May Terrell Fowler was born on May 1, 1866, in Uniontown, Alabama, to Theophilus G. Fowler and Mary F. Terrell. Her father was a brick mason and editor who served in the 43^rd Alabama Infantry during the Civil War. May grew up and attended school in Uniontown, and by 1900, she was living as a clerk in a post office. A decade later, she was the local “post mistress,” and by 1920, she was working as a saleswoman at a dry goods store. She never married, and she lived in her parents’ household until they passed away. Her father died in April 1908, and her mother followed in February 1923. By 1940, she owned a house valued at $4,000, and she earned money by renting rooms to at least two families. She died in Selma, Alabama, on May 18, 1949.

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