MR. ROBERT OWEN. NEWCASTLE, LAWRENCE, PENNSYLVANIA.
Robert Owen was likely born sometime before 1628.According to the pedigrees composed by her father and her brother Griffith, Robert Owen of Dolserau married Jane Vaughan, sometime before circa 1640. In addition to her appearance in contemporary family pedigrees, evidence for Jane’s marriage is found in surviving letters written in 1678 by her husband Robert Owen, who refers to Jane’s brother Ynyr as his brother-in-law. They were married probably at least before 1447, when their son Griffith is said to be born. A letter by Jane’s father Robert Vaughan to "Mr. Robert Owen at Dol y Serry near Dolgelley," dated December 1st, 1651, might also indicate a marriage before then.
Robert Owen was sworn in as a justice of the peace by his father-in-law Robert Vaughan in 1658. Robert Owen’s role serving the Parliamentary government in the county during the Interregnum began in August 1649, when he was appointed to a committee to execute "Ordinances of Sequestrations of Delinquents and Papists Estates" to raise funds for Parliament. From then on, Robert Owen appeared on many lists for county committees performing various functions for the Parliament during the Civil War. These included appointments to committees by the Barebones Parliament in 1653 (to act as a judge to examine forfeited estates which could be an additional source of funds), the 'Rump' Parliament in 1657, and just before the restoration in January 1660, to assess taxes for the county of Merioneth.
He was also appointed as a militia commissioner for Merioneth in 1651 and 1659 and, in October 1659, for his efforts to put down the Booth rebellion, Robert Owen was thanked by the Council of State.
The tide changed with the restoration at hand, and, in April 1660, Robert Owen was imprisoned with other former county commissioners at Caernarfon.
Robert Owen adopted the Quaker faith in around 1660. When Owen refused to take the oath of allegiance, he was imprisoned twice probably in the jail at Dolgellau, within a mile or so from his home at Dolserau. He was first jailed in 1661 for 15 weeks and in 1674 he was jailed for some five years. In a few years the great migration of Quakers was to begin and, possibly as early as 1681, a certain Robert Owen, gentleman of Merioneth bought land from William Penn, becoming one of the men to buy the first 320,000 acres.
His son Griffith also made purchases beginning in 1685, but possibly earlier.
In 1684, Robert, his wife Jane, sailed to Pennsylvania arriving in September 17th, 1684. The passenger list for the ship Vine starts with "of Dolyserre" and then first listed are Robert Owen, wife Jane, and son Lewes who were from there. Also on the passenger list were a Dr. Griffith Owen and his wife Sarah. Though the passenger list doesn’t state the relationship between Robert Owen and Griffith Owen, a few years previously, in 1678, the Lancashire Hardshaw East monthly meeting recorded the marriage of a "Griffith Owen son of Robert Owen of Dolyserre in the county of Merioneth in Wales" to Sarah Barnes in 1678.
Robert Owen is said to have died in 1685 or within a year of arriving. He witnessed a deed that year when son Edward sold land to son Griffith. Robert Owen and wife Jane were praised years later, in a testimony by fellow Quaker Roland Ellis, who says that Robert was one of the first in the new religion. He refers to them as "...my dear friend Robert Owen and Jane his wife" and says that Robert was imprisoned for five years "being confined in Dolgelly in Merionethshire, North Wales..." about a mile from his house. He goes on to say that Jane’s father Robert Vaughan was "a man of integrity exceeding most of his rank at that time" and Jane is described as a woman with rare natural gifts, solid in deportment, and not given to many words.