[1] After graduating from Cambridge, he was appointed an assistant master at Marlborough College in 1858, and moved to Harrow School in 1859.
[2] Bowen was the author of the Harrow school song, "Forty Years On",[1] which is still sung today, and to which an extra verse was later added in honour of Winston Churchill.
He played with the Wanderers in the inaugural FA Cup, helping the side reach the final of the competition against the Royal Engineers at The Oval, which the Wanderers won 1–0; they repeated their success in the 1872–73 FA Cup, defeating Oxford University in the final 2–0.
[3][4] Bowen played for England in the first pseudo-international in 1870, against Scotland at The Oval; this match preceded the first official international in 1872.
He was their candidate for Hertford in the 1880 General election, but lost to future Prime Minister Arthur Balfour.