Ira Allen

Ira Allen. A pivotal figure in the early history of Vermont, Ira Allen was a statesman, soldier, and land speculator who played a crucial role in the region's path to statehood. The younger brother of famed Green Mountain Boys leader Ethan Allen, he was instrumental in founding the University of Vermont and served as a key diplomat and treasurer for the independent Vermont Republic. His later life was consumed by ambitious but ultimately disastrous international land schemes that led to financial ruin and legal troubles.

Early life and family

Born in Cornwall, Connecticut, Ira Allen was the youngest son in a family that would become deeply influential in the New Hampshire Grants. He moved with his family to the Green Mountains region, settling in what would become Sunderland, Vermont. His older brothers, notably Ethan Allen and Levi Allen, were already engaged in the political and military struggles over land claims between New York and the settlers. Allen received a basic education but was largely self-taught, developing considerable skill as a surveyor, which proved invaluable in the territory’s contentious land disputes. The Allen family became synonymous with the settler resistance, with Ira often serving as a strategist and administrator behind the more flamboyant public actions of his brother Ethan Allen.

Role in the American Revolution

During the American Revolutionary War, Ira Allen was a fervent supporter of the colonial cause and the establishment of an independent Vermont Republic. He served as a member of the Vermont General Assembly and was appointed the first Treasurer of Vermont in 1778. Allen was deeply involved in the political and military maneuvering to defend the republic’s borders from both the British Army and the claims of neighboring states like New York and New Hampshire. He participated in the Battle of Bennington and was crucial in organizing and financing the fledgling Vermont militia. Allen also engaged in secret diplomatic negotiations, known as the Haldimand Affair, with British officials in Quebec to potentially secure Vermont’s independence, a controversial episode that demonstrated his pragmatic and sometimes clandestine statecraft.

Founding of the University of Vermont

One of Ira Allen’s most enduring legacies was his role in the establishment of higher education in Vermont. In 1791, he donated 50 acres of land and secured the charter for the University of Vermont from the Vermont General Assembly. His vision was to create an institution that would promote learning and civic virtue in the new state, which had just been admitted to the Union in 1791 as the 14th state. Allen is considered the university’s principal founder, and his initial gift of land in Burlington forms the core of its modern campus. The university’s oldest building, named Old Mill, stands on part of his original donation, cementing his foundational role in Vermont’s educational history.

Land speculation and later life

Following Vermont’s statehood, Ira Allen embarked on grandiose and risky land speculation ventures that would dominate his later years and lead to his downfall. He purchased enormous tracts of land, including a significant portion of Northwest Vermont. His most ambitious scheme involved purchasing over 100,000 acres in Frenchtown and planning a large settlement. To finance these ventures and equip a proposed Vermont militia, he traveled to Europe and arranged to purchase 20,000 muskets and other arms from the French Republic. However, his ship, the *Olive Branch*, was captured by the Royal Navy off the coast of Ireland during the Quasi-War, and he was accused of planning to supply arms to Irish rebels against the British Crown. This resulted in protracted legal battles, imprisonment in England, and the confiscation of his cargo, which bankrupted him and consumed his remaining wealth and health.

Legacy and honors

Despite his financial failures, Ira Allen is remembered as a founding father of Vermont. His contributions to the establishment of the University of Vermont remain his most visible and positive legacy, with the university’s Ira Allen Chapel named in his honor. His extensive writings, including his *Natural and Political History of the State of Vermont*, provide a vital historical record of the early Vermont Republic. While often overshadowed by the legendary status of his brother Ethan Allen, Ira’s work as a financier, diplomat, and institution-builder was critical to Vermont’s survival and development. He is interred in the Laurel Hill Cemetery in Philadelphia, far from the Green Mountains he helped shape.

Category:1751 births Category:1814 deaths Category:People from Vermont Category:American surveyors Category:University of Vermont