About
Francis James Dowdell, the son of Frank and Elizabeth Dowdell, was born on August 7, 1896, in Bennington, Vermont. By 1907, he had moved with his family to Schenectady. Francis received training in the plumbing trade and made connections with several of Schenectady's top plumbing companies.
On August 15, 1918, Francis was drafted into the United States Army and began his training at Spartansburg, South Carolina. In September 1918, Francis departed on the Aeolus for overseas duty. At the time of his passing, he was a Private serving in the Motor Corps. Francis died after falling off a moving truck on April 5, 1919. He had only recently arrived in France when he was assigned to the Motor Supply Corps, and he was serving there when the accident occurred. Francis is buried in the Park Lawn Cemetery, Bennington, Vermont.
Sources: The Schenectady Gazette, Find A Grave, Ancestry