| Notes |
- RESEARCH_NOTES:
1. Censuses:
1851 Iowa State: Pottawattamie County. FHL film 1022203. The entire state was counted but only Pottawattamie listed everyone by name in the household and their ages; other counties only listed the head of the household and a numerical count without names of the various ages by sex in the household. No date is given when the census was taken but it was certified in Dec. 1851; however, the other counties show a Sep 1851 date which also appears more likely for Pottawattamie as well in light of ages given some children with known birthdays in October. Census return:
Allen: Jude 39, Mary A. 30, Martha 12, Mary 12, Jane 10, Joseph 8, Emily 6, Harriett 4, Andrew 2. Also in household is John Osterhout 13. [Note that Jude's parents Andrew and Eunice Allen are not in the 1851 Iowa census; however, Andrew's future wife Nancy White Maynard is as a single mother after apparently her just recent separation with Samuel Adair.
1852 Iowa: Kanesville Pct., Pottawattamie County, p. 24:
Samuel Adair, 8, 3, 1, 1. Note also an Andrew Allen and a Jude Allen family is listed 7 and 8 entries below; Andrew Allen marries Samuel's separated wife after 1852 [Nancy did not go west, nor does Andrew Allen; Andrew's first wife Eunice who he separates from because he doesn't want to go west does go to Utah in same company as her children [Jude Allen] and Samuel in 1852. Jude's daughter Jane eventually marries Bishop John Stoker. This census is only statistical with heads of households and does not provide much useful family information.
1854 Iowa: Rockford, Pottawattamie, Iowa, FHL film 1022207:
Andrew Allen, 3 males, 2 females, 1 voter, 1 militia, 5 total.
Note: there are no Andrew Allens listed in Harrison County and this is the only one in Pottawattamie County. There is no way if knowing if this is the same Andrew Allen or not.
1856 Iowa: (From Ancestry.com) Raglan, Harrison, Iowa, p. 5 of 5:
Andrew Allen, 73, 4 years in Iowa, NH, farmer.
Nancy, 44, 8 years in Iowa, TN.
Benjaman, 11 years, 8 years in Iowa, "York".
1860 US: Magnolia P.O., Raglan Township, Harrison, Iowa, p. 782, dwelling 196, household 180, enumerated 22 Jun 1860 US:
Andrew Allen, 78, farmer, $800, $500, VA.
Nancy F., VA.
Joshua, 9, IA.
Emma J., 4, IA.
2. See Samuel Adair hard file for copy of Andrew Allen's deposition of Jan. 3, 1851 for the War of 1812 bounty land at Magnolia, Harrison, Iowa.
3. Verified Rootsweb Worldconnect 31 Aug 2003.
4. Parents are Jude Allen and Sarah Philbrick.
5. On file from Jeannie Aldredge, I have a 40 page Nancy Fountain White descendancy listing with research notes. I have cited all information concerning this specific individual into these notes.
6. There were two other Allens in early LDS history which are separate and distinct from this individual. One was Andrew Lee Allen, who is the only Andrew Allen listed in the extensive Kirtland, Ohio LDS histories that I reviewed in Salt Lake City. The other is Andrew Jackson Allen who eventually made it to Utah through Iowa. One example of this is the following:
Journal History, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Church History Library, Salt Lake City, Utah, 20 Jan 1848, p. 25: "Following is the petition for a post office on the Pottawattamie lands, referred to, with the signatures attached. To the Honorable Postmaster General of the United States. Sir: There are many thousand inhabitants in the vicinity of the Log Tabernacle, which is situated on the Government purchase of the Pottawatamies and in the State of Iowa, whose interest is materially injured, and whose journey, business and improvements are retarded or destroyed by non intercourse; there being no Post Office within forty or fifty miles of said Tabernacle, and the public good requires a convenient office: Therefore, We your Petitioners, Citizens of the United States and residents of said vicinage, pray your Honor to cause, such an office to be located at or near said Tabernacle without delay, to be called the Tabernacle Post Office... [Approximately 2,000 plus all male signatures including] Wm. G. Perkins, Jude Allen, Daniel Tyler, Wm. Stoker, Israel Barlow, William Thompson [and William Thompson, Jr.], Joseph Mangum, William Richey, John B. Richey, William B. Richey, John R. Holden [Wiley Holden and Joshua Holden are immediately adjacent - relations?], Andrew Allen [with Ira Allen, Franklin Allen, Joseph Allen immediately adjacent - relations?], John Coon [with Samuel Coon, Eli Coon, Jacob Coon, and Joseph Coon immediately adjacent - relations?]. Note: Jude is Andrew's son but I don't think this is the right Andrew since our Andrew moves to Iowa by 1852.
BIOGRAPHY:
1. Biography included in the "1984 Centennial for Magnolia, Harrison County, Iowa," p. 71: "One of the first persons to serve on the jury in Harrison County was Andrew Allen. He died in 1878 and is buried in Magnolia Cemetery. He had a daughter Emma Jannette Allen and she had some half brothers and sisters by the name of Adair. The descendants of the family remember their grandmother telling them that Allen Creek was named for Andrew Allen. Descendants living in this area are Marjorie Sorenson and Vivian Earleywine of Logan and Nellie Collett of Magnolia."
2. FHL book 977.747-H2n: "History of Harrison County, Iowa," 1891, p. 74: "The first criminal case tried, was that of the State vs. Aaron Earnest, charged with larceny; and the first petit Jury in the county, in a court of record, was had in this case. They were as follows... Andrew Allen... They soon brought in a verdict of 'not guilty'." Similar reference is also found on p. 76 of the book "History of Harrison County, Iowa," 1915, FHL film 934944.
3. Received 6 Sep 2003 from Barbara Eades : This story, "The Life of Jude Allen" was given to me by Mabel Nelson Hoganson. Mabel's grandfather, Charles Joshua Allen (my great grandfather) was the son of Jude Allen. (Jude Allen was Mabel's great grandfather, and was my great-grandfather). I have retyped the story as the copies given to me are very hard to read. Helen Sunderland, 24 April 1982:
"All during these years that Jude Allen family lived in Iowa, his father and mother, Andrew and Eunice Miner Allen, with their sons Cyrus and Ira lived in Iowa also. Here the Government had given Andrew a good piece of land called Bountyland in Magnolia, Harrison County, Iowa for his service in the War of 1812. This was a good piece of land and Andrew knew that it was valuable and was very proud of it. Andrew had never joined the L.D.S. Church, although most of his family were members [Kerry's note: this appears erroneous because the LDS Times and Seasons of that time reported the excommunication of Andrew Allen, an elder]. In a story told to me by Helen Edwards Bennett, a granddaughter of Joseph and Nancy Allen Nicholes, brother and sister of Jude and Mary Ann, she said that Nancy Allen and Joseph Nicholes had married in 1847 and moved from Parma, Iowa [note: Ohio]. They decided to make the trip to Utah with Jude and Mary Ann, another daughter of Andrew and Eunice Allen, Sarah who had married Hemel Colton were there also ready to make the trip to Utah. Their mother Eunice wanted to go on to Utah with her family and she had on several occasions begged her husband Andrew to give up his land and go to Utah with his family. When Nancy Allen Nicholes was born, she was crippled in one leg and always had to push a chair in front of her to be able to walk across the floor, her mother Eunice had always wanted to help her with her babies and with her house work, it seems, the one desire in the heart of Eunice Miner Allen, was to be near the head of the Church and she was willing to make any sacrifice for the Church. The morning that the wagons were lined up ready to start for Winter quarters, where they were to meet with the other Saints making the trip West, Eunice once again asked her husband Andrew to give up his land and make the trip to Utah, he turned to her and said 'I wish to hell you would go to Utah and that I would never see you or hear you mention Utah again.' With that she turned and went into the house where she rolled up what few clothes she had, put her shawl around her shoulders and walked out to the wagons. She climbed into Jude's wagon, never looking back and came to Utah with Jude, Sarah and Nancy and their families. She left her next to oldest son and her youngest son Cyrus and Ira with their father in Iowa, both young men were married. Eunice Miner Allen was 69 years old at that time and she lived several years, helped her daughter Nancy with her children and helped out with Jude's family after the death of his wife Mary Ann in 1860. She died at the age of 92 years at Bountiful, Davis Co., Utah. She is buried there. Eunice never saw her husband or two sons in life again."
