Meet the Authors
Margaret Casterline Bowen
Margaret Casterline Bowen was born in Champaign, Illinois, and then spent her formative years in South Dakota where her father was an Air Force pilot. Growing up in the Black Hills inspired a love of the west, its landscapes, culture, and history. After attending high school in Yorktown, Virginia, she earned an undergraduate degree in Geology from the College of William and Mary where classes taken in statistics landed her a job on Capitol Hill in the late 1970s. Her career as an IT manager spanned twenty-eight years, the majority of that time with the US House of Representatives, then as a consultant to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
In 2010 she retired from the technology career to focus full-time on the fascinating research project that became Jersey Gold. She and her husband, Chip, reside in Jefferson, Maryland while their son, Jim ,makes his home in Seattle.
Gwendolyn Joslin Hiles
Gwendolyn Joslin Hiles was born in Columbus, Ohio, and spent the majority of her youth in nearby Delaware County, just two miles from Lewis Center, a town founded by her great-great-grandfather. Living close to her ancestral roots fostered a love of history and cultural background that was reinforced by a major in American Studies at Bowling Green State University. She began her professional career teaching English and speech but soon transitioned into publishing where she served as editorial manager and art director. Leaving publishing, she continued editorial work in a freelance capacity and added the title, president, of a small commercial printing facility she owned along with husband, Gary.
In 2005 the business was sold creating time for travel and the research that led to a connection with Bowen and, ultimately, to Jersey Gold. The Hiles have two wonderful daughters, two awesome sons-in-law, and a beautiful granddaughter.