​Hamilton Bowser 

   Hamilton Bowser died peacefully at age 87 on January 16, 2016 at his home in Annapolis, Maryland. Born and raised in East Orange, NJ, Hamilton moved to Montclair, NJ after his marriage to his wife Merle Moses and remained in Montclair until he retired to Annapolis, MD in 2007. Hamilton and Merle were married for 55 years at the time of his death.

   Hamilton joined the U.S. Marine Corps in 1945, and entered the Newark College of Engineering (NCE), predecessor of the New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) afterwards where he received both his bachelor’s degree, and later his Masters.

    Hamilton founded Evanbow Construction Company, Inc. in East Orange, NJ. In 1968. Hamilton became involved in minority businesses, eventually becoming President of the National Association of Minority Contractors (NAMC). His work led to the award of the National Small and Minority Business Advocate Medal by President Ronald Reagan.

   Hamilton is survived by his wife Merle, his son Hamilton V. Bowser Jr. (Tony) and his wife Lisa; his daughter Jennifer Gerst; his son-in-law, Andrew Lowenthal; his four grandchildren, Nicholas, Jonathan and Julia Lowenthal and Arielle Gerst; his brother Robert L. Bowser and wife Marilyn and their children, David Bowser, Lisa and Leslie Ward; Sister-in-law Bernice S. Bowser, wife of his late brother Lucius and their children Carmen and Alan; children of late brother Edward Bowser Jr., Kathryn, Cecile and Edward Bowser III; and a host of other relatives and friends. His daughter Rebecca predeceased him in 2009.

    Memorial Service: East Orange, NJ February 20th: A memorial service for Hamilton will be held on Saturday February 20th at 11:00 at the Calvary Baptist Church, 66 S Grove St., East Orange.

   In lieu of flowers the family requests contributions be sent to: Men of Essex, Inc., P.O. Box 1070 East Orange, NJ 07019.​