Vice Admiral William Fitzwilliam Owen (17 September 1774 – 3 November 1857), was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

naval officer and explorer. He is best known for his exploration of the west and east

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

n coasts, discovery of the Seaflower Channel off the coast of

Sumatra Sumatra is one of the Sunda Islands of western Indonesia. It is the largest island that is fully within Indonesian territory, as well as the sixth-largest island in the world at 473,481 km2 (182,812 mi.2), not including adjacent i ...

and for surveying the

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Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lakes ...

. The illegitimate son of Captain William Owen he was orphaned at the age of four, however, his father's friend Rear-Admiral

Sir Thomas Rich Sir Thomas Rich, 1st Baronet (c. 1601 – 15 October 1667) was an English merchant and politician who sat in House of Commons in 1660. He established Sir Thomas Rich's School, a grammar school.East Indies The East Indies (or simply the Indies), is a term used in historical narratives of the Age of Discovery. The Indies refers to various lands in the East or the Eastern hemisphere, particularly the islands and mainlands found in and around t ...

. He was commissioned as a lieutenant in 1797. In 1801 he took command of the fireship . In late 1801 the hired armed cutter ''King George'', under the command of a Mr. Yawkins, served under

Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...

at his failed attack on Boulogne. On 25 August Nelson came aboard ''King George'' to conduct a reconnaissance of the French fleet. In October Nelson gave Owen command over the ''King George'' as well, with secret instructions to launch a burning ''Nancy'' at the French fleet. The fire attack did not occur and ''Nancy'' was sold in December. After the resumption of war with France in 1803, Owen was given command of the 16-gun brig , which sailed to the East Indies. There he served under Rear-Admiral Sir

Edward Pellew Admiral Edward Pellew, 1st Viscount Exmouth, GCB (19 April 1757 – 23 January 1833) was a British naval officer. He fought during the American War of Independence, the French Revolutionary Wars, and the Napoleonic Wars. His younger brother ...

, Commander-in-Chief East Indies. He explored the

Maldive Islands Maldives (, ; dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖެ, translit=Dhivehi Raajje, ), officially the Republic of Maldives ( dv, ދިވެހިރާއްޖޭގެ ޖުމްހޫރިއްޔާ, translit=Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa, label=none, ), is an archipelag ...

in 1806, and in the same year discovered the Seaflower Channel, between the islands of

Siberut Siberut is the largest and northernmost of the Mentawai Islands, located 150 kilometres west of Sumatra in the Indian Ocean. It covers an area of 3,838.25 km2 including smaller offshore islands, and had a population of 35,091 at the 2010 Cens ...

and

Sipora Sipora (Indonesian: ''Sipora'' or sometimes spelled ''Sipura'') located off Sumatra in the West Sumatra Province of Indonesia, is the second-smallest and most developed of the four Mentawai Islands at only 651.55 km2. It had a population o ...

off the west coast of Sumatra. He fought the Dutch in the

East Indies The East Indies (or simply the Indies), is a term used in historical narratives of the Age of Discovery. The Indies refers to various lands in the East or the Eastern hemisphere, particularly the islands and mainlands found in and around t ...

, but on 28 September 1808 the French frigate ''Manche'' captured ''Seaflower''. The French held Owen from 1808 to 1810 in

Mauritius Mauritius ( ; french: Maurice, link=no ; mfe, label=Mauritian Creole, Moris ), officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean about off the southeast coast of the African continent, east of Madagascar. It incl ...

, during which time he was promoted to commander. After his release Owen was promoted to

post captain Post-captain is an obsolete alternative form of the rank of Captain (Royal Navy), captain in the Royal Navy. The term served to distinguish those who were captains by rank from: * Officers in command of a naval vessel, who were (and still are) ...

in May 1811, before returning to England in 1813. From 1815 to 1816, he surveyed the Upper Canadian Great Lakes with Lieutenant

Henry Wolsey Bayfield Admiral Henry Wolsey Bayfield (21 January 1795 – 10 February 1885) was a British naval officer and surveyor. Early life and career Bayfield was born in Kingston-upon-Hull, to John Wolsey Bayfield and Eliza Petit. His family was an ancien ...

, naming an inlet in southern

Georgian Bay Georgian Bay (french: Baie Georgienne) is a large bay of Lake Huron, in the Laurentia bioregion. It is located entirely within the borders of Ontario, Canada. The main body of the bay lies east of the Bruce Peninsula and Manitoulin Island. To ...

" Owen's Sound" in honour of his elder brother, Admiral Sir

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 Willi ...

