Ebenezer Allen (1743–1806) was an American soldier, pioneer, and member of the

Vermont General Assembly The Vermont General Assembly is the legislative body of the state of Vermont, in the United States. The Legislature is formally known as the "General Assembly", but the style of "Legislature" is commonly used, including by the body itself. The G ...

Early life

Allen was born in

Northampton, Massachusetts The city of Northampton is the county seat of Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of Northampton (including its outer villages, Florence, Massachusetts, Florence and ...

, on October 17, 1743. His parents were Samuel Allen (1706–1755) and Hannah Miller (1707–1755). Allen married Lydia Richards (1746–1833) at

New Marlborough, Massachusetts New Marlborough is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is part of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,528 at the 2020 census. New Marlborough consists of five villages: Cla ...

, in 1762. She was the daughter of Zebulon Richards and Lydia Brown. Along with Thomas Ashley, Allen was a founder of

Poultney, Vermont Poultney is a town in Rutland County in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Vermont. New York state is on its western border. Castleton, Vermont, is on its northern border. Poultney was home to Green Mountain College, a private liberal ar ...

. Allen and Ashley (both had married daughters of Zebulon Richards) arrived at the site of the town along the Poultney River on April 15, 1771. Allen brought his family with him on the journey. Ashley traveled alone, building a shanty and planting corn before bringing his family to the wilderness. Poultney was a patriotic village. All of its residents (except one) supported the

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

and most males served in the revolutionary army at various times during the war.

Career

Allen became a Lieutenant in a company of

Green Mountain Boys The Green Mountain Boys were a militia organization established in 1770 in the territory between the British provinces of New York and New Hampshire, known as the New Hampshire Grants and later in 1777 as the Vermont Republic (which later be ...

, was with

Ethan Allen Ethan Allen ( – February 12, 1789) was an American farmer, writer, military officer and politician. He is best known as one of the founders of Vermont and for the capture of Fort Ticonderoga during the American Revolutionary War, and wa ...

when Ft. Ticonderoga was captured from the British, and with Colonel Warner in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. He was appointed a captain in Colonel Herrick's battalion of rangers in July 1777, and distinguished himself at the

battle of Bennington The Battle of Bennington was a battle of the American Revolutionary War, part of the Saratoga campaign, that took place on August 16, 1777, on the John Green farm in Walloomsac, New York, about from its namesake, Bennington, Vermont. An American ...

. In September of the same year he captured Mt. Defiance by assault, and on the retreat of the enemy from Fort Ticonderoga made fifty of them prisoners. Subsequently, he was made major in the rangers, and showed himself a brave partisan leader. In his later life he was always referred to as Col. Allen. Allen occupied many positions of civil authority in Vermont. He was a Justice of the Peace, served on many town committees, and was a representative to the

from 1788 to 1792. He was prominent in the planning of a new government for

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...

, helping to frame its

constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed. When these pri ...

. Allen was one of the original grantees of South Hero, Vermont by an act of the legislature in 1779. He left Poultney with his family for

South Hero, Vermont South Hero is a New England town, town on Grand Isle (island), Grand Isle in Grand Isle County, Vermont, Grand Isle County, Vermont, United States. South Hero's population was 1,674 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Geography The ...

, where he once again was the first pioneer in a wilderness—tradition states that he arrived on August 25, 1783, however he may have arrived as early as 1779. In 1787 he enlarged his house and operated a public house on the island. He held many public offices and was a representative to the Vermont General Assembly from 1788 to 1792. His cousin,

, spent the last night of his life at his house in South Hero. Ebenezer removed from South Hero to

Burlington, Vermont Burlington, officially the City of Burlington, is the List of municipalities in Vermont, most populous city in the U.S. state of Vermont and the county seat, seat of Chittenden County, Vermont, Chittenden County. It is located south of the Can ...

, in 1800 and operated a tavern there until his death in 1806. Allen was known as a man of strong convictions—whether political, moral or religious. He was opposed to slavery and on November 27, 1777, he granted freedom to two slaves stating: "I being conscientious that it is not right in the sight of

God In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...

to keep slaves, give them their freedom." In 1792 Allen toured the unsettled portions of Ohio, Michigan and Upper Canada with a group of Indians for a year. In 1795, Allen was part of a partnership with Charles Whitney, also of Vermont, Robert Randal, of Philadelphia and several British subjects in Detroit including

John Askin Lieutenant-Colonel John Askin (1739 – 1815) was an Irish-born merchant and militia officer who was instrumental in the establishment of British rule in Upper Canada. Early years John Askin was born in Aughnacloy, County Tyrone in 1739; his ...

and William Robertson, which planned to buy the entire lower Michigan peninsula from the United States government for $500,000. A stock company was established, and two of Allen's eastern partners promised members of Congress either stock or cash for their support in the purchase. This clumsy scheme was exposed, and the partner's plans evaporated.

Death

Allen died in

, on March 26, 1806. He is interred at Elmwood Cemetery in Burlington.

Family

Ebenezer Allen married Lydia Richards and they had eight children: # Abiel Allen (1763 in Poultney – 1765 in New Marlborough, MA) # Timothy Allen (1765 in Poultney – 1850 in South Hero) # Mary Allen (1766 in Vermont – ? in Vermont) # Lydia Allen (1768 in Poultney – 1800 in ?) # Ebenezer Allen Jr. (1771 in South Hero – July 2, 1844 in LaPorte, Indiana) # Amy Allen (1775 in Poultney – April 30, 1822 in South Hero) # Charlotte Allen (1777 in South Hero – September 13, 1813 in South Hero) # Eunice Allen (April 7, 1779 in Tinmouth – January 24, 1852 in Rome, Michigan)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Ebenezer Politicians from Northampton, Massachusetts 1743 births 1806 deaths People from South Hero, Vermont Politicians from Burlington, Vermont People from pre-statehood Vermont Members of the Vermont House of Representatives People from colonial Massachusetts Founders of cities in the Thirteen Colonies Vermont militiamen in the American Revolution People from Poultney (town), Vermont