[1] He was raised in Dennis, Massachusetts and graduated from Yarmouth High School and the General Motors Institute.

[3] McDowell began his political career in 1965 when he was elected to the Dennis planning board.

[1] On April 28, 1978, Republican gubernatorial candidate Edward F. King chose McDowell to be his running mate.

[4] McDowell was chosen by King largely because he opposed a clause in an ethics bill supported by King's primary opponent, Francis W. Hatch Jr., that would require politicians to disclose all clients they had done more than $1000 worth of business with.

[6] McDowell was challenged in the Republican primary by William I. Cowin, who ran as Hatch's running mate.