Henry Watkins Allen

Henry Watkins Allen (1820-1866) was born in Prince Edward County, VA but moved to Lexington, Missouri with his father at the age of 10 following his mother’s death. He worked as a clerk and studied at Marion College for two years. In 1837 at the age of 17, Allen left home for Grand Gulf, Mississippi where he taught and studied law. In 1842, he joined Sam Houston’s Army of the Republic of Texas but left after 6 months. Allen returned to Mississippi and married Salome Crane. He was elected to Mississippi State Legislature in 1845. In 1851, his wife died.

In 1852, Allen moved to Louisiana after buying a portion of Westover Plantation in West Baton Rouge Parish. The sale came with 125 enslaved people. He likely brought with him more enslaved people from his plantation in Mississippi. He and his business associate William Nolan divided the land three years later. Allen named his half Allendale. Leaving overseers to run the estate, Allen traveled, wrote about the South and its people, studied law at Harvard, and served as a Louisiana State Legislator from 1853-54.

When the Civil War began, Allen enlisted in the Confederate Army. He fought as an officer in battles at Shiloh, Vicksburg, and Baton Rouge, where a cannon blast shattered both legs, crippling him for life. Despite his injuries, he was promoted to brigadier general. He was nominated for Governor in August of 1863 and received nearly 95% of the votes.

As Governor of the Confederate-held areas of Louisiana (January 25, 1864-June 2, 1865), Allen did much to aid Louisiana’s increasingly poor population and was by all accounts, a good administrator. From the State Capitol in Shreveport, Allen established a system of unified currency and state-run stores with low-cost supplies. He organized a trade route to Mexico through Texas for the export of cotton and import of necessities. Cotton cards (tools for combing cotton fibers) were distributed for free to make cloth. He also approved free distribution of medicine, maintained public schools, and opened two medical dispensaries in North Louisiana. 

Like many other Confederate officers, Allen fled to Mexico when the war ended. He died one year later in 1866. His body was brought back to Louisiana and buried in New Orleans, but eventually reinterred on the grounds of Louisiana’s State Capitol in 1885 (now the Old State Capitol).  

***To learn more about Henry Watkins Allen and the Civil War period in West Baton Rouge, visit https://www.westbatonrougemuseum.org/962/Civil-War