Hello all. I am one of the great-great-grand-daughters of Joseph Owram.
(*)I could provide clarity on the questions raised in this discussion courtesy of an excellent family history, published about 2 years ago, called "Murray Loop: The Journey of an Oregon Family", by Ted Cox. There are photographs of Joseph Owram and wonderful richly detailed stories of family history going all of the way back to Scotland and England (by way of Canada). I will provide a link to the website for the book and I will try to get around to scanning some of the photos. I have other photos in my personal collection of Minnie and her husband Hugh, my grandfather Dave Murray, and others if anyone is interested. My mother is (Barbara) June Hunt (ne Wilken, ne Murray), Dave Murray's daughter, Minnie's grand-daughter, Joseph Owram's g-g-grand-daughter.
http://www.oldworldpublications.com/murrayloop/Here is an excerpt from Chapter 4 of "Murray Loop":
Joseph Owram grew up in Barnsley, England. A relatively small and somewhat frail child, he had three brothers and a sister. Joseph’s parents wanted to ensure their sons learned a trade, so in 1840 when Joseph was fourteen, his parents apprenticed him to a tailor. For seven years Joseph spent long hours sitting cross-legged on a bench, learning to sew instead of working in the out-of-doors he loved. In 1847 he turned twenty-one and finished his apprenticeship.
Free to earn his own living, Joseph decided to immigrate to the United States. As he prepared to leave England, he packed the scissors and tools vital to his trade, including a heavy black iron.13 The iron had a swinging door at the back so the hollow base could be filled with hot coals and emptied when the ashes cooled.
Since Joseph’s father had already visited the United States at least once looking for work, Joseph had some idea of what to expect when he arrived. Little is known about Joseph’s early years in the United States, since family records yield little information about how or where he lived. He married an Englishwoman named Harriet (Hattie) about 1854, and the two settled in Burlington Flats, New York, where they had two children, George and Alice.
Burlington Flats was roughly eight miles north of Plainfield, home to Nancy and Lester Starr. Both were small communities so it seems reasonable that the Starrs and Owrams knew each other. In describing Joseph and Jennie’s relationship, granddaughter Alice writes that the two had met while Joseph was still married to Hattie.
Joseph Owram’s history is a bit obscure between 1860 and 1866. At some point during these years he and Hattie separated, although they remained good friends. Both of them were living in Berlin Heights, Ohio, when Jennie Starr was living there, too. There aren’t any records tying Joseph directly to the free love movement, but his lifestyle fits well with their beliefs. His separation and continued friendship with Hattie, his vegetarian diet, and his devotion to the abolition of slavery set him apart from many men of his time. So did his choice of residence. Joseph’s idealism fit well with the goals and aims of free love. So he would have been drawn to Berlin Heights for many reasons.
(*) Moderator Comment:
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