John Morris Owen was born in 1886 at Oswestry. His parents were Thomas and Mary Owen, for both this was their second marriage. He was the youngest of 8 children with 3 step siblings – Edith and Edward from his father’s first marriage and William, his mother’s child. The natural siblings were Emily Herbert, Arthur, Florence and brother Herbert – also a casualty of the war. His father Thomas owned a booksellers, printing and stationers business in Oswestry. The family lived at Fernbank on Mount Road (Racecourse Road ) – in 1881 they were neighbours to Captain T C Wynne (Thomas Charles) Minshall’s family.

John was educated at the Boys Modern School in Oswestry. After school he joined C E Williams & Co, Salop House, Oswestry as a trainee accountant and then, after his apprenticeship, moved to London to work for Messrs Annan Dexter & Co. chartered accountants. This was probably circa 1906, he started as a clerk gaining associate membership of the Royal Institute of Chartered Accountants in August 1908 and, by the time of the War, had risen to be a senior member of staff. In 1911 he is recorded as a visitor living as 5 Arminger Road, Shepherds Bush, London.

Whilst in London he joined the Artist Rifles – 28 (County of London) Bn London Regiment – a territorial unit based in London which attracted young professional men – solicitors, accountants, bankers, financier as well as artists. It was popular with ex-public school boys and university graduates. By 1914 it had become so popular that recruitment was based on ‘invitation only’. It is also believed that in London, John played football for Casuals Football Club – now Corinthian Casuals FC – as with the Artist’s Rifles this was ‘invitation only’ with team members drawn from public schools and universities. Further information on this is pending, but a  ‘JM Owen’ appears on team sheets for 1907.

In 1914 John Owen got a new job in East Africa and was ready to leave when war was declared. Instead he went with his battalion to France, arriving there in October 1914. On arrival in France the Artists Rifles was designated as an Officer Training Corps – drawing on its ranks of young professional ‘officer material’. John was commissioned to 2 Bn Royal Welsh Fusiliers. He was wounded on 5 February 1916 during a raid on a mine crater at Annequin near to Bethune. He returned to duty in October 1916 and was promoted Captain the following month. He was killed in action on 23 April 1917, the opening day of the Second Battle of Scarpe, near to Coisilles. John was buried in Boyelles Communal Cemetery Extension. John is also commemorated on the war memorials at Christ Church and at St Oswald’s Church –  at both churches a memorial service was held for him on May 6 1917 at 3pm at Christ’s and at 7.30pm at the Parish church. He is also listed on the institute of Chartered Accountants roll of honour.

POINT OF INTEREST:
Two fellow officers with Captain Owen in 2 Bn RWF were Siegfried Sassoon and Robert Graves. Both were ‘war poets’ and writers. Both men at first supported the war but as the fighting went on turned against. Sassoon was wounded on 16 April 1917, when the battalion was in action at Fontaine-lés-Croisilles – it was during recuperating from this wound that his opposition to the war was first aired. Rather than Court Martial him the army diagnosed him as shell shocked and sent him to Craiglockhart Hospital in Scotland where he first met Wilfred Owen (CWGC), also a patient and war poet. The two would become friends with Sassoon a mentor of Owen. Graves had been wounded in July 1916 at High Wood, he returned to duty in February 1917 but was repatriated to England the next month as sick. Graves wrote ‘Goodbye to All That’ his biography and memoir of the war – Graves was also a former pupil of Charterhouse School – as was Captain Edward W Walker, Wilfred Owen was born at Oswestry in 1893 and spent his early childhood at ‘Plas Wilmot’ and later the home of Lieutenant George M (Montford) Drew.

Acknowledgements. Casual-Corinthians Football Club, Surbiton

References and Sources

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