4. FHL film 934944 "History of Harrison County, Iowa," 1915, p. 460: "Allen Township. The last civil township to be created by the board of supervisors in Harrison county, was Allen, constituted in 1872, which comprises congressional township 81, range 43, and was named in honor of one of the early settlers. It is on the northern line of the county, west of Lincoln, north of Magnolia and west of Jackson township. It has a population in 1885 of 300; in 1890, it had 574 and, according to the last, 1910, United States census it was given as 633. Until recent years this township worked under the difficulty of being far from towns and railroad places for shipment, but during the last dozen or so years the Mondamin branch of the Northwestern system has given stations at both Pisgah and Orson in Jackson township at the west of Allen..."
5. Extracts from 15 page biography on Eunice Miner with photos received 31 Aug 2003 from Barbara L. Eades :
"On January 3, 1806, Eunice [Miner] married Andrew Allen in Montpelier, Vermont. Her husband was from New Hampshire and was the fifth generation of Allens to live in that state. He and brothers were raised as farmers in Epsom, NH where his father owned land. Around 1804 he left Epsom to explore Vermont. The Allens were descended from the immigrant Englishman, Charles Allen, who married Susanna Huggins in 1667 at Hampton, NH. Being the newest member of the [Miner] family, Andrew Allen bought Lot 66, the land adjacent to the Miner's land, on November 18, 1806 for $100 from Eunice's brother Israel. On March 7, 1808, Andrew bought more land, Lot 60 for $190 from Israel Miner. Eunice gave birth to three of their children while they lived in Duxbury: Gordon in 1806, Clarissa in 1807, and Cyrus in 1809... On November 30, 1808, Andrew Allen conveyed a mortgage Deed to Dan Carpenter for a parcel of land. He was to receive $250, to be paid the following August with interest. Andrew and Eunice sold their land to Roswell Wells for $300. During the transactions, Andrew traveled to Waterbury (the town just north of Duxbury) on October 24, 1809, to sign the documents before the justice of the peace, Hiram Peck. What prompted Eunice and Andrew to sell and move? An economic depression developed in Vermont because Thomas Jefferson had sponsored the "Embargo Act" of 1807. This stopped all foreign trade especially with Canada. Vermont farmers and merchants became financially ruined. The "Embargo Act" was a failure and was lifted in 1809. In order to get a new start, many of the people headed west. Andrew and Eunice loaded up an ox cart with their belongings, their three children, and traveled west over the Green Mountains to the Eastern Shore of Lake Champlain. They ferried across the lake to New York to Willsboro and eventually purchased Lot 92. This was a larger city than Duxbury in 1810 having many types of businesses (shipbuilding, a distillery, a forge, an anchor shop, a carding machine company, and mining). This was a new start for the Allen family. At some point, Eunice's mother came to live with them in Willsboro. It is not known if both her parents came or if her father had died and just her mother lived with them in her older years. On June 18, 1812, President James Madison signed a declaration of war against the British and Canada so the War of 1812 began. On October 11, 1812, in Willsboro NY, Eunice's fourth child was born whom they named Jude Allen after his grandfather Allen. On July 21, 1813, her fifth child Harriett Allen was born. Two months later, Andrew Allen was drafted into the army leaving Eunice at home with five small children - Gordon at 7, Clarissa at 6, Cyrus at 4, Jude at 1 and Harriett at 2 months. This may have been when Eunice's mother actually came to live with them to help her daughter with a new baby and her small children while Andrew was off to war. In the campaign that involved Andrew, it was hoped that Montreal would be taken. James Wilkinson was to sail eastwards from Sackett's Harbor down the St. Lawrence River, and Wade Hampton was to advance northward from Plattsburg along Lake Champlain, but they eventually returned to winter quarters at the end of the year without attacking. According to a notarized statement before Edwin B. Mastick on January 3, 1851, Andrew Allen declared that he was a private under the command of Captain Luman Wadham: which company was detached from the 37th Regiment and 40th Brigade of the State of New York in the war with Great Britain declared by the United States on the 18th day of June 1812, that he was drafted at Willsborough, Essex Country, New York on or about the 5th day of September AD 1813 for the term of Six months as deponish believes and continued in actual service in said war for the term of two months & Fourteen days and was honorably discharged at Plattsburgh on the 19th day of November AD 1813 as will appear by his original certificate of discharge herewith presented. In May of 1814, a flotilla of British ships sailed near Willsboro on Lake Champlain at the mouth of the Bouquet River; this river flowed through Willsboro. Lt. Colonel Noble ordered the 37th New York militia regiment to assemble. Again the threat of war interrupted Eunice and Andrew's lives. The Americans killed and wounded a score of British invaders and later by September of 1814, a naval battle was held on Lake Champlain. Finally the Treaty of Ghent was signed on December 24, 1814 ending the war. As often happens, a famine caused by the aftermath of war plus severe cold temperatures in the summer of 1816 struck Willsboro. In the summer of 1817, wheat was so scarce that the price rose to $3 a bushel. Many families resorted to making potash and selling it so they could keep from starving. During the 20 years while living in Willsborough, Eunice and Andrew's became the proud parents of the following 10 children:
Their children, Birth, Place:
Gordon Allen, 19 Sep 1806, Duxbury, VT
Clarissa Allen, 13 Dec 1807, Duxbury, VT
Cyrus Allen, 21 Apr 1809, Duxbury, VT
The following children were all born in Willsborough, NY:
Jude Allen, 11 Oct 1812
Harriet Allen, 21 Jul 1813
Mary Allen, 4 Apr 1816
Emily Allen, 20 Apr 1820
Sarah Allen, 25 Apr 1822
Ira Allen, 19 Feb 1824
Nancy Allen, 08 Aug 1827
