Baraboo weekly news. [volume] (Baraboo, Wis.) 1912-197?, 1915-05-06
STRANGE NEBRASKA
WILL CASE TRIEO
Aged Farmer Who Buried
Thousands of Dollars,
Changed Name When
He Went West.

d. c.. Konkel of Broken Bow, Neb-
raska, who has been visiting at Bara-
boo for some time, has left at this of
flee a copy of the Broken Bow Chief
which lcontains a strange will case.
Mr.. Konkel knew the Owens family.
The item from the chief is az follows
The settling of the John W.OWens es-
tate before Judge Ford in county court
last week and a decision rendered in
favor of the heirs of George and Sarah
Powers, brings to light quite story
and one that would comfortably fill
q good sized volume if the whole data
could be secured. Many will call to mind
John and Nancy Owens, an aged couple
who lived entirely by themselves on a
farm a short distance below Mason
City, and their eccentric habits. They
were southern people and originally
came to Custer county from Kentucky.
Owens died in May 1913, and his
wife survived him only to August of
the same year. when she was killed by
q Burlington passenger train, while
walking along the right of way picking
up coal 1t was not necessary for her
to engage in this sort of work, for in a
bank at Litchfeld there were deposited
to her credit several thousand dollars,
and, right here, is another story Of in
terest. After her husbands death, Mrs.
Owens continued to live alone and
there were all kinds of wild rumors
concerning hidden wealth and large
sums of money that were supposed to
be buried about the premises.
Finally, neighbors, fearing that these
stories would get to the outside and
tempt some crook to make way with
the old woman for her supposed
wealth, went to Mrs. Owens and be-
sought her, if she had any money. to
place it in bank for safe keeping.
She was suspicious of everybody and
at first refused to entertain such sug-
gestion; but better council prevailed at
last and going out for short time, she
returned with bunch of notes and old
coin which made the onlookers straight
en- up rs though they had touched a
i've wire. The old woman was 80 ig-
n0rant that she was unable to tell the
denomination of the bills, much less
read the value Of the larger coins and
she was absolutely in the dark as to
the amount of money she dropped on
the table.
The sum aggregated some seven
thousand dollars and Mr.. Titus, a bank
er from Litchfeld, who was present,
took the money and deposited it in his
bank to the credit of Mrs. Owens.
Shortly after that she was killed and
other revelations followed. Owens will
stipulated that his wife should enjoy
the benefit of the property during her
life time, but at her demise, it was to
go to George and Sarah Powers, George
Powers having married a sis ter of
Owens while the latter had married
Powers sister.
The will was contested by the rela-
tives of the deceased, and, in the re-
search that followed, it came out that
Owens real name was John ". Chau-
doin and that he had left Kentucky on
account of having killed his man in that
land of feuds Judge C. H. Holcomb,
who represented the Powers heirs, spent
some time in the south taking. deposit
Ons and incidentally learned while do
ng so, that this family was none other
than the same to which belonged Caleb
Powers, the man who was, alleged at
the time to have been mainly instru-
mental in causing the death of Cover
nor Goebel. Kentucky's chiefi execu-
tive.
Owing to clause in the Owens will
to the effect that the property should
go to the heirs of George and Sarah
Powers in case of the latter's death.
Judge Holcomb won his suit The will
was contested by the children belong
ing to the brothers of John Owens or
Chaudoin, and they were represented
here by the firm of Sullivan, Squires &
johnson. The total value of the prop.
erty in suit is probably between SIS,
900 and $4,000.