James Bowen (February 25, 1808 – September 29, 1886) was the president of Erie Railroad who served as a Union Army general during the American Civil War.

He was a close and persistent student of public affairs, and among his intimate associates were Daniel Webster, Gen. James Watson Webb, William H. Seward, Philip Hone, Moses H. Grinnell, Charles A. Peabody (subsequently of national fame as a jurist, who is the only survivor of that notable coterie), and men of similar cast and bent of mind.

Mr. Bowen was elected president of the Board, and had charge during the exciting and riotous days of Mayor Fernando Wood's organized but unsuccessful opposition to the replacing of his police force by the new one.

He greatly improved the standing and efficacy of Bellevue Hospital, by insisting that the best medical skill should be employed there, with the result that to-day a course in the Bellevue Hospital practical schooling in medicine and surgesis considered recommendation sufficient as to the capacity of any beginner in the professional practice of medical science.

[1] General Bowen died September 29, 1886, at Hastings-on-Hudson, New York, where he owned a fine estate, his home being preeminently one of culture and refinement.

On the Eastern Division it had reached a stage so near completion, that it was only a matter of a few weeks when the track would be laid the entire distance between Piermont and Goshen and the railroad put in operation.

Already the fact that, even with the railroad in operation on the Eastern Division, its Eastern terminus would still be nearly twenty-five miles from New York City, which distance was to be overcome by steamboat between the city and Piermont, began to excite much discussion, and the advantage that would accrue to the Company if it might have the terminus at or near New York became apparent to observant people, who gave the matter thought.

Francis Granger remarked in opposing an effort of the company to obtain public aid, does not seem to be warranted in supposing that it is entitled to a confidence in its purposes that it would have if it could show that it would deposit its traffic where it protested it intended to deposit it.The charter of the Company gave it the privilege of constructing its railroad from New York, or from a point near New York.

So the fact that the road was to come no nearer the great center of the country's trade than twenty-five miles grew to be a question of much comment.

To influence feeling in its favor the company laid particular stress on the fact that by this concession a communication by rail between New York and Albany would be greatly hastened.

All of the Present Great Terminal possessions of the Vanderbilt System at Forty-second Street in New York City might have been Ernie's by a Nod of the Head and the Outlay of Less than $90,000.

The Eastern division, after a considerable delay for the arrival of iron, was opened to the public from Piermont to Goshen, in the month of September.

To avoid so heavy a discount, and prevent a further decline by throwing it on the market, a large amount of it was hypothecated as security for temporary loans.

[5] The result was a sacrifice of so large a sum (about $300,000) as suddenly to render the Company unable to pay the quarterly interest due on 1 April 1842.

An effort was made in the Legislature, at the session of 1842, to obtain a release of the State loan and authority to the company to issue bonds; but neither that nor any accommodation in respect to the accruing interest, was agreeable to the politicians at that time.

[5] The liabilities of the company, to the extent of about $600,000, for work and materials West of Goshen, and chiefly on the Susquehanna and Western divisions, were unprovided for; and all operations were suspended, and continued so till 1845.