John L. Owen Biography


	This biography is from "Memorial and biographical record; an illustrated
 	compendium of biography, containing a compendium of local biography,
	including biographical sketches of prominent old settlers and 
	representative citizens of South Dakota..." Published by G. A. Ogle & 
	Co., Chicago, 1899. Pages 939-940

	Scan, OCR and editing by Maurice Krueger,mkrueger@iw.net, 1998. 

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JOHN L. OWEN. This well-known and popular citizen of Bowdle, South 
Dakota, is now the editor and proprietor of "The Pioneer," a weekly 
publication, and is one of the most energetic and successful young 
journalists of the state. He is a native of Iowa, born in Laporte City, 
in 1874, and is of Welsh extraction. His paternal grandfather was a 
hotel or tavern keeper at Llandrillo, Wales, at which place the father, 
O. W. Owen, was born and reared. The latter, who was a blacksmith by 
trade, came to America in 1874 and took up his residence in Laporte 
City, Iowa, but in 1883 removed with his family to Minneapolis, 
Minnesota. The mother of our subject, who was a native of Liverpool, 
England, died when her son was only four years old. 

John L. Owen is fourth in order of birth in a family of six children. 
His boyhood and youth were passed in Laporte City and Minneapolis, and 
he received a good common-school education at those places. At the age 
of fifteen years he commenced learning the printer's trade, which he 
subsequently followed in Minneapolis, Chicago and different parts of 
Illinois and South Dakota. It was in 1888 that he first came to this 
state, but did not locate permanently here until two years later. For a 
time he worked on a paper in Ipswich, but was soon appointed deputy 
postmaster at Bowdle, in which capacity he served until he purchased 
"The Pioneer" in 1896. This paper was started in 1886 by Fred J. Bowman 
and was the first newspaper established in Bowdle. Mr. Bowman later 
sold out to Gamble & Son, who in turn sold to our subject in 1896, as 
previously stated. The building in which the first issue was printed is 
now used for a residence in the west part of town. Through the able 
management and good business ability of Mr. Owen it now has the largest 
paid-up subscription list of any paper in Edmunds county. 

On the 4th of January, 1897, Mr. Owen was united in marriage with Miss 
Bertha Sparrow, a daughter of William Sparrow, who is engaged in the 
stock business in Royalton, Minnesota. Politically Mr. Owen is 
identified with the Republican party, and socially affiliates with the 
Masonic fraternity and the Ancient Order of United Workman.