...On December 4, 1827, Andrew and Eunice sold part of their land, Lot 92, for $125 in Willsboro to Theodore French and Daniel Southwich. On June 7, 1828, they sold another portion of their land, the southern part of Lot 92, for $93 to Solomon Townsend & Joshua B. Townsend. Both Eunice and Allen signed both land deeds since it was in their joint names. The Allen family continued to stay in Willsboro until about 1833... Their oldest daughter, Clarissa Allen married William Beal in 1831, and the Beals moved to Middleburg, Ohio when the Allen family moved to Parma, Ohio. In 1831, Eunice's mother, Mary Camp Miner, was baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Eunice was the next person to embrace the gospel and was baptized by Lee Carter in New York State on April 15, 1832. Andrew her husband was baptized in 1833 in Willsboro. The missionaries recommended that the saints gather close to Kirkland, Ohio. This is probably what prompted Eunice and Andrew to move their family to Ohio... On February 16, 1836, Justin Ely sold 50 acres, the north part of lot 23 in Parma, to Andrew Allen (who had been living in Parma, Ohio). Parma was 12 miles south of Cleveland and almost 40 miles southwest of Kirtland, Ohio where the saints were building a temple...Andrew Allen lost his enthusiasm for the church probably due to the economic panic of 1837 when some of the banks failed and many saints lost money. Five of Eunice's children were now married and two of her adult daughters had died leaving only three children left at home. Andrew attended a conference at Grafton, Ohio on February 20, 1841, where he denounced the Book of Mormon. Times and Seasons, stated: 'It being presented to the conference that Andrew Allen, an elder, denied the truth of the book of Mormon, he being present acknowledged the charge true, and the conference voted that he be no longer a member of this church, and a request gave up his license.' The remaining faithful saints in Eunice's family tried changing her husband's mind about the church but it became a sore point in their marriage... After the "Bounty" act was passed in 1850, Andrew wrote to his son requesting his help in locating good land in Iowa. Andrew finally made up his mind to move and so on January 3, 1851, Andrew applied for bounty land. A copy of the disposition was scanned from Jimmie B. Stoker's book, But Language Cannot Tell: A history and Biography of Jude Allen, A Mormon Frontiersman and Patriarch. (Family History Library, film #934,943 item 3-4, page 23.) In 1851 Andrew and Eunice moved to Harrison County, Iowa. They settled on land close to a creek, which was named 'Allen Creek'. In The History of Harrison County, Iowa written by Joe H. Smith in 1888, page 23 states, 'Allen Creek was named after Andrew Allen, who in 1851 squatted on this stream.' Although the history of Harrison County stated that he had squatted on this land, Andrew eventually cleared the land title by getting his Land Grant... Andrew and Eunice had lived in the new town Raglan about a year finding excellent farmland. About this time, Jude, Gordon, the William Beal family, Heman and Sarah Allen Coltrin, Joseph and Nancy Nicholas, and John Osterhout (Joseph Nicholas' nephew) were moving to Utah because the Saints were asked to go there. Andrew did not want to move again, but Eunice wanted to go to Utah with her children... All of the family tried to persuade Andrew Allen to move to Utah with the rest of the family but with no luck. Eunice had been trying to talk her husband into moving to Utah as well, but he wanted to stay in Iowa. So, on the morning that the wagons were to roll, 69-year old Eunice again asked her husband to leave and go with them to Utah. Andrew Allen said to his wife, "I wish to hell you would go to Utah and that I would never see you or hear of Utah again." Eunice went into their house, rolled her clothes in a bundle, put on her bonnet and shawl, walked to the wagon, and climbed into the wagon with her daughter Nancy, and left for Utah never looking back. They joined Benjamin Gardner's Wagon Company. Eunice walked her share of the way across the plains, endured all the same hardships that all of pioneers endured. It was hard enough to losing four daughters to death but the ultimate test for Eunice was how joining the Mormon Church split her family... Andrew Allen lived alone for about three years and then married a much younger woman - 30 years younger - by the name of Nancy who had a son by a previous marriage. Andrew helped to raise young Joshua. Andrew's beloved daughter Emma Jannet Allen was born in 1856. Andrew died at age 84 years and 5 months on January 10, 1867, leaving his estate to his 11-year old daughter Jannet and his 55-year old wife Nancy. (Will written on January 6, 1866. FHL film 1510109 item 4 p. 522.) He stated in his will that if his wife Nancy remarried, his estate would go to his daughter Jannet. Eunice and her family arrived in Salt Lake City on September 24, 1852. From Jimmie B. Stoker's book, But Language Cannot Tell: A history and Biography of Jude Allen, A Mormon Frontiersman and Patriarch, the following quote from page 104 was taken talking about Eunice's decision to come west: 'She'd made the right decision to leave Andrew in Iowa. She had always been protective of her Nancy, the girl with the crippled leg. When Nancy arrived in the Salt Lake Valley, she was four or five months pregnant. It was often a struggle for her to walk. Eunice provided legs for her while crossing the plains. Eunice was convinced that she was needed more now than ever. She was needed and she knew it. Her husband, Andrew, had legs, but they carried him in the wrong direction. He walked away from the Church. Eunice walked towards it. She was true to her beliefs in the prophet, beliefs her children shared with her. She and her children would live near the oracle of God.' The Allen family group lived on the church farm for two months. They then moved to Sessions (now Bountiful) Utah and settled next to the Holbrooks and Lovelands. They moved into the North Kanyon ward where John Stoker was their Bishop..." [Note: John marries Jane Allen, daughter of Jude Allen, as his third wife - see her separate entry elsewhere in this database.]
6. FHL book 921.73 Al53sj and FHL film 205520 item 6: Stoker, Jimmie B. in behalf of The Jude Allen Family Organization, 1996, "But Language Cannot Tell: A history and Biography of Jude Allen, A Mormon Frontiersman and Patriarch," Joseph Smith Memorial Building, SLC. His email may be jastok@bossig.com per Barbara Eades. I have copied about 50 pages of this publication and have it on file. The book is footnoted as to sources and I refer other researchers to the publication for those. The following are selected quotes a lengthy publication on Jude Allen that concerns his father Andrew Allen:
"Jude was born on October 12, 1811, no doubt on his father's farm in the vicinity of Willsboro, Essex County, in upstate new York in a section of country located near the southwestern shore of Lake Champlain. His father, Andrew Allen, about 29 years old at the time of Jude's birth, was born in New Hampshire and was the fifth generation of Allens to liven in that state.
These Allens were descended from the immigrant Englishman, Charles Allen, who had married Susanna Huggins in 1667 at Hampton located in the southeastern corner of the state.
By temperament Andrew was restless and didn't resist the centrifugal forces that flung so many New Englanders outward and westward in the early 19th century. It was in Montpelier, Vermont on January 3, 1806, that Andrew married Jude's mother, Eunice Miner. She was born in Shelburne, Massachusetts on July 17, 1783 to Nathaniel Miner and Mary Camp...
When the Allens set up housekeeping, Eunice was not far from her family because the owner of lot No. 66, the neighboring land, was her husband, Andrew. On Nov. 30, 1808, Andrew conveyed a Mortgage Deed to Dan Carpenter for a parcel of land. Andrew was to receive $250, to be paid the following August with interest.
