United States Governor Directory

Daniel Gould Fowle

Daniel Gould Fowle served as Governor of North Carolina.

  • Democratic
  • North Carolina
  • Former
Portrait of Daniel Gould FowleNorth Carolina
Role Governor

Current assignment referenced in the congressional directory.

State North Carolina

Representing constituents across the North Carolina delegation.

Service period 1889-1891

Years of public service formally recorded.

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Biography

DANIEL G. FOWLE, the forty-sixth governor of North Carolina, was born in Washington, North Carolina on March 3, 1831. His education was attained at the William Bingham Academy, and at Princeton University, where he graduated in 1851. He went on to study law, and in 1853 was licensed to practice. During the Civil War, he served as a lieutenant with the Raleigh Rifles, and later became a lieutenant colonel in the Confederate Army. Fowle first entered politics as a member of the North Carolina House of Representatives, a position he held in 1862 and held again from 1864 to 1865. He also served as a Superior Court justice from 1865 to 1867; and was chairman of the North Carolina State Democratic Committee in 1868. Fowle next secured the Democratic gubernatorial nomination, and was elected governor by a popular vote in the 1888 general election. During his tenure, a railroad commission was established; and county land taxes were promoted to fund educational improvements. While still in office, Governor Daniel G. Fowle passed away on April 7, 1891. He was buried in the Oakwood Cemetery in Raleigh, North Carolina.

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