BIOGRAPHY: Edward OWENS, Cambria County, PA Contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by Lynne Canterbury and Diann Olsen. Portions of this book were transcribed by Clark Creery, Martha Humenik, Betty Mirovich and Sharon Ringler. USGENWEB ARCHIVES (tm) NOTICE All documents placed in the USGenWeb Archives remain the property of the contributors, who retain publication rights in accordance with US Copyright Laws and Regulations. In keeping with our policy of providing free information on the Internet, these documents may be used by anyone for their personal research. They may be used by non-commercial entities so long as all notices and submitter information are included. These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit. Any other use, including copying files to other sites, requires permission from the contributors PRIOR to uploading to the other sites. The submitter has given permission to the USGenWeb Archives to store the file permanently for free access. http://www.usgwarchives.net/pa/cambria/ ____________________________________________________________ From Wiley, Samuel T., ed. Biographical and Portrait Cyclopedia of Cambria County, Pennsylvania. Philadelphia: Union Publishing Co., 1896, p. 167-8 ____________________________________________________________ EDWARD OWENS, a thrifty and well-to-do farmer of Cambria township, and a soldier of the late war, is a son of John and Ann (Williams) Owens, and was born in Machynlleth, Montgomeryshire, North Wales, June 22, 1828. His father, John Owens, was also a native of Wales and at an early age enlisted in the British army, in which he served continuously for a period of twenty-three years. During his military service he participated in the war of 1812, and subsequently served under Wellington in the world-renowned battle of Waterloo, which resulted in the utter defeat of Napoleon's army and the restoration of the Bourbon dynasty. Among other battles in which he participated, are the following: Toulouse, Ortis, Pyrenees, Villoria, and Corunna. His son, John Owens, whose sketch appears elsewhere, has in his possession a badge given him (John Owens) by the British government for his meritorious conduct during his term of service. It is a massive silver medal, bearing the date of 1848, with the ensign of the Queen of Great Britain on one side, and a representation of the bestowing of a crown upon the worthy on the other side. Soon after the battle of Waterloo he was sent, with his command, to the West Indies, and there, at the age of forty-three, was discharged from the service, after which he returned to the place of his nativity and engaged in weaving, which he followed until his death, aged seventy-eight years. As a solder he was always at his post of duty, and in recognition of his bravery and long and useful service, the British government presented him with a medal of honor. He married Ann Williams, by whom he had twelve children, two sons and ten daughters. One of these daughters, Mrs. Ann Evans, together with her seven children, were lost in that terrible and disastrous inundation of the Conemaugh valley, known as the Johnstown Flood, and no one knows their final resting- place. Edward Owns learned the trade of weaving and manufacturing woolen goods in Wales. Seeking a broader field for the employment of his skill, and more remunerative wages, he, in June, 1849, set sail for America. He located in Ebensburg, Cambria county, and followed his trade for years. Carefully husbanding his earnings during this time, he purchased a farm near the village, upon which he has since resided, engaged in the pursuits of husbandry. He has become a prosperous and thrifty farmer, owning two farms, one of two hundred acres, and another of one hundred and twenty acres. Mr. Owens was a staunch Union man, and served for a short time in company A, Independent battalion, and at the expiration of his enlistment, re-enlisted in 1864, at Ebensburg, in company C, Two Hundred and Ninth regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteer infantry, and served until the close of the war, having been honorably discharged at Alexandria, Virginia, in June, 1865. He participated in the battle of Petersburg, and during this engagement was wounded in the left clavicle by the explosion of a shell. He is a member of John M. Jones Post, No. 560, G. A. R., Highland Lodge, No. 428, I. O. O. F., and of the Baptist church, of which he was a deacon for thirty-four years. In 1848, he married Miss Ann Owens, a native of Wales, and soon after their marriage emigrated to the United States. He and Mrs. Owens are the parents of ten children: John is a merchant of Ebensburg; Mary A., deceased, was the wife of William Lewis; Margaret, William, and Eliza J., are at home; Susan is the wife of A. J. Waldam, of Ebensburg; Kate married John C. F. Jones, of Braddock, Pennsylvania, and J. C. resides at home.