Annotator's Note: no surname provided] along with Gaston Andre both played a significant role in McDowell becoming a volunteer. He initially worked on Thursday for his schedule flexibility as a bachelor. The people who enter the museum are smart people, but he can help them as they begin their journey. He likes to tell them that there are only two branches in the armed forces, the Navy and everyone else [Annotator's Note: he laughs]. He likes to engage children and it touches him that his story can resonate with them. He appreciates when they study and ask the difficult questions of him. He will stay with the museum as long as he mentally and physically can.

Bowdre McDowell was injured in December 1984 when he was hit by a streetcar. He became a lasting friend with his doctor. His physical condition is beginning to fall off, but he will continue to work [Annotator's Note: as a volunteer at The National WWII Museum in New Orleans, Louisiana]. His associates there are great people. The staff were well selected, and they are the reason for the success of the museum. That Cheltenham [Annotator's Note: intelligence work at Cheltenham, Maryland] deal involved secrets that McDowell will not discuss. His work with the 10th and 14th Naval Districts backs up the fact that he was there. McDowell references a security guard named Brian [Annotator's Note: Brian Salathe of the National WWII Museum] who has read about the work at the intelligence center at Cheltenham and other locations. McDowell has waited too long on some things and advises to never wait too long.