Friends of the Old School (FOSI) has announced its Memories in Celebration project. It will honor the celebration of Owen’s 100th Anniversary as a city.

“We want to do something that will last,” said FOSI President Laurie Shilts, “and how better to celebrate our history than to record the memories of those who came before us and those who won’t be here for the next celebration.”

Any memory of the city or of growing up or living here is welcomed. Submit your memory to any FOSI member or send to FOSI, P.O. Box 102, Owen, WI 54460.

One Owen memory follows:

This is not my memory but that of my mother who spent her entire childhood in Owen until she graduated from high school.

It is hard to imagine now, but in the early 1900s Owen was not a village or city, but cutover land owned by the John S. Owen Lumber Co.

When a resident asked a company foreman if he could spare just a few trees, he answered, “What do you think we’re doing—creating a damn croquet field?”

Mother remembered how lush the cities of southern Wisconsin seemed with mature shade trees. She always remembered no fruit trees in Owen were large enough to bear fruit.