After fathering three children - Gordon in 1806, Clarissa in 1807, and Cyrus in 1809 - at Duxbury, Andrew sold his holdings to Roswell Wells for $300. During the transactions, Andrew traveled to Waterbury on October 24, 1809, to sign the documents before the justice of the peace, Hiram Peck.
Andrew realized little or no gain from the sales of his land because of the tumbling economy that had gripped the country. If Andrew was lucky, he would keep the shirt on his back, but there wouldn't be much of a nest egg to start over again at the end of his move.
He and Eunice located up an old ox cart with their belongings. With their children in tow, they relocated, driving their oxen west over the Green Mountains, to the eastern shore of Lake Champlain. They paid or bartered to be ferried over to the New York side of the lake to Willsboro, a village of nearly 600 inhabitants, where they would make their new home...
No records of Andrew owning any land in Willsboro have been found. He may have squatted on land like many of the poor Yankees who had been forced from Vermont in the years around 1810, or he may have had a place provided by those for whom he worked. Andrew may have found some work in the mines and foundries, or, perhaps, the lumber industry which shipped logs and lumber to Quebec.
Jude's mother gave birth to ten children. Seven, beginning with Jude, were born in Willsboro: Jude, 1811; Harriet, 1813; Mary, 1816; Emily, 1820; Sarah, 1822; Ira, 1824, and Nancy, 1827...
[In the War of 1812,] one of those additional fighting men was Jude's father, Andrew, who was drafted into the 1813 failed campaign led by Wade Hampton to storm Montreal.
According to his notarized statement before Edwin B. Mastick on Jan. 3, 1851, Andrew declared he was a private in the command of Captain Luman Wadham: 'which company was detached from the 37th Regiment and 40th Brigade of the State of New York in the war with Great Britain declared by the United States on the 18th day of June 1812, that he was drafted at Willsborough, Essex County, New York on or about the 5th day of September AD 1813 for the term of Six months as deponish believes and continued in actual service in said war for the term of two months & Fourteen days and was honorably discharged at Plattsburgh on the 19th day of November AD 1813 as will appear by his original certificate of discharge herewith presented.'
Andrew's war experiences seem to be undistinguished. He returned to the farm and his family, but would warily follow the campaigns waged on Lake Champlain.
In May 1814 a flotilla of British vessels loomed into view in Lake Champlain near Willsboro at the mouth of the Bouquet River. One of the British row-gallies chased a small American boat form the lake in the Bouquet River. Although the British didn't pursue, they did land and plunder the farm of Aaron FairChild. Lt. Colonel Noble ordered out members of Andrew Allen's former unit, the 37th New York militia regiment. Andrew may have received that call to arms.
About three o'clock on the afternoon of May 14, three British row-gallies entered the Bouquet River and headed for Willsboro Falls which were located in the northern part of the village.
Daniel Wright, Brigadier General, wrote to Governor Daniel D. Tompkins: 'the troops on the row-gallies, landed at the falls, where after demanding the public property (which had been timely conveyed to a distance) and learning that the Militia were in force a few miles distant and were on the march to intercept their retreat, they precipitately embarked in their boats and made for the lake. On ascertaining that the Enemy were shaping their course towards the mouth of the River, Lt. Col. Noble directed his march towards that point and I approving of his plan of operation, I directed him to cross the wood and post his men on the bank of the River, which was done with the greatest promptness, in time to arrest the progress of one of the Enemy's gallies, the crew of which were so disabled as to oblige them to hoist a flag of distress when a sloop came to their assistance and towed her off.' (Morris F. Glenn, 'The Story of Three Towns: Westport, Essex and Willsboro, New York,' pp. 244-245.
Shooting down form the high banks of the River, into the fleeing row-gallies, the American killed or wounded a score of the British invaders. Two Americans were wounded, one seriously and the other slightly.
In the late summer of 1814, Sir George Prevost led the most serious British attack along the lake in an attempt to split the United States. On September 11, 1814, in a naval battle on Lake Champlain, American forces under Thomas Macdonough triumphed over the British fleet at the Battle of Plattsburg Bay. Prevost, who had been advancing on Plattsburg with a much larger force than the American could field, retreated, deciding not to risk the American threat to his flanks and rear.
With Prevost's retreat, Andrew, his family and neighbors, could finally relax. The end of the war came within a few months with the signing of the Treaty of Ghent on December 24, 1814...
A famine, caused by the aftermath of the War of 1812 and severe cold temperatures in the summer of 1816, struck Willsboro. In the summer of 1817 wheat was nearly non-existent. The price rose to $3 a bushel. The Allen family, like so many of the other families in Willsboro, went without bread for weeks.
In need of cash to buy provisions for their starving families, many of the Willsboro men resorted to making potash. These men moved in the woodlands, cut down trees, and burned them to provide the ash which when leeched would provide the potash. Scooping up the potash into barrels, the men traded them to William D. Ross for supplies or cash. At one pint, Ross sold flour at $11 a barrel. (ibid, p. 285)...
Jared Carter and Ebenezer Page were among the first Mormon missionaries to preach in the Lake Champlain area. Sent on a mission to preach the restored gospel in New York and Vermont by Joseph Smith in the fall of 1831, Carter sought out members of his family living in Benson, Rutland County, Vermont. Jared was successful in setting up branches of the church in Benson and surrounding communities including several in eastern New York. He was familiar with the community of Willsboro and preached there form time to time.
One Allen history told the following about the Allens joining the Church of Christ, the early name of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
'The Allen family lived in Willsborough about 20 years; it must have been while they were living here...that they first heard of the gospel... No doubt Jude's grandmother, Mary Camp Miner, was living with them, for she was the first of his family to embrace the gospel she being baptized in 1831.'
Mary Ann Nicholas Jones, Jude's niece, recorded in her journal that Eunice Miner, Jude's mother, was baptized on 15 Apr 1832, by Lee Carter in New York and Jude's father, Andrew, was baptized in 1833 in Willsboro, New York. Jude was baptized in May 1832.
There seems to be no record available about Lee Carter. Maybe Lee was a relative of Jared Carter. Many of the Carters lived in Benson, Vermont.
[The account continues with Jared Carter's visit and work in Willsboro.] Following this meeting [of Sunday, July 22, 1832,] Jared said his farewells. Privately, he may have told the members to prepare to gather with the saints in Ohio, pointing out that his home town of Amherst in Loraine County was near to the gathering place in Kirtland. His recommendation of this area would bring the Allens to settle in Parma, Cuyahoga County, Ohio... a dozen miles south of Cleveland and nearly 40 miles southwest of Kirtland. One record states Jude's brother, Cyrus, married Eunice Lewis at Parma, Ohio in 1834. Likely, Andrew's family had moved at that time...
It is very likely that Jude's father, Andrew, lost his ardor for his church during the apostasy of many members living near Kirtland following the economic panic of 1837. The problems were so great that the body of the church moved to Missouri...
