As to the ancestry of these “Owens”, it may be relevant that an Order of Council in the Marches of Wales at Ludlow recorded that Richard ap Owen, defendant, should enjoy the water corn mill called Melyn Brannyarth and parcels called gwerne y velyn, Klyttye and Syngrige, t. Brannyarth, for 21 years and pay rent to Thomas ap Jevan (4d.), Jevan Gwyn (2d.), William ap John ap Dd’ Gruff’ (4d.), John ap Hughe Bedowe (3d.), Richard ap John Dd’ Lloid (3d.), and John Gybbons (4d.) of t. Brannyarth, co. Mont., plaintiffs. Noted that plaintiffs proved that Owen ap Jevan Moris, father, and Jevan Moris Gethin, grandfather, paid rent to plaintiffs for their portions of the mill.

Of similar interest – Marriage Settlement: 1. Dauid ap John ap Ieuan of Brannyarth, co. Mont., yeoman. 2. Richard ap Ieuan ap Mores of same, gent.; John ap Owen ap Howell of Collfryn, co. Mont., yeoman. After marriage of 1.’s son Robert ap Dauid and Matilda verch Owen ap Howell’. Conveying all lands, ms., etc. in t. Brannyarth. 10 August 1577. (Shrop. Arch., 103/1/11/359).

Bargain and Sale. 1. Hughe ap Thomas of Brannyarth, co. Mont., yeoman. 2. Thomas ap Owen of same, gent. Of 18s. called y Gloddyne; 10a. called y Kae gwydd; 1a. called closse y Kul; 10a. called perth y gath; 2a. within a meadow called Gwern y vigen; all in Brannyarth, co. Mont., and late of 2. Thomas ap Owen of same, gent. 28 September 1611. (Shrop. Arch., 103/1/11/329).

Release. 1. Katherine verch Evan of Trevenanney, co. Mont., widow. 2. Lewis ap Robert of Brannyarth, yeoman; Katherine, his wife. Of title, dower, etc. by inheritance from Meredith ap Owen ap John ap Moris, her late husband, in 1 m. or tmt. in which Mary Beddowes, widow, lives called y Ty yn y Brin Mawr with apps. in Trevenant Vechan alias Trevenanney, co. Mont., now in tenure of Lewis ap Robert and Mary Beddowes. 24 October 1617. (Shrop. Arch., 103/1/10/206).

Release. 1. Rondle ap Lewis of Brannyarth; Katherine vz Dauid, his wife. 2. Thomas Owen of same. Of Erowe yr vedwen (4a.) in t. Brannyath, co. Mont., between lands of Richard ap Owen and highway from a ‘necessary way’ from y rhose leb to the dw. house of said Richard at one end, and lands of Richard at other. Consideration: £3. 12 July 1606. (Shrop. Arch., 103/1/11/54).

Feoffment. 1. . Richard ap Jeuan ap Mores of Brannyarth, co. Mont., freeholder. 2. Rhys (Riseus) ap Dauid ap Ithell of Ystym Colwyn, co. Mont., gent.; John ap Owen alias Derwas of Penryn Vaghan, co. Mont., gent. Of m. or tmt. inhabited by 1., 1 barn adjoining, buildings, garden in t. Brannyarth; pastures called in Welsh Kae meirick (5a.), perth y gath (8a.), 2 pastures called Kae bychan and y vron (12a.), pasture called y glovynne (14a.), pasture called y Kae cron (6a.), and share of pasture called y Kae newyth (5a.), pasture called y tier newyth (5a.) adjoining the barn, 1 croft called garth howell (1a.), 1 meadow called place madock (1a. arable and ½a. meadow), 2 pastures called bryn moelwynyck and arew yr llidiart (14a.), 1 meadow called y wyrgloth tan gae meiricke (2a.), 1 meadow called y wyrgloth Gaer dan y vron (2a.), 1a. meadow called gwyrgloth y vedwen. After marriage of 1. with Catherine verch Dauid ap Ithell. 8 September 1567. (Shrop. Arch.103/1/11/184).

