Welcome to the world of award-winning author Marsha Ward, who created an entire universe of people who reside in her head and in her stories. Let’s begin with the Owen Family:
Marsha discovered this unique group of individuals way back in 1965, when–after a major life rerouting–she poured her disappointed heart and soul into writing what she envisioned as “The Great American Novel.” Except it wasn’t ever going to be a literary novel, because she didn’t much care for them. She preferred tales with action, adventure, and romance in them.
That may be because Marsha cut her reading teeth on such works as Howard Pyle’s The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood of Great Renown in Nottinghamshire, Les Misérables, by Victor Hugo, The Count of Monte Cristo and The Three Musketeers, by Alexandre Dumas, père, and Margaret Mitchell’s Gone With The Wind. Other influencers were Louis L’Amour, the Western novelist, and Robert Newton Peck, whose children’s books include A Day No Pigs Would Die.
Marsha created a family who lived in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. Father Rod and mother Julia headed the clan, and in the original iteration, there were twelve children. Marsha subsequently cut children from the bunch. Don’t ask their names. She doesn’t remember them. There was, however, a baby who died, John, who is James’s twin brother. He is mentioned briefly in one of the books.
The Owen Family story line makes the best sense if you follow “THE OWEN FAMILY UNIVERSE – Best Reading Order,” in the sidebar. There’s another copy of the list on the Bookshelf branching off the “Simple List.” These lists are updated as new stories come along. And they will come along, because Marsha has discovered that the Owen Family Saga isn’t finished.
Members of the Owen Family (and the children’s ages at the beginning of the American Civil War) are:
Roderick Owen, farmer, horse breeder
Julia Helm Owen, his wife, whom he calls Julie
Rulon – age 20, sometimes called Rule
Benjamin – age 19
Peter – age 17
Carl – age 16
James – age 14
Marie – age 13
Clayton – age 11
Albert – age 10
Julianna – age 8, also called Jule or Anna
The Parents
Roderick Owen married Julia Helm in 1840, and they settled on his ancestral farm near Mount Jackson, Shenandoah County, Virginia.
Roderick Owen, universally known as Rod, was born in the Shenandoah Valley. A widely respected horse breeder, he served briefly in the War with Mexico, and for the duration of the American Civil War on the Confederate side. He is a character in the novels Gone for a Soldier, The Man from Shenandoah, and Spinster’s Folly, and in the Owen Family stories The Apple Pie Prize and Scandalous. He is featured in the “origin story” novella, That Tender Light. He also appears briefly in The Blacksmith’s Apprentice.
Julia Susannah Helm was not native to the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. She was born in Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, where she became her brother Jonathan’s homemaker at an early age. She is featured in the novella That Tender Light, and plays a part in the novels Gone for a Soldier, The Man from Shenandoah, Spinster’s Folly, and The Blacksmith’s Apprentice, and in the Owen Family stories The Apple Pie Prize and Scandalous.
To learn more about Rod and Julia’s love story, read the romantic origin story novella, That Tender Light.
The Children
Rod and Julia had ten children: Rulon, Benjamin, Peter, Carl, James, John, Marie, Clayton, Albert, and Julianna. John is James’s twin, but as was mentioned above, he died as a baby, so you don’t hear about him very much.
* Rulon is the oldest child and eldest son of Rod and Julia Owen. He is sometimes called “Rule” by his loved ones. Gone for a Soldier tells his story. He is also a character in The Man from Shenandoah and Spinster’s Folly. Marsha discovered in Gone for a Soldier that Rulon has a middle name with the initial “S,” and later learned that the name is Scow, his maternal grandmother’s maiden name.
* Benjamin Owen, also known as Ben, is the second child and second son of Rod and Julia Owen. He appears in Gone for a Soldier, and is mentioned in The Man from Shenandoah and Mended by Moonlight.
* Peter Owen came along third in the Owen family. He was the first child who had dark hair like his mother. Peter plays a role in Gone for a Soldier, and is mentioned in The Man from Shenandoah.
