Allen, Andrew, 1740-1825

ALLEN, Andrew, a Delegate from Pennsylvania; born in Philadelphia, Pa., in June 1740; was graduated from the University of Pennsylvania at Philadelphia in 1759; completed law studies at the Temple in London, England; was admitted to the bar in 1765 and commenced practice in Philadelphia; member of the provisional assembly and of the provisional council 1765-1775; appointed attorney general in 1766; member of the common council of Philadelphia in 1768; member of the committee of safety in 1775 and 1776; Member of the Continental Congress in 1775 and 1776, but disapproved of independence and withdrew in June 1776; when the Royalist Army entered New York he went within the British lines, took the oath of allegiance to the King, renouncing those he had taken as a Member of the Continental Congress, and went to London, England; was attainted of treason and his estates confiscated; compensated by the British Government with a pension of £400 per annum; died in London, England, March 7, 1825.

<ul><b>RACES</b>
<li>12/31/1775 PA Continental Congress Won 100.00% (+100.00%)</li>
<li>12/31/1774 PA Continental Congress Won 100.00% (+100.00%)</li>
</ul>

<p>Andrew Allen (June 1740 – March 7, 1825) was a lawyer and official from the Province of Pennsylvania. Born into an influential family, Allen initially favored the colonial cause in the American Revolution, and represented Pennsylvania in the Second Continental Congress from 1775 to 1776. Like many other wealthy elites in Pennsylvania, however, he resisted radical change, and became a Loyalist after the Declaration of Independence and the Pennsylvania Constitution of 1776.</p>

<p>Allen was born in June 1740 into a prominent Philadelphia family; his father, William Allen, was a successful merchant and lawyer, and would later be the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. Andrew graduated from the College of Philadelphia (later named the University of Pennsylvania) in 1759, read law under Benjamin Chew, and then went to London to complete a legal education at the Inner Temple. He returned to Philadelphia in 1765, was admitted to the bar, and began to practice law. That same year Allen was elected to the Pennsylvania Assembly. In 1766, he was appointed the colony's Attorney General. He married Sarah ("Sally") Coxe, sister of Tench Coxe, in April 1768. During the same year he was granted membership to the American Philosophical Society through his election. In 1770 his brother-in-law, Governor John Penn, gave him a seat on the Governor's Council.</p>

<p>When tensions increased before the American Revolution, Allen was one of those critical of the Intolerable Acts passed by the British Parliament in 1774. He signed the non-importation agreement boycotting British goods in protest of the Boston Port Act, and helped form an independent militia unit, the First Troop Philadelphia City Cavalry, on November 2, 1774. On June 30, 1775, he was appointed to the Committee of Safety by the Assembly.</p>