William Frederick Stowers (25 September 1887 – 15 May 1971) was a Western Samoan politician. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly from 1948 to 1951.

Biography

Stowers was born in Lano on Savaii in September 1887, the son of Eugene James Simi Stowers and Mary Tereisea Fa'aletea Pa'u.William Frederick Stowers
Auckland War Memorial He was educated at the Marist Brothers School in

Apia Apia () is the Capital (political), capital and largest city of Samoa. It is located on the central north coast of Upolu, Samoa's second-largest island. Apia falls within the political district (''itūmālō'') of Tuamasaga. The Apia Urban A ...

, and later moved to

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

, where he worked for John Burns & Co. He signed up for the

New Zealand Expeditionary Force The New Zealand Expeditionary Force (NZEF) was the title of the military forces sent from New Zealand to fight alongside other British Empire and Dominion troops during World War I (1914–1918) and World War II (1939–1945). Ultimately, the NZE ...

in March 1916, and after three months training with the Mounted Rifles, departed for Europe in June. He served in France alongside two of his brothers and was involved in the

Battle of the Somme The Battle of the Somme (; ), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and the French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place between 1 July and 18 Nove ...

and the Battle of Messines,Samoa-born Soldier Returns to His Home
''Samoanische Zeitung'', 22 June 1918 during which he was shot in the neck. He subsequently recovered in a hospital in England.Private William Stowers Wounded
''Samoanische Zeitung'', 8 September 1917 After a short trip to see family in Samoa in 1918,Local and General News
''Samoanische Zeitung'', 15 June 1918 he returned to New Zealand. However, he later came back to Samoa and became involved in horse racing during the 1920s. Following the introduction of the Legislative Assembly in 1948, he contested the European seats in the first elections as a member of the

United Citizens Party The United Citizens Party (UCP) is an American political party first organized in 1969 in the U.S. state of South Carolina by John Roy Harper II and others, in response to the state Democratic Party's opposition to nominating black candidates. T ...

, and was elected in fifth place. His wife Bella died in April 1951, and he did not contest the

elections An election is a formal group decision-making process whereby a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy has operated ...

shortly afterwards. He died in

Tokoroa Tokoroa is the fourth-largest town in the Waikato region of the North Island of New Zealand and largest settlement in the South Waikato District. Located 30 km southwest of Rotorua and 20 km south of Putāruru, close to the foot of th ...

in New Zealand in 1971.William F. Stowers – A Samoan in the Great War
The Museum of Samoa

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stowers, Willie 1887 births People from Savai'i Samoan emigrants to New Zealand New Zealand Military Forces personnel of World War I Members of the Legislative Assembly of Samoa 1971 deaths