b. on
New Year's day 1723
in a cottage in
Rhos-fawr
, in the parish of
Llanfair-mathafarn-eithaf
,
Anglesey
. His grand-father,
Goronwy
Owen
the
tinker
, and his father,
Owen Gronw
, were
rhymers
and
genealogists
, while his mother,
Jane
Parry
, was a cultured woman. When he was 10 years of age he went to a school at
Llanallgo
; then, in
1734 or 1735
to the free school at
Pwllheli
; and, after that, in
1737
, to
Friars school
,
Bangor
. There, under the tuition of the
headmaster
,
Edward
Bennet
, and his assistant,
Humphrey
Jones
, he became a
classical scholar
. On
20 Sept. 1741
he appealed to
Owen
Meyrick
of
Bodorgan
, one of the trustees of the
Lewis Charity
, for a scholarship to
Jesus College
,
Oxford
, and on
3 June 1742
was accepted by that college as a
servitor
, being enrolled as a member of the university on the same day. His name remained on the books (with some interruptions) until
March 1748
, but he was not resident there apart from a few days in the first fortnight of
June, 1744
.
Between 1742 and 1744
he was an
usher at the free school
at
Pwllheli
and
between 25 Jan. 1744/5 and 25 Nov. 1745
occupied the same position at a school at
Denbigh
. It seems probable that in both places he came into contact with the local
poets
. In
Jan. or Feb. 1746
he was ordained
deacon
and appointed
curate
of
Llanfair-mathafarn-eithaf
, which gave him an opportunity of associating with the
poets
and
antiquaries
of
Anglesey
. When he was compelled to leave he became a
curate
and
schoolmaster
at
Oswestry
for three years; there, he m.
Elin
, daughter of
Owen
and
Margaret
Hughes
, who were
tradespeople
of some consequence. He then became
curate
of
Uppington
,
Salop
, and also
master
of
Donnington school
. It was at
Donnington
that he wrote some of his most important
cywyddau
, including ‘
Cywydd y Farn Fawr
.’
William
Morris
(
1705
-
1763
) (q.v.)
helped him to get a
curacy
at
Walton
, near
Liverpool
, where he began to work in
April 1753
, receiving an additional salary of £13 for acting as
schoolmaster
. He was happy at
Walton
but produced comparatively little poetry there. In
1755
he gave up this appointment and went to
London
, thinking that the
Cymmrodorion
would engage him as their paid
secretary
and
translator
and would also pay him ‘
for ministering in Welsh
’ in ‘
some church or Chapel once a Sunday
.’ Although his wishes were not realised, the
Cymmrodorion
were very kind to him and he obtained the
curacy
of
Northolt
,
Middlesex
, where he wrote more
cywyddau
, including the best of all — ‘
Cywydd yn ateb Huw'r Bardd Coch o Fôn, yr hwn a roddasai glod i Oronwy
.’
Dr.
Samuel
Nicholls
, his
vicar
at
Northolt
, obtained for him (with the consent of the
bishop of London
) an appointment as
headmaster of the grammar school
attached to the
William and Mary College
,
Williamsburg
,
Virginia
, where he began work about
9 April 1758
; he was also, in all probability,
professor of Humanity
(i.e.
Latin
) at the same college. Before the end of the first summer he had m.
Mrs.
Clayton
, sister of the
college president
, but she d. within the year. He resigned from the college and on
25 Aug. 1760
applied for the living of
S. Andrews
,
Brunswick County
,
Virginia
, which he obtained a year later and where he remained for the rest of his life. In
1761
he
bought a tobacco and cotton plantation
, and in
1763
m.
Joan
Simmonds
, his third wife. He d. early in
July 1769
, and was buried on his plantation.
Copies of
cywyddau
and letters written by
Goronwy
Owen
are to be found among the manuscripts in the
British Museum
and the
National Library of Wales
; it is also said that there is a manuscript, written by him, kept somewhere in
Anglesey
. Three of his poems appeared in
Dewisol Ganiadau yr Oes Hon
,
1759
; almost all his poems are to be found in
Diddanwch Teuluaidd
,
1763
; five which did not appear in the latter publication were published in
Corph y Gainc
,
1810
, and were added to the other poems in the second edition of
Diddanwch Teuluaidd
,
1817
.
John
Jones
of
Llanrwst
published an edition of
Goronwy
Owen
's works in
1860
with the title
Goroviana
; the
Rev.
Robert
Jones
of
Rotherhithe
(
1810
-
1879
) (q.v.)
, another edition in
1876
; and
Isaac
Foulkes
(q.v.)
, his
Holl Waith Barddonol Goronwy Owen
in
1878
. Among later editions of
Goronwy
Owen
's works are ‘
Cyfres y Fil
,’
1902
;
Cywyddau Goronwy Owen
,
W. J.
Gruffydd
,
1907
;
Y Farn
Fawr … a Dinistr Jerusalem; Clasuron Llenyddiaeth Cymru
; ‘
Cyfres yr Ysgol Haf Gymreig
,’
1907
. The ‘
Marwnad Lewis Morris
’ first appeared in
Gwilym
Howel
's (q.v.)
Almanac
,
1770
, and
Goronwy
Owen
's letters in the
Greal
(
London
), the
Cambrian Register
, the
Cambro-Briton
, and
Y Gwyliedydd
.
