Owen County, Indiana

Founding: 1819
Parent counties: Daviess and Sullivan

Namesake: Abraham Owen (1769–1811), Kentucky soldier
Seat: Spencer (1820–)

Land area: 385 square miles

Population (2010): 21,575

Population (historic): 838 (1820); 12,106 (1850); 16,137 (1870); 15,149 (1900); 11,351 (1930)

Periods of population growth: 1820–1870; 1930s; 1970s; 1990s

Subdivisions: Two towns; 13 townships

National Register listings: 15

Pre-1940 residences (estimated): 1,626 (16.1%)
Pre-1940 housing survival rate: 40.9%
Pre-1860 housing survival rate (1940): 6.5%
Average farmhouse value (1930): $852
Average outbuilding value (1930): $541

Average farmhouse size (1940): 4.9 rooms
Number of farms (1920): 1,968
Average farm size (1920): 73.2 acres
Sources of settlement: Ohio, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina

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Spencer

Namesake: Spier Spencer (c. 1770–1811), Indiana militia officer

Founding: 1820 (platting); 1821 (post office)

Population (2010): 2,217

Population (historic): 335 (1850); 971 (1870); 2,026 (1900); 2,179 (1930)

Periods of population growth: pre-1850–1890; 1930s
Pre-1940 residences (estimated): 371 (31.1%)

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Outstanding Buildings

1. *Silas Moffett House (1864/1870s). 2383 Bixler Road. Lafayette Township. Italianate.
2. James Alverson House (1857). 6771 US Highway 231. Montgomery Township.
3. Melvin Cassell House (c. 1890). 3474 Fidler Road. Taylor Township. Eastlake.
4. *James Secrest House (1859). 1816 Concord Road. Washington Township. Greek Revival.
5. Ephraim Goss House (c. 1855). County Line Road, south of Gosport. Wayne Township. Greek Revival. Razed.

1. *Owen County Courthouse (1910–1911). Courthouse Square. Spencer. Beaux-Arts.
2. *David Beem House (1874). 635 West Hillside Avenue. Spencer. Italianate.
3. *Spencer Public Library (1912). 110 East Market Street. Spencer. Craftsman.
4. *Allison–Robinson House (c. 1855). 3 North Montgomery Street. Spencer. Greek Revival.
5. *Spencer Village Hall (1897–1898). 84 South Washington Street. Spencer. Romanesque.