Samuel Fowler (1779–1844)
physician and U.S. Congressman from New Jersey 1779-1844
Samuel Fowler (October 30, 1779 – February 20, 1844) was a medical doctor, state legislator, and member of the United States House of Representatives from northwestern New Jersey. As the owner of zinc and iron mines and an iron works at Franklin, New Jersey, he became a noted mineralogist who discovered several varieties of rare minerals (chiefly various ores of zinc).
Early life and education
Fowler was born in Newburgh, New York, on October 30, 1779. He attended the Montgomery Academy and subsequently graduated from Pennsylvania Medical College.
Career
Fowler began to practice medicine in 1800 in Hamburg, New Jersey, when he was 21 years old. He moved to the present site of Franklin, New Jersey, in 1810. It is generally accepted that Fowler was responsible for naming the town Franklin, although it is uncertain whether he named it after Benjamin Franklin or his son, William Franklin. After zinc ore was found in the area, Fowler made a serious effort to develop it.
Political career
In 1827, Fowler became a member of the New Jersey Legislative Council (precursor to the New Jersey Senate).
He was elected as a Jacksonian Democrat to House of Representatives, serving in the Twenty-third and Twenty-fourth United States Congresses (March 4, 1833 – March 3, 1837).
“Samuel Fowler (1779–1844)” enters the record as physician and U.S. Congressman from New Jersey 1779-1844. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Samuel, Fowler and physician can confirm, complicate or overturn.
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The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 15, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q2218248. VIAF identifies the subject as 76257924. The Library of Congress control number is nr2003010581. 3 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1779, 1844, 1800 and 1810.
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