Marriage Articles. 1. Richard ap Owen, son and heir of Owen ap Jeuan ap Morris, late of Brannyarth, co. Mont., gent. 2. Edward Lloide of y sclawdd, co. Denbigh, gent. Before marriage of 1. and Anne, dter. of 2., to take place by 12 July next; provision of £40 jointure before marriage, £40 by Michaelmas 1594. Covenant by 2. to deliver to marriage partners 3 feather-beds with furniture and apparell. 1. covenants to convey uses of m. of Tyddyn Kae y Bardd with apps., t. Brannyarth, late of Elizabeth Furnivall and Elizabeth vz Jeuan widows; and reversion of land called Paulle yr Gwige late of John Williams and David Gowgh Watkins. For lives of partners and heirs Also reversion of parcel called Tyddyn y Bryn Devedh allotted in dower to Maulde vz Reignald, mother of 1.; and apps. late of 1. and Jeuan ap Gruffith. Covenant to secure title. 24 May 1593 . (Shrop. Arch., 103/1/11/29)

Grant in trust. 1. Ieuan (Jevannus) ap Mores Gethen of Brannyarth, hundred of Welshpool (Pola) co. Mont., yeoman 2. Roger ap Dd’ ap Gruff’ of Bargedinge, same co., gent. Roger ap Llen’ ap John of Dythor [Deuddwr], same co. yeoman. Previous to marriage of 1.’s younger son Owen (Owinus) ap Ieuan with Maud verch Renald, dter. of Renald ap Dd’ ap Gruff’. Of m. called Tyddyn y Kevin perveff where Dd’ ap Llen’ ap Res lives, with apps. in Brannyarth between lands of John ap Dd’ ap Owen and Meredd’ ap Gutt’ on 1 side and a common way leading from the commons there to melyn y brannyarth and a torrent from Gwyne y Viggen to Gwern y llien on the other side, and in length between the commons there to a butt (vnum capud), to the land of John ap Dd’ ap Owen and Meredd’ ap Dd’ ap Gutt’, to another butt that divides 2 meadows called Gwern y Viggen and Gwyne y Viggen; also tmt. called Tyddyn yn y brynn Devett and apps. between a torrent called avon y Brythtyer gouch on 1 side and land of John ap Dd’ ap Renald and John ap Ieuan on the other side, in length between land of heir of Dd’ ap Dd’ Win to a butt, to Kyvenant yr Bodday and Erco d nedrydd’, to another butt; also 1 meadow called Gwyrglodd y Bynyon Duy divided into 2 parcels one called Vron y geythlley velin and one called yr lloyn molore; 2a. adjoining land of heir of Dd’ ap Dd’ Wyn. 31 July 1550 . (Shrop. Arch., 103/1/11/286).

Thus:

1. Jevan Moris Gethin (fl. 1550, patriarch of Brannyarth mill).
1.1. Richard ap Jevan ap Mores (eldest son, m. Catherine verch Dauid ap Ithell, 1567).
1.2. Owen ap Jevan Moris (younger son, m. Maud verch Reignald, 1550; d. before 1593).
1.2.1. Richard ap Owen (eldest son & heir, m. Anne Lloyd, 1593; held water mill). Richard’s burial is recorded at Ludlow on 22 November 1598 (“Richard ap Owen”). His widow and older children maintained connections between the Brannyarth water mill and Ludlow properties. Richard was the brother of: (1) David ap Owen (inferred second son of Owen ap Jevan Moris, matching regional naming patterns for secondary holdings). (2) Owen ap Owen , who m. Margret Cooke (Cocke), April 29, 1592.
Ludlow was a major administrative center at the time. A completely separate cluster of the Cocke/Cooke family lived here. They were closely associated with other prominent local families like the Harris, Lewis, and Owen families. Margaret Cooke was bapt. 16 May 1577, dau. of Howell Cooke, obviously of a Welsh ancestry. She was probably a close relation of Ales ap Owen, who m. John Pyke, 20 Jun 1573, Richard Cook, who m. Joyce Bedoe, 22 Aug 1590, Howell Cooke, who m. Margett Lewis, 11 Jul 1601; William Cooke who m. Katharine LLoyd, 4 Jun 1617. In Ludlow, the Beddoe family intermarried with a family of Overton.
1.2.1.1. Thomas ap Owen (gentleman of Brannyarth, fl. 1606–1611).
1.2.1.1.1. Margaret verch Thomas ap Owen (baptised at Ludlow, early 1600s).
1.2.1.1.2. Richard ap Thomas Owen (inferred son, named after his grandfather Richard; established back in Shropshire/Montgomeryshire border areas)
1.2.1.2. Thomas ap Owen (gentleman of Brannyarth, fl. 1606–1611).

