Euston War Memorial
The records of the London NE Railway show that Reginald began as an 'architectural draughtsman' on 1 February 1911 and became 'architectural assistant' in the Chief Engineer's Department the following year. His initial salary was £288 and by 1929 this had risen to £950.
Reginald’s architectural work for the Railway included housing for workers, bridges, viaducts and stations and some of his
plans and photos are kept in the archives of RIBA. These include the photo (right) of Euston Station Great Hall (the
(original archt Philip Hardwick, 1846-49 / archt R. Wynn Owen, 1914-16); Reginald is one of the two figures standing in the
middle distance.
Perhaps the design for which he will be best remembered is that of the Euston Station War Memorial. The memorial was
unveiled by Earl Haig on 21 October 1921. Dr. John Cain, in his History of Euston Grove, 2007 wrote: "Today
Euston Grove is little more than a roundabout for buses outside Euston main line rail station. Its most noticeable feature
is Reginald Wynn Owen's arresting memorial". The main structure of the memorial is a 45 ft high obelisk, with a cross and
a wreath on the top and on each of its four faces. The entire structure weighed 365 tons and at the base are four bronze
figures about 8ft tall, standin with bowed heads and reversed arms, each figure weighing approximately 1 ton. The four
figures represent the Navy, the Infantry, the Artillery and the Flying Corps. On the southern face of the obelisk is
inscribed "In Memory of Our Glorious Dead". The base of the memorial, a pedestal with a tablet of granite, bears the
inscription. "In grateful memory of 3,719 men of the London & North Western Railway Company who, for their Country,
Justice and Freedom, served and died in the Great War, 1914-1919. This monument was raised by their comrades and the
company as a lasting memorial to their devotion."
Reginald was a Freemason (see badge), possibly a founder member of the Euston Lodge.