After the war he began work as a shipfitter in Lorain, Ohio. He learned the trade of shipfitter in Newport News, Virginia. In 1942 Bowden moved to Sausalito, California and took wartime work as a shipfitter. After graduating, he joined the U.S. Navy, serving as a shipfitter for four years. Shipfitter First Class Patrick McGunigal received the Medal of Honor for rescuing the pilot.