By Alva “Bobbie” Davies

John William was born in 1873. His father was Robert Isaac Cowen, and his mother was Charlotte Nixon Arrowsmith. He is the direct ancestor of the Cowen/Davies clan and the only surviving child of seven children to Robert Issac and Charlotte Nixon.

He was 23 when he married Grace Lott. John William married twice more: to Ruth Mitchell and Florence Margaret Stephenson.

2nd marriage to Ruth Mitchell on 8/2/1902 at 130 McKeon st. North Fitzory (aged 28).
John William married a third time to Margaret Stephenson at the Methodist church in Richmond.

John William was interested in politics and in 1911 when he was a member of the executive committee of the Carters and Drivers Union, he was campaign director in the federal electorate of Fawkner for the then Prime minister, Andrew Fisher.

John William contacted pulmonary tuberculosis and spent time in the sanitorium at Amsherst. He was given 6 months to live, but survived another 30 odd years.

Brothers and sisters

He married Grace Evelyn Lott in Melbourne on 22/1/1896, but previous to this marriage, Grace went to Sydney to have a child, born on 3/9/ in Surry Hills. Later when she came back to Melbourne, and the marriage took place. Grace lived in St. Kilda for a while.

It was here that John William deserted his wife and child, and eventually married a second time (although there is no record of a divorce) Ruth Mitchell when he was age 28. After his second wife died, he married Florence Margaret Stephenson at the age of 45.

He called himself William John Cowen for these two marriages. It is interesting to learn from children of his latter marriages, that some of his very old friends always called his John or Jack, and his later friends called him ‘Will’ or ‘Bill’.

He was a greengrocer at one time. He also political and involved himself with the push to get Andrew Fisher named Prime Minister of Australia.

His children were:
Francis William Cowen (Lott marriage)
Ruby (died young) (Lott marriage)
Allan Basil Cowen (Mitchell marriage)
Coral Florence (Stephenson marriage)
John Robert Cowen (Stephenson marriage)
Doris Evelyn Cowen (Stephenson marriage)

John William died in South Yarra on 19th November 1956

From notes on ‘The family tree of Daryl Raymond Cowen and Wendy Narelle Peacock (nee Cowen)’

John William Cowen, the only son of Robert Isaac Cowen was born in Ballarat, Victoria on 14th January 1873 and lived there until 1886 when he came to Melbourne and took up residence in North Melbourne.

He married Grace Evelyn Lott on 22nd January 1896, at the then Congregational Church in Queen Street, Melbourne. They had two children: a son, Francis William, and a daughter, Ruby, who died. It would appear that the marriage did not work and John William and Grace Evelyn parted company around the turn of the century.

John William married three times: as William John Cowen in the second and third marriages. It is understood that his first wife lived until 1937 and, that their son, Francis William was born in Sydney.

Prior to marrying Ruth Mitchell on 8th January, 1902, at 130 McKeon Street North Fitzroy, according to the usages of the Church of Christ, John William Cowen adopted the name “William John Cowen”. Ruth Mitchell was born in Majorca, Victoria on 22/2/1878 and was the daughter of George and Frances Mitchell who were farmers. William and Ruth met in Corowa, where William John was working in a General Store. They had a son Allan Basil Cowen who was born on18/8/92.

Ruth Cowen, (nee Mitchell) died at the age of 40 on the 1st April 1918, and is buried with her parents-in-law at the Fawkner Cemetery. In regard to the transposition of Christian names, it is noteworthy that in later life , his teen-age friends (e.g. Bill Rush) called him Jack while a close friend (A. Hutchins), who worked with him in Corowa and also his third wife called him Will.

On 5th August 1918 William John Cowen married Florence Margaret Stephenson at the Methodist Church in Richmond, Victoria. She was born on 28/12/1892 at Wangaratta, Victoria, and had five sisters and three brothers. William John and Florence Margaret had three children:

Coral Florence (—)
John Robert (—)
Doris Eveyn (—)

During his lifetime , William John followed a variety of occupations including Grocer, Seaman, Sales Clerk, General Carter, Greengrocer, Restauranteur, Fuel Merchant, Proprietor of Mixed Business and Tobacconist. He was interested in Politics and, in 1911, when he was a member of the Executive Committee of the Carters and Drivers Union, he was Campaign Director in the Federal Electorate of Fawkner for the then Prime Minister of Australia, Mr. Andrew Fisher. By the early 1920s he was well established in his Fuel Merchants’ Business and owned two houses and two blocks of land in South Yarra. Unfortunately, he contracted Pulmonary Tuberculosis and was forced to spend some months in a Sanatorium at Amherst, Victoria. He had to lease his business and eventually sell it. Although he was given six months to live when he was stricken with T.B., William John Cowen lived a useful life for another thirty years until his death less than two months before his 84th birthday He died on 19/11/56.

His third wife, Florence Margaret Cowen, was 19 years his junior, died at East Malvern 2/12/78. She would have had her 86th birthday 26 days later. They are both buried Grave No 64, row 329, in the Church of England Section of the New Cheltenham Cemetery.