Capt. William Owen History

Captain William Owen

By Mitch Biggar In 1767 a Welsh immigrant named Captain William Owen was granted the outer island of Passamaquoddy Bay. In 1770 Owen took possession of the grant. He brought with him thirty-eight indentured servants. The indentured servants who were all from Liverpool, England agreed to work for several years in order to pay off the price of their passage.

Captain Owen was a retired British Naval officer and had a colorful career. Owen had lost an arm in India and an eye in England during an election riot. As a result he ran Campobello as a military affair even to the extent of prison stocks and a whipping post.

William Owen left the island in 1771 and was killed in Madras, India. With his death his nephew David Owen inherited the island. Eventually Campobello became a popular tourist resort.

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Page Mounted 4 Nov 1999 - Marilyn Strout