. Between 26 October 1815 and 31 May 1816 he was the senior Royal Navy Officer on the Great Lakes. Owen mapped the entire east African coast from the

Cape A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment which drapes the wearer's back, arms, and chest, and connects at the neck. History Capes were common in medieval Europe, especially when combined with a hood in the chaperon. Th ...

to the

Horn of Africa The Horn of Africa (HoA), also known as the Somali Peninsula, is a large peninsula and geopolitical region in East Africa.Robert Stock, ''Africa South of the Sahara, Second Edition: A Geographical Interpretation'', (The Guilford Press; 2004), ...

between 1821 and 1826 in the sloop ''Leven'' and in company with the brig . During this period, Owen established a one-man protectorate of

Mombasa Mombasa ( ; ) is a coastal city in southeastern Kenya along the Indian Ocean. It was the first capital of the British East Africa, before Nairobi was elevated to capital city status. It now serves as the capital of Mombasa County. The town is ...

with the aim of disrupting the 'hellish trade' in slaves; but Owen was forced to shut down under orders from the Crown after only three years. When he returned in 1826, with 300 new charts, covering some 30,000 miles of coastline, over half of his original crew had been killed by

tropical diseases Tropical diseases are diseases that are prevalent in or unique to tropical and subtropical regions. The diseases are less prevalent in temperate climates, due in part to the occurrence of a cold season, which controls the insect population by forci ...

. His survey of the east coast of Africa is regarded as one of the most challenging ever undertaken by the British Admiralty. In 1827 he was in charge of settling a colony at Fernando Po. During the first year, he was joined by Lieutenant

James Holman James Holman FRS (15 October 1786 – 29 July 1857), known as the "Blind Traveller," was a British adventurer, author and social observer, best known for his writings on his extensive travels. Completely blind and experiencing pain and limi ...

who was famous in his time as "the Blind Traveller". In the mid-1830s, having little hope of further naval appointment, he removed with his family to

New Brunswick New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...

. He secured title to

Campobello Island Campobello Island (, also ) is the largest and only inhabited island in Campobello, a civil parish in southwestern New Brunswick, Canada, near the border with Maine, United States. The island's permanent population in 2021 was 949. It is the si ...

, which had been granted to his father and was lord proprietor of the same as well as being involved in other investments in New Brunswick. From 1841 he served as a

justice of the peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

as well as concurrently as judge of the Inferior Court of Common Pleas. Between 1837 and 1842 he was a very visible member of the New Brunswick House of Assembly for Charlotte County. Following his defeat for reelection, he was appointed in December 1843 to the New Brunswick Legislative Council of which he was an active member through 1851. He was elected an Associate Fellow of the

American Academy of Arts and Sciences The American Academy of Arts and Sciences (abbreviation: AAA&S) is one of the oldest learned societies in the United States. It was founded in 1780 during the American Revolution by John Adams, John Hancock, James Bowdoin, Andrew Oliver, and ...

in 1844. In the final action of his naval career, between September 1842 and December 1847, he conducted the definitive survey of the

Bay of Fundy The Bay of Fundy (french: Baie de Fundy) is a bay between the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, with a small portion touching the U.S. state of Maine. It is an arm of the Gulf of Maine. Its extremely high tidal range is the hi ...

for the Admiralty. Indeed, some charts of the area are still based upon his surveys.

Family

Vice Admiral Owen was twice married: first in January 1818 to Martha Evans with whom he had two daughters (see Captain

John James Robinson John James Robinson-Owen (January 1811 – 1874) was a naval officer and political figure in England and New Brunswick. He represented Charlotte County in the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick from 1850 to 1854. He was born in West Ha ...

-Owen), secondly 11 December 1852 in Saint John, New Brunswick to Amy (née Vernon) Nicholson widow of Captain Thomas L. Nicholson (see

William Johnstone Ritchie Sir William Johnstone Ritchie (October 28, 1813 – September 25, 1892) was one of the first judges appointed to the Supreme Court of Canada. He became the second Chief Justice of the court, and the second-longest serving Chief Justice to da ...

). Owen was promoted

Rear Admiral Rear admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, equivalent to a major general and air vice marshal and above that of a commodore and captain, but below that of a vice admiral. It is regarded as a two star "admiral" rank. It is often regarde ...

in 1841 and Vice Admiral in 1854. He died on 3 November 1857 at St. John,

Legacy

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of African chameleon, ''

Trioceros oweni Owen's chameleon (''Trioceros oweni''), also commonly known as Owen's three-horned chameleon, is a species of chameleon in the family Chamaeleonidae. The species is native to sub-Saharan Africa. Named after British naval officer and explorer Wi ...

'', was named in his honor by British zoologist

John Edward Gray John Edward Gray, FRS (12 February 1800 – 7 March 1875) was a British zoologist. He was the elder brother of zoologist George Robert Gray and son of the pharmacologist and botanist Samuel Frederick Gray (1766–1828). The same is used for ...

in 1831.Beolens B, Watkins M, Grayson M (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . ("Owen, W.F.W.", p. 198).

References

External links

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Owen, William Fitzwilliam 1774 births 1857 deaths Military personnel from Manchester Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Royal Navy vice admirals Explorers of Africa Royal Navy personnel of the Napoleonic Wars English hydrographers

Family

Legacy

See also

References

Further reading

External links