Zebedee [Coltrin, presiding Elder of Kirtland] presided over a conference held at Grafton, Lorain County, Ohio on Feb. 20, 1841. Also attending this conference was Andrew Allen, Jude's father, who admitted his disillusion with the LDS church. The minutes of the conference which were published in the church periodical, 'Times and Seasons,' [Vol. 2, no. 14 (May 15, 1841), p. 413] stated: 'It being presented to the conference that Andrew Allen, an elder, denied the truth of the Book of Mormon, he being present acknowledged the charge true, and the conference voted that he be no longer a member of this church; and an request gave up his license.'
...[In a letter addressed to Jude Allen in Iowa from his brother Ira in Parma dated 26 May 1848:] 'Father and mother enjoy as good health as can be expected... I don't no what to more to write only that I work to home with father. I am maried and live in the house with Father and Mother [my wife] her name is Julia.'
..."From another letter date May 1, 1849, from Middleburg, Ohio; '...Father received a letter from you the twentyeth of April and wee was glad to hear that you was well...'
On August 5, 1849, Jude's brother, Ira, wrote a letter that began, 'Mr. Jude Allen,' and Ira told about a horse his father owned...
...Two months later, on Nov. 16, 1848, Mary Ann gave birth to a boy who was named after Jude's father, Andrew. Jude was desirous that his father would come to Iowa. There was a lot of good land for the taking, making a good farm our of untamed land...
Jude's father, Andrew, will use his status as a veteran of the War of 1812 to procure land in Iowa in a year or two. The idea to go to Iowa was beginning to take root in Andrew's mind...
Since Jude's visit to Parma in the summer of 1848, he had been writing to his folks there. No doubt he hade been inviting them and others of his family who shared his faith to move westward, particularly to Utah. His sister, Nancy, lets us know about his correspondence in a letter dated May 1, 1849, which she wrote from Middleburg, Ohio: 'Father received a letter from you the twentyeth of April...'
...Unfortunately, it was not easy for Jude's parents and others to pick up their stakes and move west, to join him in going to Utah. Willing to come, Nancy told her brother of their problems: '...Father thinks he will sell and com their, but he alters his mind as often as ever. I was their to his house last Saterday. They was well and he said he never should go their. He was too old. But thare is no knowing by that... Our folks requested me to write you and tell you that you kneede not stay enny longer for us but to go on for it will be a hinderment to you.'
Noting how their father vacillates in making a decision, Nancy confided in Jude about a plan in which he may help convince his father to come west, making it possible for the whole family to come: 'Evry tiem Father gets a letter you, he is fars [for us] to go and it last him about one weeke. I wish you could send him letters about one weke apart til he could get his uiezz [eyes] open fare enuf to sell his plase and then I dont [k]now but he would go thare. If father would go all the rest would so[o]n follow but it is a grait under taking to go and leve[leave[ mother when thare is no prospects of hur coming. I had as live[leave] stay and die with hur but I think thair is a prospect yet...'
Jude's younger brother, Ira, and his wife, Julia, wrote a letter to him on August 5, 1849, at Parma, Ohio from his parents' home... Ira wrote: 'Father and Mother are well as usul and as smart as can be expected... Father and Mother live all alone... Father has got his haying and harvisting all don[e] and has got about eight acres of corn and it lo[o]ks good. He lost that mare that he had wen you was her. She had a colt this spring and it died and the old mare dide in about one month after. He has now got to more mares and one of them has got a colt...'
[Ira's wife adds to the same letter.] Finally, Julia tells Jude that his mother and sisters will be coming to join him. There husbands are not mentioned. At any rate, it seems that 1849 was a year of decision for Andrew Allen's family. the family would come west. However, it would take another couple of years to be fulfilled...
A grandson of Ira's, Charles G. Allen (1884-1957) writing in a letter written in 1957... 'Andrew move! No not for Andrew. He was settled in Des Moines to stay. The wife, and some of the children went on with the westward move. After a couple of years the wife came back but the children stayed... [In a footnote at the bottom of the page the author notes:] Eunice Miller, Andrew's wife and Jude's mother, never came back to Iowa. Andrew, however, took another wife, Nancy, and they were the parents of a daughter, Emma Janett Allen, who became heir of Andrew's farm in Iowa. Item 2 of Andrew Allen's will reads, 'I give and bequeath unto beloved daughter Emma Jannet all of my personal property remaining after the payment of my debts together with all the Real Estate belonging to me at my death.'
...During his earlier travels in 1849 and 1850, Jude had his eyes open for raw land that had the potential for farmland. In his travels north of North Pigeon, Jude ventured into Harrison county. it is probable that Jude expressed the possibility that his father could obtain some of the 'the bounty' land that was set aside by recent acts of the U.S. Congress for allotting to veterans of its wars. In his letters to his family in Ohio, Jude was sure to bring out the good features of the land here. After the 'Bounty' act was passed in September 1850, Andrew would write Jude and ask for his son's help in locating 'good' land.
Sometime late in 1851 many of Jude's immediate family moved form Ohio to join him in Pottawattamie County, Iowa. They included his father and mother, Andrew and Eunice Miner Allen...
On January 3, 1851, Jude's father, Andrew, took the first step in applying for these lands in Harrison County, Iowa. Andrew appeared before a Cuyahoga County notary public, Edwin B. Mastick, to make a declaration in writing 'that he is the identical Andrew Allen who was a private in the commanded[sic] by Captain Luman Wadham which company was detached from the 37th Regiment and 40th Brigade of the State of New York in the war with Great Britain declared by the United States on the 18th of June 1812.'
The document further makes it known that this statement was for the 'purpose of obtaining the bounty land to which he may be entitled under the act granting bounty land to certain officers & soldiers who have been engaged in the military service of the United State passed September 28, 1850.'
[In speaking of the preparation of Jude Allen and other Mormons to move west to Salt Lake City] Andrew Allen, Jude's father, was one of the few members in the Allen clan that was not preparing to go west. Andrew had come in search of land, and had no use for the religion of his family. He was staking a 40 acre claim on some bounty land north of North Pigeon while most of his children were busy fixing and outfitting wagons, buying needed provisions, and selling unwanted items or trading them for needed goods...
As her family was packing and doing the chores necessary to go to Utah, Jude's mother, Eunice, tried to convince her husband, Andrew, to forget about establishing a farm in Iowa and come with his family to Utah. Helen Edwards Bennett, a granddaughter of Joseph and Nancy Allen Nicholas tells the following story: 'Eunice wanted to go on to Utah with her family and she had on several occasions begged Andrew to give up his land and go to Utah... The morning the wagons were lined up ready to start for Winter Quarters to meet the other Saints making the trip West, Eunice once again asked her husband to give up his land and make the trip to Utah. He turned to her and said, 'I wish to Hell you would go to Utah and I would never hear the word Utah again.' With that she turned and went into the house where she rolled up the few clothes she had, put her shawl around her shoulders and walked out to the wagons. She climbed into Jude's wagon, never looking back. She went to Utah with Jude, Sarah, Nancy, and their families...
On Sep. 24, 1852, Jude Allen and his family descended into the Salt Lake Valley. Certainly Jude's 69-year old mother, Eunice, would be satisfied, arriving with her children, Jude, Sarah, and Nancy.
