32-Year Veteran of the Corps Jack Fowler Has Died
Dr. Jack Fowler of Vicksburg. Mississippi, died suddenly on July 7 at the age of 80. “Papa Jack” grew up in the Redwood Community and in the city of Vicksburg. He attended Bowmar Ave. grade school and Chamberlain Hunt Academy, graduating from Carr Central High School in 1956. His earliest jobs included delivering newspapers, working in the family pecan business, working at Fisher Funeral Home, and driving the bus to Hinds Junior College in Raymond. He attended Hinds for two years and pursued his career as a civil engineer with emphasis in geotechnical engineering earning his Bachelors’ Degree from the University of Mississippi “Ole Miss,” his Masters’ from Mississippi State University, and his Doctorate from Oklahoma State University. He retired from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Waterways Experiment Station, Geotechnical Lab in 1994 after a 32-year career. He continued working in the specialized field of geotextiles with Geotec Associates until his death. His professional career included more than a hundred projects ranging from building the silos for the Titan II Missiles in Arkansas to load testing foundations for the NASA Saturn V Moon Exploration Program. He traveled throughout the world to present at technical conferences. He was a member of a number of professional engineering organizations to include the Society of American Military Engineers (SAME), The World Association for Waterborne Transport Infrastructure (PIANC), the Western Dredging Association (WEDA), the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), and Chi Epsilon (Honorary Engineering Fraternity). Fowler also served one year in the U.S. Naval Reserves and six years in the U.S. Army Reserves. He was also an active member of National Association of Retired and Active Federal Employees (NARFE), Elks Lodge, and former member of the Vicksburg Army Navy Club.
Fowler published many articles and papers during his professional career and contributed to text books and technical papers with colleagues. He held several patents for geotechnical devices. He also loved to tinker with other contraptions like traps and fish feeders. He is remembered by many residents of Warren County for his Fowler Christmas Tree Farm, which he ran for more than 10 years.
Fowler was preceded in death by his parents Abraham Lincoln Fowler, Sr., his mother Ina Lillian Brown Fowler Beesley, and brother Neal Fowler, Sr. He is survived by his wife Sandra Fowler, former wife Medley Fowler, children Joan Fowler of Silver Spring, Maryland, Laura Callaway, Amy Horne (Geoff), and Eric Fowler of Vicksburg, Chad Curtis (Rachel) of Clinton, Candace McCarty of Pascagoula, Mississippi, and Carlin Specks (Michael) of Utica, Mississippi.
