The Alamance County Sheriff’s Office Honor Guard will honor the memory of slain Deputy Lawrence George Gowens with a wreath laying ceremony on Monday, July 31, 2023 at 2:00 p.m. The ceremony will take place in the cemetery located next to the Historic Providence Christian Church which is located at 819 N. Main St., Graham, N.C.
Deputy Sheriff Lawrence George Gowens
End of Watch Friday, July 31, 1936
Deputy Sheriff Lawrence Gowens was shot and killed while responding to a domestic disturbance two doors away from the jail in Graham, N.C.
Deputy Gowens, who also served as the county jailer, heard a woman’s screams when her husband, Robert Campbell, shot her in the arm. He ran to the home and confronted the suspect, who shot him with a shotgun. Deputy Gowens was taken to Rainey Hospital in Burlington, N.C. where he died 90 minutes later.
Campbell was convicted of Deputy Gowens’ murder and sent to prison. He was later released and has since died.
Deputy Gowens was survived by his wife, two sons, and three daughters.