Owen, Henry C

From Lane Co Oregon

Henry C. Owen (1823-1900) came to Lane County in 1851 and was soon active in Oregon politics, being present at every legislative session from the 1860s to 1880s. He was jokingly known as “Saint Owen the Swamp Angel” because he at one time owned every bit of swamp land in the state. “It was said when in the rush of applicants for this land, he won by a few minutes,” said the Eugene Daily Guard in his obituary. He shrewdly filed a claim covering all swamp areas from California to the Columbia River, and from Idaho to the Pacific Ocean, then later sold these lands to a California millionaire, the newspaper added. “Thereafter he lived quietly in Eugene until death overtook him.”