Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

William Owen (1737–1778) was a

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peopl ...

naval officer. Born in

Glan Severn The word Glan meaning derives from Celtic (Noric) glanos meaning "bright, clear", cf. Glanis, Glanum, Glen and English "clean". Glan (Nahe) * Glan, Sarangani, a municipality in Sarangani, Philippines * Glan (Gurk), a river in Carinthia, Austria, t ...

Montgomeryshire Montgomeryshire, also known as ''Maldwyn'' ( cy, Sir Drefaldwyn meaning "the Shire of Baldwin's town"), is one of thirteen historic counties of Wales, historic counties and a former administrative county of Wales. It is named after its county tow ...

, Wales, of a family of gentry, he was youngest son of David Owen of Cefn Hafod, Montgomeryshire. He was a member of the Royal Navy and lost his right arm from a wound suffered during the Seven Years' War off Pondicherry when supporting the British East India Company forces in 1760. Not content with the half pension he was receiving, he served as an impress officer. After the war, Owen contacted a former fellow officer, Lord William Campbell, who had recently been appointed governor of Nova Scotia. Late in 1766, Owen travelled with Campbell to Halifax. The following year, as payment for his work in aid of Campbell, he was awarded a large parcel of land. The grant, which included three of his nephews as grantees, was Passamaquoddy Outer Island in Passamaquoddy Bay. In 1770, Owen renamed the island Campobello Island after Lord Campbell; he also took into account the Italian meaning, "fair field", of the new name. In the 1770s, Owen wrote a volume of 'Narratives' which was subsequently published in 1942 and which covers the creation of Campobello in Canada. In England, Owen spent some time in

Shrewsbury Shrewsbury ( , also ) is a market town, civil parish, and the county town of Shropshire, England, on the River Severn, north-west of London; at the 2021 census, it had a population of 76,782. The town's name can be pronounced as either 'Sh ...

, where he was sworn a freeman of borough on 5 October 1764, and, by then a captain in the navy, served as Mayor in 1775–76, following which he returned to service in India. Owen was killed, accidentally, in Madras, India while carrying dispatches from India to England. Owen left on his death two surviving natural sons via Sarah Haslam (latter named Sarah Bagshaw). His eldest son was

Edward William Campbell Rich Owen Admiral Sir Edward William Campbell Rich Owen GCB GCH (1771 – 8 October 1849) was a Royal Navy officer who went on to be Commander-in-Chief, Mediterranean Fleet. He was the son of Captain William Owen and elder brother of Vice-Admiral Will ...

and his younger son was William Fitzwilliam Owen. The latter became sole owner of Campobello Island in 1835 and settled there.

References

External links

Biography at the Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online

The Journal of Captain William Owen
1737 births 1778 deaths Mayors of places in Shropshire Royal Navy officers Welsh naval officers Accidental deaths in India {{Canada-hist-stub