Heman Allen (of Colchester)
Encyclopedia
Heman Allen was a U.S. Representative
from Colchester
, Vermont
.
Born in Poultney, Vermont
, Allen attended the common schools. He graduated from Dartmouth College
in 1795, studied law, was admitted to the bar
, and commenced practice in Colchester. He served as Sheriff of Chittenden County
, Chief justice of the county court, and as a member of the Vermont House of Representatives
.
Allen was elected as a Democratic-Republican
to the Fifteenth
Congress and served from March 4, 1817, to April 20, 1818, when he resigned. He was appointed United States Marshal for the district of Vermont on December 14, 1818, and reappointed on December 24, 1822. He was appointed by President Monroe as America's first Minister Plenipotentiary to the new republic of Chile beginning on January 27, 1823. When he called on Com. Isaac Hull, whose wife was at her family home saying goodbye before the Hulls sailed to Lima, Allen was making arrangements for passage on the frigate "United States." He met Mrs. Hull's sister Elizabeth, one of the "Seven Lovely Hart Sisters" of Saybrook, and in two weeks they were married and en route to South America. Ann Hart Hull's sister Augusta lived with the Hulls, and was said to have been proposed to by widower Simon Bolivar after his triumphal entry into Lima in Feb. 1824, and that she refused after learning of his fiery and possessive Ecuadorian mistress, Manuelita. Mr. Allen continued in Chile as minister until July 31, 1827. His daughter was stillborn in Valparaiso, and after Elizabeth's sudden death at age 38, he was a widower for 18 years.
Allen served as president of the Burlington
branch of the United States Bank
from 1830 until the expiration of its charter in 1836.
He resumed the practice of his profession in Highgate
, where he died April 7, 1852. He was interred in Allen Cemetery in Burlington.
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from Colchester
Colchester, Vermont
Colchester is a town in Chittenden County, Vermont, United States. The population was 17,067 at the 2010 census. It is the fourth-largest municipality and second-largest town in Vermont by population.-Geography:...
, Vermont
Vermont
Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...
.
Born in Poultney, Vermont
Poultney, Vermont
Poultney is a village in Rutland County of the U.S. state of Vermont. The village is entirely within the town of Poultney. The population was 1,612 at the 2010 census...
, Allen attended the common schools. He graduated from Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College
Dartmouth College is a private, Ivy League university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. The institution comprises a liberal arts college, Dartmouth Medical School, Thayer School of Engineering, and the Tuck School of Business, as well as 19 graduate programs in the arts and sciences...
in 1795, studied law, was admitted to the bar
Admission to the bar in the United States
In the United States, admission to the bar is the granting of permission by a particular court system to a lawyer to practice law in that system. Each U.S. state and similar jurisdiction has its own court system and sets its own rules for bar admission , which can lead to different admission...
, and commenced practice in Colchester. He served as Sheriff of Chittenden County
Chittenden County, Vermont
Chittenden County is a county located in the U.S. state of Vermont. As of 2010, the population was 156,545. Its shire town is Burlington. Chittenden is the most populous county in the state, with more than twice as many residents as Vermont's second-most populous county, Rutland.Chittenden County...
, Chief justice of the county court, and as a member of the Vermont House of Representatives
Vermont House of Representatives
The Vermont House of Representatives is the lower house of the Vermont General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Vermont. The House comprises 150 members. Vermont legislative districting divides representing districts into 66 single-member districts and 42 two-member...
.
Allen was elected as a Democratic-Republican
Democratic-Republican Party (United States)
The Democratic-Republican Party or Republican Party was an American political party founded in the early 1790s by Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. Political scientists use the former name, while historians prefer the latter one; contemporaries generally called the party the "Republicans", along...
to the Fifteenth
15th United States Congress
-Leadership:- Senate :* President: Daniel D. Tompkins * President pro tempore:** John Gaillard , elected March 4, 1817** James Barbour , elected February 15, 1819- House of Representatives :*Speaker: Henry Clay -Members:...
Congress and served from March 4, 1817, to April 20, 1818, when he resigned. He was appointed United States Marshal for the district of Vermont on December 14, 1818, and reappointed on December 24, 1822. He was appointed by President Monroe as America's first Minister Plenipotentiary to the new republic of Chile beginning on January 27, 1823. When he called on Com. Isaac Hull, whose wife was at her family home saying goodbye before the Hulls sailed to Lima, Allen was making arrangements for passage on the frigate "United States." He met Mrs. Hull's sister Elizabeth, one of the "Seven Lovely Hart Sisters" of Saybrook, and in two weeks they were married and en route to South America. Ann Hart Hull's sister Augusta lived with the Hulls, and was said to have been proposed to by widower Simon Bolivar after his triumphal entry into Lima in Feb. 1824, and that she refused after learning of his fiery and possessive Ecuadorian mistress, Manuelita. Mr. Allen continued in Chile as minister until July 31, 1827. His daughter was stillborn in Valparaiso, and after Elizabeth's sudden death at age 38, he was a widower for 18 years.
Allen served as president of the Burlington
Burlington, Vermont
Burlington is the largest city in the U.S. state of Vermont and the shire town of Chittenden County. Burlington lies south of the U.S.-Canadian border and some south of Montreal....
branch of the United States Bank
Second Bank of the United States
The Second Bank of the United States was chartered in 1816, five years after the First Bank of the United States lost its own charter. The Second Bank of the United States was initially headquartered in Carpenters' Hall, Philadelphia, the same as the First Bank, and had branches throughout the...
from 1830 until the expiration of its charter in 1836.
He resumed the practice of his profession in Highgate
Highgate, Vermont
Highgate is a town in Franklin County, Vermont, United States. The population was 3,397 at the 2000 census. The town is on the border of Quebec, Canada and is a border town of Philipsburg, Quebec.-History:...
, where he died April 7, 1852. He was interred in Allen Cemetery in Burlington.