Owen County is located in west central Indiana. The first settlers arrived in Owen County in 1816. The county was organized in 1818. Owen County was named for Abraham Owen, a member of the Kentucky Militia, who was killed in the Battle of Tippecanoe in 1811. Owen County has a population of approximately 17,500 people. The population of Spencer, the county seat, is about 2,700. Below are some pictures of Owen County.
The Fire Station-Town Hall was built in 1898. The Fire Station was downstairs and the city offices and the library were upstairs. In 1975, the city offices moved to their present location. The building is now the law office of Richard Norman.
The Spencer-Owen Library opened in January of 1912. The library was built with funds provided by Andrew Carnegie. Recently the library relocated to a larger building.
The Beem-Stark House was built in 1874 by Capt. David Enoch Beem. It was the first house in Spencer to have running water.
The "World Famous Owen County Chicken" used to sit on Highway 231 outside of the Frosty Restaurant. When the restaurant closed, the people of Owen County wanted to save this landmark, so they moved it to the Owen County Fairgrounds.
Luke's Run Farm is an exotic deer farm and hunting preserve in northern Owen County. They have sika, fallow, red, white tail deer, and Roosevelt elk. The first picture is fallow deer named Clinton, since he always seems to be available for a photo opportunity. The other picture is the senior bull elk named Abercrombie.
The Cataract Covered Bridge was built in 1876 and was open to traffic until 1988.
The Cataract General Store has been continuously used as a general store since 1860. On a cold winter's day, owner Wayne Synder can be seen sitting in a rocking chair near the pot belly stove, reading his newspaper.
The Ten O'clock Treaty Marker carved by Fredrick Hollis, commemorates the treaty negotiations of 1809 between William Henry Harrison and Chief Little Turtle. The marker is located on Highway 67 in Gosport.
Canyon Inn is located in McCormick's Creek State Park. In 1888 it was origionally opened as a sanitarium by Dr. Fredrick Denkewalter. The current Inn was constructed in 1921.
