History of Texas, Together with a Biographical History of Milam, Williamson, Bastrop, Travis, Lee and Burleson Counties. Page: 816

816HIT YOFTXS

fath r was born in Tennessee in 1800, was a
farmer all his life, and died in November,
184^8; and that her mother, a native of North
Carolina and of Scotch descent, is still living
at the old homestead in Alabama, where
she has spent over fifty years of her life.
The children of Mr. and Mrs. Harris are as
follows: Mary, wife of Thomas Drisdell;
Clinch, deceased; William, a resident of
Alabama; Eliza, wife of Robert Corrie, Alabama;
Margaret, who died when young;
Jennie, wife of Mr. Barton; John, of Alabama;
Salmuel, deceased; Henrietta, wife of
T. L. Fossick, is deceased. Mr. and Mrs.
Barton have two children: John, a merchant
of Bastrop county, Texas; and Hugh, Jr.,
engaged in farming in this county.
Mr. Barton is a supporter of the Democratic
party. Mrs. Barton is a member of
the Methodist Episcopal Church.
AWIs /ILLIAM OWENS, a prominent and
enterprising farmer and st ck-raiser
I of Bastrop county, Texas, dates his
birth in Alabama, February 12, 1841. His
early life was spent on the farin and his education
was limited to that of the common
schools. In 1857 he came with his family
to Texas, and remained with his parents
until the war broke out. In 1861 he enlisted
in Company C, Terry's regiment of
rangers, and was assigned to service in the
Army of the Tennessee. He was a faithful
soldier from the beginning to the end of the
war, was in many hard battles and numerous
skirmishes, and in all his service was never
wounded or captured. Only about a dozen
of the original 100 with whom he was mustered
in at the beginning of hostilities returned
home when the war was over.

The war over, Mr. Owens came back to
Texas and engaged in farming on the shares
in Washington county. In 1879 he bought
200 acres of land in Bastrop county, to the
improvement ot which he at once devoted
his time and attention. To his original pur--
chase he has since added and has also bought
land at other places until he is now the owner
of 1,500 acres, 500 acres of which are under
cultivation, being rented to other parties. In
1882 he built a gin with a steam power and
all the modern improvements for public ginning.
And he also built a gristmill. For
a number of years he has been extensively
engaged in the cattle business, raising and
buying and selling. For some time he also
dealt in horses, buying them here and driving
them to Kansas, but this he quit and now
confines his stock business to cattle.
Mr. Owens is a son of Thomas and Jane
(Sprowel) Owens, natives of Virginia. His
parents moved from the Old Dominion to
Alabama, and from there, as above stated, to
Texas, settling in Limestone county, where
his father died in 1858, and his mother the
following year. He is the youngest of a
family of ten children, whose names are as
follows: William (who died before the subject
of this sketch was born), Elizabeth, Bird,
Hazleth, Sarah, Robert, Thomas, Jane, Martha
.and William. Thomas and William
were in the same regiment during the war.
William Owens was married in 1882 to
Miss Mary L. Carter, a daughter of Edward
R. Carter, of Virginia, who came to Texas
in 1850 and engaged in farming here. Mr.
and Mrs. Owens have had five children, one
having died young. Those living are Lucy,
Janie S., Clyde and Arabel. He and his
wife are both members of the Methodist
Episcopal Church. Fraternally, he is an
I. 0. 0. F., and his political views are thor

816

MISTORY OR' TEXAs.