1.2.1.3. John ap Owen (third son).
1.2.1.3.1. Owen ap John Owen (later found in records managing multi-regional family properties spanning North Wales and Shropshire).
1.2.1.4. Richard Owen (bapt. 1608), became the father of the next generation in Ludlow. Tracing this branch of the family out of Montgomeryshire (Guilsfield/Brannyarth) down into the St. Laurence Parish Registers of Ludlow, Shropshire, reveals key records for the Owen family. In the late 16th and early 17th centuries, members of this family migrated toward the regional administrative hubs of the Welsh Marches, principally Ludlow (the seat of the Council of the Marches). This was a move of necessity for Welsh, educated, land owning families, who were barred from speaking their mother tongue and entering the legal/administrative ranks, unless they became “Anglicised”.
1.2.1.4.1. Richard Owen (b. ca. 1635) moves the family into the late 17th century, marrying Bridget Penny in 1675.
1.2.1.4.1.1. George Owen and his wife Frances continue the line into the early 17th/18th-century transition.
1.2.1.4.1.1.1. William Owen Sr.,* bapt. Sept. 25 1681, “son of George and Frances”. 6 August 1745, William Owen of Goochland County deeded Michael Holland , Sr. for 25 pds . 200 acres on the northside of the James River , Deep Creek ; also on Licking Hole Creek. Goochland County, Virginia, (Deed Book 5, p. 46). There is also an earlier related deed that helps establish the chain of title: 15 June 1731 – Robert Adams sold William Owen 200 acres on the north side of the James River, bounded by Michael Holland, Deep Creek, and Josias Payne’s land; described as the lower end of a 400-acre tract. (Benjamin B. Weisiger III, p. 27, abstract of Deed, p. 261. Robert Adams had m. Mourning Lewis – a direct descendant of Edward Lewis and Jane Langford Harris, grandmother of Mary Harris Ligon and Major William Harris, of Ludlow. 29 November 1596. (Shrop. Arch., 103/1/11/196).

Speculating on medieval Welsh ancestry requires looking at these records through the lens of traditional Welsh law (Cyfraith Hywel). Under this a person’s pedigree served as their explicit title deed to land. Every freeholder was legally required to trace their ancestry back at least nine generations to maintain their rights as a free native (Gwr Boneddig). Because of this, families did not just remember their grandfathers; professional bards (Arwyddfeirdd) formally recorded lineages into vast heraldic networks. Looking at the rare names, geography, and tribal markers in these deeds, a highly probable projection of this family’s ancient lineage can be established.

Three critical anchors in the above text allow an connection to the ancient Welsh genealogical tracts of Montgomeryshire: The oldest verified ancestor is Ieuan (Jevan) ap Mores Gethin (living c. 1550). Gethin is not a surname; it is a Welsh sobriquet meaning “harsh,” or “swarthy.” It was used to distinguish a specific medieval ancestor from other men named Mores. The “Derwas” and Penryn Connection: The 1567 feoffment names a trustee: John ap Owen alias Derwas of Penryn Vaughan. “Derwas” is an incredibly specific familial name tied directly to a highly prominent branch of the Cherleton/Kynaston family and the medieval Lords of Powys who lived right across the river from Brannyarth. The clan geography: Brannyarth, Collfryn, and Trevenant all sit within the hundred of Deuddwr (Deytheur) in northern Montgomeryshire. Historically, the landowning families of Deuddwr belonged almost exclusively to the tribal lineage of Aleth, King of Dyfed (who fled to Powys) or Brochwel Ysgythrog (the ancient King of Powys).

OWEN continued:

1.2.1.4.1.1.1.1. *William Owen, b. ca. 1705. Land grant 5 July 1751. Woodson, Obediah. grantee Lunenburg County. 850 acres on both sides of Snow Creek, adjoining William Owen. Land Office Patents No. 30, 1750-1752, p. 442. Owens, William. Virginia wills and administrations, p. 15-17. Will pro. June 1753. Land grant 10 September 1755, Woodson, Obediah. grantee. Lunenburg County. 400 acres on both sides the Crab Tree Fork of Snow Creek, adjoining Randolph’s line. (Land Office Patents No. 32, 1752-1756 (v.1 & 2 p.1-715), p. 624. That is, this William Owen had connections to the Woodsons and Randolphs, mirroring those of the Harris family of Ludlow. 2 Apr 1746, Robert Adams of Albemarle County to Michael Holland Sr. of Goochland, 100 acres adjoining land formerly William Owen’s. (Goochland Deed Book 5, p. 102). That means after Holland bought the Owen tract in 1745, he was still acquiring adjoining Adams-family land in 1746. This reinforces the idea that the Deep Creek/Licking Hole Creek area was part of a larger Adams family holding being gradually broken up and consolidated by Holland. In colonial Virginia, a wife appearing in a deed usually means she was relinquishing her dower rights – her legal claim to a life interest in one-third of her husband’s real estate. The fact that the 1745 deed is from William Owen and Lydia his wife does not by itself identify her maiden name, but it does prove William was married to a Lydia by August 1745.
1.2.1.4.1.1.2. John Owen, b.ca. 1690, m. Martha Cadwallader, June 10, 1714.

by m stanhope, copyright B.T. Shannon, 2026