Bowen's civic involvement extended to secular organizations throughout the city of Chicago, and to leadership positions at both state and national levels.
Hull House In 1894 Bowen first became involved in Hull House after being asked by
Jane Addams to lead the settlement house's Women's Club. She soon became a Hull House trustee and treasurer, holding the latter position for 53 years. She was a major donor and the primary fundraiser for the organization. Bowen continued her association with Hull House for the remainder of her professional life; after Jane Addams died in 1935, Bowen was Hull House board president for nine years. When the Juvenile Court Committee was reorganized in 1907 into the
Juvenile Protective Association, Bowen became its first president. Through this position, which she held for 35 years, Bowen authored numerous studies, including a 1913 report called "The Colored People of Chicago," in which she detailed "racial prejudice and discrimination in education, employment, housing, law enforcement, and entertainment."
Woman's suffrage and women's causes Bowen was a leader in the
women's suffrage movement in Illinois, serving as president of the Chicago Equal Suffrage Association, vice president of the Illinois Suffrage Association, After Theodore Roosevelt endorsed women's suffrage in his 1912 independent bid for president, Bowen campaigned for him. arriving dramatically just after a speaker had said that women did not want the vote. Along with other upper-class women in leadership positions in the Illinois suffrage movement, Bowen's role as leader and spokesperson helped give the movement legitimacy and was an important factor in the success of Illinois suffrage in 1913. After women got the vote, Bowen worked to register women voters and encourage women's participation through voting and running for office. She herself almost ran for the Cook County Board and for mayor of Chicago.
Additional civic involvement Bowen's numerous additional civic roles included the presidency of the
Chicago Woman's Club, and presidency of the
Woman's City Club of Chicago from 1914−1924. "Beginning with her presidency, the Woman's City Club's views on public policy were sought out by both city of Chicago and Cook County officials." After
World War II, already in retirement, she continued her activism, which had remained largely unchanged despite major social and political disruption. In fact, the post-war period saw rising affluence, rapid growth of suburban living, among other achievements. == Honors and awards ==