She'd made the right decision to leave Andrew in Iowa. She had always been protective of her Nancy, the girl with the crippled leg. When Nancy arrived in the Salt Lake Valley, she was four or five months pregnant. It was often a struggle for her to walk. Eunice provided legs for her while crossing the plains. Eunice was convinced that she was needed more now than ever. She was needed and she knew it. Her husband, Andrew, had legs, but they carried him in the wrong direction. He walked away from the Church, Eunice walked towards it. She was true to her beliefs in the prophet, beliefs her children shared with her. She and her children would live near the oracle of God...
[Page 108 has a photo of Eunice Miner Allen and page 169 has a photo of Andrew Allen.]
Jude's mother, Eunice Miner, died on April 15, 1866, in Bountiful. She had lived to be 83 years of age. It's likely that Jude and several of his family made the trip to Bountiful for her funeral...
Andrew Allen, well into his 85th year, died in Magnolia, Harrison County, Iowa on January 10 1867. [Footnote: 'Gravestone Records copied by W.P.A. Graves Registration Project, Harrison County, Iowa. Andrew Allen's entry is listed as '1786-1/10/1867; Magnolia Cem. Possible veteran of War of 1812.' Unfortunately the birth year should read 1782.'] Nearly a year earlier on January 24, 1866, Andrew drafted his will which read as follows: [See transcript in a different note within the notes of this database for Andrew Allen.]
The necessary witnesses and legal statements then followed to make the will official. Andrew did not make any allowance in his will for any of his children by his first wife, Eunice Miner.
Nevertheless it may have been Jude's daughter, Emily, living near her grandfather in Magnolia who relayed the news to her rather and others in the family. With the telegraph lines connected to Utah from Iowa, Jude probably was informed within hours of the death.
The probate court heard Andrew's will read on Feb. 4, 1867 and appointed the first Monday in March to prove it. On April 1, 1867 the last will and testament of Andrew Allen was admitted to probate and recorded in the probate records of Harrison County Iowa."
7. Email dated 11 Jun 2013 from Andrew Allen's descendant Ryan Purcell who is publishing a book on the Allen family of which I attach a first draft subject to further corrections before publication. Ryan comments:
"Though Samuel is not my line, there are a few things that I can clear up. There are numerous reports that Nancy left Samuel for Andrew Allen. That is simply not the case. When the 1851 Iowa Census shows Samuel and Nancy living apart, Andrew and Eunice are still in Ohio. That's why they don't show up on that census. Andrew and Nancy had not even met when she split with Samuel, and Nancy and Andrew didn't marry for two years after their spouses left for Utah.
"Another story is that Samuel and Eunice left for Utah together. While it's true that they left Iowa at the same time with Benjamin Gardner, Eunice traveled with her son, Jude, and daughters, Sarah and Nancy. There is no indication or rumor that they had anything to do with each other in Utah. Eunice lived with her crippled daughter, Nancy Nicholas, until she and her husband moved away from Bountiful. At that point, Eunice went to live with her other daughter, Sarah Coltrin, and that is where she stayed until her death. She is buried with Jude's wife, Mary Ann.
What I'm doing is writing four books of family history, one for the lines of each grandparent. The first two are done and I'm now working on number 3. The Allen history is part of that book. [The following part is about Andrew with references to Nancy White and Samuel Adair:]
"Andrew and Eunice.
Andrew Allen, the youngest son of Jude and Sarah Allen, was born on August 4, 1782, on the family farm in Epsom, New Hampshire. It is interesting to note that while the Allens came from a strong, religious heritage, Andrew's parents must have drifted away from their religious beliefs as no record exists to indicate that Andrew, or any of his siblings, were ever christened. But, with two older brothers and five older sisters, it is clear that Andrew was well looked after.
America was no longer the small, isolated, colonial province it had once been. It was a land booming with industry and opportunity, a fact well known on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. American trade was greatly desired in both England and France, and shipping was critical to the U.S economy. Unfortunately, the country's greatest asset was also its greatest weakness. Shortly after Thomas Jefferson took office as President of the United States in 1801, war broke out in Europe. In his book, 'Jude Allen: But Language Cannot Tell,' Jimmie Stoker, Andrew's great-great-great grandson, wrote:
'During the Napoleonic conflict, American ships were the prized target of both England and France. Jefferson was trying to save American losses, but the result put his country's economy into a tailspin. An economic depression was acutely felt in the western sections of the United States which was brought on in part by Thomas Jefferson's sponsored 'Embargo Act.' This legislation, passed in December 1807, resulted in stopping all American foreign trade, even with Canada. The 'Embargo Act' was a failure and was lifted in March 1809.'
The U.S. economy was struggling and among those affected by the depression were the farmers. That included Andrew Allen.
For close to twenty years, Andrew had worked the Allen land in Epsom with his parents and siblings. But his parents were young, still in their 20s when he was born, and with so many brothers and sisters ahead of him, combined with the weak economy, Epsom didn't offer him the future that he wanted. Jim Stoker wrote:
'By temperament Andrew was restless and didn't resist the centrifugal forces that flung so many New Englanders outward and westward in the early nineteenth century.'
Those "forces" led Andrew to be the first of his line, in 180 years, to move beyond the borders of New Hampshire. Exactly when he struck out on his own is unknown but by 1805, he was over 100 miles from away, in Duxbury, Vermont. It was there, that he met Eunice Miner.
Eunice was born on July 17, 1783, the daughter of Nathaniel and Mary Camp Miner. While Nathaniel was born in Vermont, he had served, for a short time, in 1777, as a private with the New Hampshire Militia during the Revolutionary War. But Vermont was his home and that is where he returned and lived out his life.
How Andrew and Eunice met is uncertain, but one thing may hold the answer — hunger. Andrew was on his own in Duxbury and would have gone looking for work as soon as he arrived. It's possible that he met Israel Miner while looking for employment. Israel was Eunice's older brother and ran his father's farm after Nathaniel's death about 1800. In becoming acquainted with the Miners, Andrew became acquainted with the oldest daughter, Eunice. By the end of the year, acquaintance had turned to romance and just after New Year's, on January 3, 1806, Andrew and Eunice were married in nearby Montpelier. The groom was 23 years old, and the bride was 22.
The Allens made their home in Duxbury for the next three years. Nine months after they were married, their first child was born, a son they named Gordon. The following year, the couple received an early Christmas present when their daughter, Clarissa, arrived on December 13, 1807.
On November 1, 1806, Andrew plopped down $100 and bought a piece of farm land from his brother-in-law, Israel Miner. The following April, Israel sold Andrew more land for an additional $130. Where a struggling young newlywed found such a sum of cash is uncertain, but land records seem to indicate that some of the money was borrowed. Those times were tough and in spite of hard work, life was a struggle. On August 20, 1809, Andrew apparently defaulted on a loan from Mr. Dan Carpenter, and two months later in October, he sold his farm for $300 to repay the debt. Jim Stoker wrote:
'Andrew realized little or no gain from the sales of his land because of the tumbling economy that had gripped the country. If Andrew was lucky, he would keep the shirt on his back, but there wouldn't be much of a nest egg to start over again at the end of his move.'
