The name, Bowser, originates from the name, Buus. Buus is a tiny village east of Liestal in Canton Basel Switzerland.

According to Professor Werner Hug who wrote "Familien chronit Buser" this is an ancient village going back to Roman times, like the 12-1300's and is the source of the surname "Buser". The earliest "Busers" were known as "von Bus", i.e. "Johannes von Bus", which over time became shortened to "Johannes Buser".

Since "Buser" originated as a "place name", there is no one common ancestor who founded the Buser family in Switzerland, but many different, unrelated men who became known as "Buser" simply because at one time or another they were from the village of Bus and had moved to another village. They were refered to as"Buser" to distinguish them from another (for instance) "Johannes" who was already residing in the new community to which they moved .

Many of these Busers left Switzerland over the centuries and scattered over the world and the surname took several different forms in different countries.

For instance in the U.S. some families retained the original spelling, "Buser". Others became known as "Booser and Boozer". Some stopped off in Germany and in the German speaking areas of France and became known as "Baus(s)er, for instance the Mathias Bausser clan who emigrated to America in 1733.

According to Dr. Herbert Bauser of Stuttgart, the Swiss surname "Buser" and the German "Bauser" must be considered synonymous. The two are distinguished from one another only in that one appears to be "high" German, while the other is considered "low" German.

So it appears the Bausers in Germany likely descended from the Busers in Switzerland. It also seems quite likely, (to me at least) that German Bausers and Swiss Busers settled in England and the English form became Bowser, which carried over to America, for some families; certainly not all. In America, all of the various forms mentioned above survive.

Wolf Seelentag mentioned in the Swiss Mailing List that "Bauser is also an old Swiss name- with only a single citizenship (Buix in Bern) prior to 1800". Wolf also mentions Busser being an old Swiss name, "but they immigrated from Germany early this century". (to Switzerland) One has to wonder concerning the Swiss Bauser whether he or his ancestor may have been a Swiss Buser who emigrated to Germany and then returned to to Switzerland and retained the "Bauser" spelling. Not having been aware of any Swiss Bausers prior to Wolf's message, this is just a guess. At any rate the Busers of Switzerland are the most ancient of these families.

Some of the better documented Buser families who came to America in the 1700's include:

Henry Buser from the village of Ziefen, Canton Basel who came to America in 1749- His descendants retained the Buser spelling for the most part I think, though possibly a branch or two went by Boozer and Booser. They settled in eastern Pennsylvania and they're children were baptized in the Moravian Church.

The Ulrich Buser family who came to America in 1738 and settled in North Carolina. Some went south I think to Alabama.; they for the most part used the "Boozer" spelling. Ulrich was from the village of Laufelfingen, Canton Basel.

Page 47 of the 1922 "Bowser Family History" refers to the will of a John Bowser who died in Washington County Md. in 1792. It can be proven beyond a doubt that he was originally one Johannes Buser who was baptized in the village of Tenniken in Canton Basel in 1714 and emigrated to America in 1749. In the recording of his will he was refered to as "John Bousler" twice, John Bausser 5 times and most often "John Boozer" in the many documents related to his will.

It can also be proven that he had a 3rd cousin, once removed named Matthys Buser who was baptized in the village of Rümlingen in 1670 (also Canton Basel); the same year the ships passenger lists show the date of birth of Mathias Baussser to have been. Circumstantial to be sure but still rather compelling evidence that the two men were one and the same.)

This Matthys Buser is likely to have been the Mathias "Bausser", our ancestor who emigrated to America through Philadelphia in 1733. His son Mathias Jr. was refered to in York County, Pa. Court records as "Mathias Booser". The record consists of a list of men who were Constables in York County, Penn. and Mathias Booser appears as Constable of Paradise Twp. between 1752-'56. Also, in the ship's passenger lists several people thought to have been members of Mathias Bausser's family are listed as "Bewser"; again evidence indicating that the Bowser immigrants originated as "Buser" in Switzerland.

There are approximately 110 Busers listed in Faust and Brumbaughs "Lists of Swiss Emigants to the American Col onies". Possibly that many more came who were not documented in the 1700's; and more followed later.

So the Bowser (Buser) emigration story is much more complex than the picture presented in the 1922 "Bowser Family History"; and a lack of properly kept records prior to 1800 in America makes it difficult if not impossible to trace these people back to a provable immigrant ancestor. For instance, there is a John Bowser introduced on pages 254 and 255 of "The Bowser Family History" and yet another John on page 263. The short of it is this:"The Bowser Family History" is not a reliable source for documenting your ancestors prior to 1800.