Role in Washington: As the Clerk of the House, McDowell was responsible for managing the administrative operations of the House of Representatives.

Relationship to the GPO: Because the U.S. Government Publishing Office (GPO) handles all official documentation for the legislative branch, thousands of copies of his required administrative documents—such as the Annual Report of A. McDowell, Clerk of the House of Representatives—were printed, distributed, and archived bearing his name in the late 1890s and early 1900s.