In the midst of his difficulties, one bright light came in the spring of 1809. On April 21, Andrew and Eunice welcomed their second son, Cyrus.
The 1810 Census confirms that the Allens stayed in Duxbury through the summer of that year. Not long after, however, Andrew packed up his family and headed west.
Jim Stoker continues:
'He and Eunice loaded up an old ox cart with their belongings. With their children in tow, they relocated, driving their oxen west over the Green Mountains, to the eastern shore of Lake Champlain. They paid or bartered to be ferried over to the New York side of the lake to Willsboro, a village of nearly 600 inhabitants, where they would make their new home.'
Willsboro was a town that was old and new at the same time. Settled in 1765, it had been destroyed by the British during the Revolutionary War. Having since been rebuilt, it was only about thirty years old when the Allens arrived. Originally called Willsborough, the spelling was changed after 1860. The journey from Duxbury would have been a difficult one as Willsboro was over two hundred miles away. Still, this was where the family stayed for the next 25 years. Exactly where they lived and how Andrew supported his family is unclear as Jim Stoker explains.
'He may have squatted on land like many of the poor Yankees who had been forced from Vermont in the years around 1810 or he may have had a place provided by those for whom he worked.'
With three children to feed, Andrew worked hard, and Eunice was right beside him. Soon, one more was added to the family. On October 12, 1811, Eunice delivered their third son. Like his grandfather, great-grandfather and great-great-grandfather, the boy was named Jude.
Though the Revolutionary War had been over for years, conflicts with England continued to plague the United States. Eight months after Jude was born, tensions exploded and the War of 1812 began. As Jim Stoker put it, "Andrew Allen and his family were in its path." As confident as the U.S. military was, they were woefully outgunned. Stoker reported that, '... the meager 10,000 armed Americans were joined by nearly 275,000 countrymen.' One of those "countrymen" was Andrew. In an 1851 deposition, Andrew reported,
'... that he was drafted at Willsborough, Essex County, New York on or about the 5th day of September AD 1813 for the term of Six months ... and continued in actual service in said war for the term of two months & Fourteen days and was honorably discharged at Plattsburgh on the 19th day of November AD 1813.'
Andrew was a 31-year-old private with the 37th Regiment and 40th Brigade of the New York Militia. While his military time was undistinguished, it is still indicative of his patriotism and willingness to serve. It would also prove to be an unforeseen benefit to his family 40 years later. Still, leaving his wife alone with five small children would have been extremely difficult. The fact that his time away from home was so short was no doubt a relief to Eunice and the children, especially since there was a new member of the family. Just two weeks after Andrew left with his regiment, their fifth Child, Harriet, was born on July 21, 1813.
Even though Andrew was discharged, the worries continued, as did the war. In fact, it was right on their doorstep. Jim Stoker explained.
'In the late summer of 1814, Sir George Prevost led the most serious British attack along the lake in an attempt to split the United States. On September 11, 1814, in a naval battle on Lake Champlain, American forces under Thomas Macdonough triumphed over the British fleet at the Battle of Plattsburg Bay. Prevost, who had been advancing on Plattsburg with a much larger force than the Americans could field, retreated, deciding not to risk the American threat to his flanks and rear.'
The British retreated and on December 24, 1814, the Treaty of Ghent was signed and the war ended. Finally, Andrew and Eunice could relax. But the worries didn't end. Stoker continued:
'A famine, caused by the aftermath of the War of 1812 and severe cold temperatures in the summer of 1816, struck Willsboro. In the summer of 1817 wheat was nearly non-existent. The price rose to $3 a bushel. The Allen family, like so many of the other families in Willsboro, went without bread for weeks.'
Over the next eleven years, five more children were born: Mary, Emily, Sarah, Ira and finally, Nancy, in 1827. That same year, another daughter joined the family. Three months after Nancy's birth, Andrew and Eunice's oldest son, Gordon, was married. His bride, and their new daughter-in-law, was Sarah Coffee.
In spite of the difficult years, it seems clear that Andrew and Eunice were able to purchase their own farm in Willsboro. But the financial burden was too great and they were forced to sell. On December 4, 1827, Andrew sold the north part of their land to two gentlemen, Theodore French and Daniel Southwich. Six months later, on June 7, 1828, he sold the rest of the property to Solomon and Joshua Townsend. The total income gained from the sale was $218.
Andrew was an ambitious man with dreams of being his own boss again. But the Allens stayed in Willsboro for another two years, and for the time being, he had a large family to support, including his mother-in-law, Mary Camp Miner, who joined the family sometime in the 1820s. Andrew and Eunice did what was necessary to keep food on the table and hired out to anyone who would pay. The children were also expected to work just as hard. Such was the family's life. Then in 1831, the Mormons came to town, and everything changed.
Very little is known about how the Allens became acquainted with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, or what their religious inclinations were in general. New England was ablaze with spiritual fervor and traveling preachers were a common sight. Among those preachers were the Mormon missionaries. After the organization of the Church, Joseph Smith sent elders to New York and Vermont in September of 1831. Two of those missionaries were Jared Carter and Ebenezer Page, and it is likely these men introduced the Gospel to the area of Willsboro.
How Andrew felt about the subject is unknown. He was pushing 50 years old and was a grandfather. His life was one of work and family. Still, it is almost certain that he had some interest in things of a spiritual nature to have been willing to attend the Mormon meetings. While the elders may have been met with curiosity and skepticism, their message made an impression on the Allen family. It is believed that Eunice's mother, Mary, was the first to join the Church, and according to Andrew and Eunice's granddaughter, Mary Ann Nicholas Jones, Eunice soon followed, being baptized on April 15, 1832, by Lee Carter. However, LDS Church records state that Eunice's baptism actually took place on June 15, 1832. The discrepancy remains unresolved, but with only a two month difference, the matter is of little historical significance. In 1833, Andrew followed his wife's lead and also joined the Church. Joining with the Mormons changed the family's lives, but they would find it to be a difficult road.
By the time the Allens were baptized, the Church was already on the move. Joseph Smith had moved from New York to Kirtland, Ohio and was encouraging the Church members to gather there as well. Andrew and Eunice decided to join the emigration and began the preparations. But membership with the Saints wasn't the only factor in the decision. While Willsboro had been their home for 25 years, it had also been a difficult life. The Church offered them a new start in a new land, supported by a new faith.
Like many of the Saints, the family moved to Ohio sometime in 1833 after Andrew's baptism. However, unlike many of the Saints, the Allens didn't go to Kirtland. The reasons for this are unknown, but it may have been due to land. With so many newcomers arriving in so short a time, there were probably more people than available land. Instead, Andrew and Eunice settled in Parma, a town 25 miles southwest of Kirtland, not far from Cleveland. Parma was a farming community and this became their home for the next eighteen years. After two years of work, Andrew bought a 50 acre farm from Mr. Justin Ely on February 16, 1836.
