Des, James L. Bowen was born in Cayuga County, NY, 12-14-1816, the son of Hezekiah Bowen, and died 12-28-1897 in Grantham, Ontario. He was a civil engineer in NY in 1850, but by 1881 had moved to Canada.
His tombstone proclaims him "a friend of the Lost Cause", and an obit in the Oswego (NY) Palladium 12-28-97 says he enlisted in Va in 1861 and rose to colonel. I cannot, however, find any source for his being an officer, let alone "colonel."