* Carl Owen, the fourth son, plays a part in Gone for a Soldier, but his story is told in The Man from Shenandoah, which takes place after he returns home from fighting the American Civil War with Colonel John Mosby’s Rangers. He is also a character in Spinster’s Folly.
* Fifth child/son James Owen is a minor character in Gone for a Soldier, takes a more active role in The Man from Shenandoah, and is mentioned in Spinster’s Folly. But the fourth novel, Ride to Raton, focuses on his journey to manhood, and Trail of Storms brings him fulfillment. James has demanded another story. As of 2024, Marsha is working on it.
* After five sons, Marie came along as the first daughter. Although she has been pampered in that position, there is much work for a daughter of a farming family to do. She has minor roles in the first three novels, but Spinster’s Folly is her story.
* Clayton, child number seven, is better known as Clay. He is mentioned in most of the novels, but his own story, The Blacksmith’s Apprentice, is now available. A couple of years ago, Marsha discovered a few facts about Clay’s future, but he and James had to battle it out to see whose story would be told next. Clay won. Now, James’s story is underway.
* Albert is the youngest son of the Owen Family. Marsha learned in Gone for a Soldier that he was sometimes called “Bertie” at that time, but he quashed that nickname as soon as he could. He appears in The Man from Shenandoah and plays a role in Spinster’s Folly. He also is a character in the Owen Family Story Broken.
* Julianna is the youngest child of the Owen Family. Marsha discovered in Gone for a Soldier that besides her usual nickname of “Jule,” her mother sometimes calls her “Anna.” She is a character in The Man from Shenandoah. Due to teen hormones run amok, she got in trouble with her parents in Spinster’s Folly. Read Scandalous: An Owen Family Story to learn how that played out. Jule appears briefly in The Blacksmith’s Apprentice.
The Spouses
As events march along, the Owen children are going to meet, fall in love with, and marry various people. Or maybe they’ll meet, marry, and then fall in love with their spouse. Whichever happens, things will always be interesting.
* Mary Hilbrands was already in love with–and determined to marry–Rulon Owen at the beginning of Gone for a Soldier. That novel is her epic love story, but she also plays a role in The Man from Shenandoah and Spinster’s Folly.
* Ellen Bates, a feisty redhead in The Man from Shenandoah, also appears in Spinster’s Folly. She was betrothed to James Owen in the first of those two books, but events did not follow according to plan. Who did she marry? Read The Man from Shenandoah to discover the answer to that question.
* Bill Henry travels from Texas as trail boss for Rod Owen, his sons and his crew when, in The Man from Shenandoah, Rod is forced to buy cattle in Texas. Bill expects to return home to his neglected ranch once he teaches the Owens as much as he can, but when unexpected calamity befalls a member of the Owen family, his plans may not go as he’d like. Whose spouse does he become? The answer is in Spinster’s Folly.
* Amparo Garcés y Martinez shows up in Ride to Raton, when James Owen leaves the family holdings to make a new life for himself. Her meeting with James in a small village in Colorado Territory will change the plans made for her life, but that meeting will ultimately have a major impact upon James’s shattered soul.
* Jessie Bingham has a cameo in Gone for a Soldier, a mention or two in The Man from Shenandoah, a mention in Ride to Raton, and finally plays a huge part in Trail of Storms. However, to find out whose wife she ends up being, you must read Surprising Charity.
* Rida O’Connor is a child in The Man from Shenandoah and a few years later, the sassy girl gives James Owen grief in Ride to Raton. But she is featured in a Shenandoah Neighbors Story, where we learn that her marriage to an Owen son is not going well. To find out who Rida married, and if she has any chance of happiness, read Broken.
* Mary Margaret “Meg” Campbell doesn’t show up by name, IIRC, in any novel prior to The Blacksmith’s Apprentice. However, that novel details her romance with Clay Owen, and how it nearly doesn’t result in marriage.