Adopting a new faith with the Mormons and a new home in Ohio, life for Andrew and Eunice was full of changes. The one constant was their family, and their children were growing up. Shortly before the move to Parma, their daughter, Clarissa, had been married to William Beal. Now settled, another wedding was celebrated when their son, Cyrus, married Eunice Ann Lewis on January 25, 1834. Three years later, on February 10, 1837, their son, Jude, also took a bride and married Mary Ann Nicholas, and the following year, another new son came into the family when 18-year-old Emily, married Gardner Potter. Surrounded by their growing family, Andrew and Eunice's days were full. The lone exception was their son, Gordon, who had remained in Willsboro. But the times of joy were tempered with tragedy. On February 25, 1835, Andrew and Eunice watched sadly as their 21-year-old daughter, Harriet, died. Three years later, her sister, Mary, followed.
Having to bury two of his daughters in such a short time put a deep emotional strain on Andrew. This may have contributed to a crisis of faith that struck at Andrew's heart, one that continued to build until it finally reached a breaking point. On February 20, 1841, Andrew attended a Church conference in Grafton, a town 20 miles southeast of Parma. Clarissa and William Beal lived nearby which might explain Andrew's presence in the area. Just after the opening of the meeting and the singing of hymns, the minutes reported that it was then,
'... presented to the Conference that Andrew Allen, an elder, denied the truth of the book of Mormon, he being present acknowledged the charge true, and the Conference voted that he be no longer a member of this church; and on request, gave up his license.'
Whether the family knew the extent of Andrew's feelings or not isn't known, as is whether they were present at the conference. Though it is very likely that the issue had been boiling for some time, there is no doubt that Eunice was badly shaken by the decision of her husband. Back in Willsboro, New York, Andrew's son, Gordon, was completely out of the loop and when he received news of his father's excommunication, nearly two years later, he was totally caught off guard. In a letter to his brother, Jude, Gordon pleaded:
'I wish you Would Write me as soon as you git this leatter I want to hear from Father I have learned from the times & seasons that at a conferance Elder Andrew Allen Denied the Book of Mormon They Demanded his licence & he gave it up'
Exactly what triggered Andrew's action is not certain. While the recent deaths of his young daughters may have been a factor, it could also have been Andrew's view of the Church in general. It was in turmoil. The country, itself, was in a financial crisis. In 1837, a banking panic gripped the nation and, historian Hubert H. Bancroft noted that,
'As one of its results the banking system of the country suffered a general collapse. Out of eight hundred and fifty banks, three hundred and forty-three closed entirely, sixty-two failed partially, and the system of State banks received a shock from which it never fully recovered.'
Smaller, private financial institutions didn't stand a chance and one of those was the Kirtland Safety Society.
Created as a banking system for the Mormon community in Ohio, the Kirtland Safety Society was anything but safe. In fact, it was a complete disaster, and it's failure caused a major rift among the Mormon leaders and membership. The resulting chaos led many disillusioned and bankrupt individuals to leave the Church. Heber C. Kimball described this period of history as, ... the time when the Church was broken up in Kirtland, and when there were not twenty persons on the earth that would declare that Joseph Smith was a Prophet of God.
Whether or not this crisis was the proverbial "straw" that broke Andrew's back, it's impossible that he would not have been affected by it.
As the family, and the Church, tried to put itself back together, things were never quite the same. Because of persecution in Missouri, and the fallout resulting from the financial scandal in Ohio, Joseph Smith was again looking for a place where the Saints could be safe. That location was found in Illinois, in a little village called Commerce. Positioned in a swamp on the Mississippi River, Commerce became Nauvoo in 1840. Within three years, the Mormon faithful were gathering to their new home, and among those were the Allens. But not all of them.
When Andrew's son, Jude, and his daughters, Clarissa and Emily, moved to Nauvoo with their families in 1843, he and Eunice stayed behind. Andrew wasn't interested in following the Mormons anywhere and in spite of the difficulty, Eunice elected to stay with her husband. Still, it would have still been difficult for both of them to watch their family split up and have their children and grandchildren move 500 miles away.
The dust from all the moving and difficulties within the Church had only begun to settle, when it was stirred up again in a heartbreaking way. On June 27, 1844, Joseph and Hyrum Smith were murdered by a mob in Carthage, Illinois. The news put the Mormon Saints into a tumble and sent shock waves through the family. They had barely recovered from the shock when tragedy struck again two months later. Only a year after moving to Nauvoo, Andrew and Eunice's daughter, Emily Potter, suddenly died. She was only 24. Now they had lost three daughters, and given that the Mormons had taken her away, her death would not have helped Andrew's attitude about the Church. But in losing one daughter, they regained another.
Things were changing in Nauvoo, and with Emily gone and Jude planning on joining a pioneering expedition, Clarissa and William Beal decided to move back to Ohio, which they did in the fall of 1846. Their timing was excellent as there was a wedding in the works. On October 25, 1846, the family's youngest son, Ira, presented his parents with a new daughter-in-law when he married Julia Powell. Then on New Year's Day, 1847, Andrew and Eunice's last Child, Nancy, become the bride of Joseph Nicholas.
Joseph Nicholas was the brother to Mary Ann Nicholas, the wife of Jude Allen and daughter-in-law to Andrew and Eunice. Considerable misinformation surrounds him and according to many family records, Joseph's marriage to Nancy was not the first time he had joined the family. Various claims have been made that Joseph had previously married Andrew's daughters, Harriet and Mary, before their untimely deaths. But those marriage dates would mean that Joseph was only 12 and 15 years old when he would have married the two women, both many years older than himself. The fact is that Nancy was his one and only marriage. And what a marriage it was. According to one account,
'An interesting thing in his life was when he and Nancy Allen were to be married. The wedding was planned for January 1, 1847. It was necessary for him to cross the Mississippi River to keep his promise to his bride, but the water had risen and was overflowing the banks of the river. Many people told him that he could not make it across, but he was a man who always kept his promise if possible, so he fastened his trunk to the buckboard, hitched his gray mares to it and mounted the seat. The people were on the bank to watch and they tried to persuade him not to attempt to cross. He drove to the bank of the river, spoke to his team and they plunged into the river and swam safely across. All of the people cheered.'
Among those cheering were Andrew and Eunice.
While Andrew had no use for his family's religion, he was keenly interested in where his children were and how they were doing. Still, it's interesting to note that while most of the family returned to Ohio, they had little interest in living near their parents. While Ira and Julia did stay with Andrew and Eunice in Parma to help with the farm, Nancy and Joseph moved out to Middleburg, a community about five miles west. Clarissa's family joined them there. Letters crossed the miles and kept the distant relatives informed. In a letter written on May 28, 1848, Ira Allen wrote to his brother, Jude, who was living in Iowa.
'wee are all well. Father and Mother enjoy as good health as can be exspected. Nancy is maried to Joseph, they was one year a go last January. they live in Middleburg. William Beal and his family have come back hear, they came hear a year a go last fall they have seven children, they live with Joseph and Nancy. Sarah and Heman are all well I am maried and live in the hous with Father Mo
|
Chris & Julie Petersen's Genealogy
1782 - 1867 (84 years)