Newbury, Vt. —
Born at home in Randolph, Vt., Arthur worked hard all of his life, even as a young child raising farm animals, tending his sugar lines, selling seeds, magazines and other sundries door-to-door, and assisting his father with repair jobs. A man with only an eighth grade education, Arthur worked from the age of 14 for L. W. Greenwood and Sons of East Randolph, as a farm hand, shop worker, and truck driver. He later took a job at Dartmouth College as a troubleshooter, where he worked for the next forty years. At that job he learned the skills of an electrician, plumber, carpenter, furnace repairman, and so much more. He was not a jack-of-all-trades, but a master-of-all-trades.
Arthur was born to David and Arlene (Perry) Owen on March 2, 1940. He married Shirley Bickford in 1960, and moved to the Beaver Meadow section of Norwich in 1962. They had two children, Mark and Minnie. With many cash and trade purchases of heavy equipment, Arthur started up his own business, A.H. Owen Trucking and Excavating, which he did on his off hours from Dartmouth. It was not long before many people of the Upper Valley came to know Arthur as the go-to man for fixing foundations, digging septic systems and driveways, plowing, landscaping, and various other jobs. In addition to work, Arthur enjoyed snowmobiling, ice fishing, sugaring, dancing, and eating pie. Arthur retired from Dartmouth College in 2002 to become a full-time caretaker for his wife, Shirley, who passed in 2005 of heart disease. In 2007, Arthur began courting Carol Royce, whose family also lived in Beaver Meadow, and by the end of the year they married at the Beaver Meadow Chapel. In 2011, Arthur decided he wanted Carol to be closer to her work at Bradford Elementary School, so the two purchased land in Newbury and proceeded to build a log cabin, of which Arthur has built almost solely on his own.
Besides his wife, Carol, Arthur is survived by one sister, Veronica A. Knudsen, and her husband, Ernie, of East Randolph, a step-sister, Lorraine Petrochko and her husband Mike, of Northfield, and a step-brother, Frank Montgomery of Orange. He also leaves behind his son, Mark Owen, and daughter, Minnie Slater and her husband, Thomas, of Norwich; four grandchildren, Brok DeMarse of Norwich, Anthony Simpson and his wife, Amanda Tatro of Norwich, and Thomas Slater of Norwich, and Amanda McCrae of Hartford; and two grandchildren, Alexis and Allysson Simpson. Arthur will also be missed by Carol’s family, and many nieces and nephews.
Calling hours are at the Beaver Meadow Chapel in Norwich on Monday, Sept. 25 from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., and a celebration of his life will be on Tuesday, Sep. 26 at 10 a.m., at the Congregational Church of Norwich. Arrangements by Day Funeral home in Randolph. Online condolences may be made at www.dayfunerals.com.
In lieu of flowers, Arthur’s family will be setting up a scholarship fund for a student of Oxbow High School who intends to attend a technical or trade school. Checks should be made to the Arthur H. Owen Scholarship Fund care of Carol Owen, 307 Peach Brook Rd. Newbury, VT 05051.