Allen Family Papers, 1766/1933

Access and use

Location of collection:
West Virginia and Regional History Center
West Virginia & Regional History Center
West Virginia University
P.O. Box 6069
1549 University Avenue
Morgantown, WV 26506
Contact for questions and access:
POC: Lori Hostuttler
Phone: (304) 293-3536
Restrictions:

No special access restriction applies.

Terms of access:

Permission to publish or reproduce is required from the copyright holder. For more information, please see the Permissions and Copyright page on the West Virginia and Regional History Center website.

Preferred citation:

[Description and date of item], [Box/folder number], Allen Family Papers, A&M 2257, West Virginia and Regional History Center, West Virginia University Libraries, Morgantown, West Virginia.

Summary

Extent:
31 Linear Feet 31 ft. (72 document cases, 5 in. each); (8 unboxed ledgers, 12 in.)
Creator:
Allen family
Abstract:
Personal and business correspondence, legal papers, ledgers, family records, and other papers of the Allen family of Moorefield, Hardy County, West Virginia. Also includes papers of members of the Barr, Weibley, Taylor, and Gamble families. The majority of the collection includes personal and business correspondence, legal papers, and financial records of Judge James W.F. Allen (1813/12/03 - 1875/07/16), a Hardy County lawyer, Jacksonian Democrat, and Circuit Court Judge in Hardy and Grant Counties (active ca. 1852-1865, 1872-1875). Also includes the papers of Allen's second wife, Caroline Williams Allen (d. 1907), several of Allen's children, and other related people, and a large group of 19th century advertising memorabilia. See Scope and Content Note for more information.
Language:
English .
Preferred citation:

[Description and date of item], [Box/folder number], Allen Family Papers, A&M 2257, West Virginia and Regional History Center, West Virginia University Libraries, Morgantown, West Virginia.

Background

Scope and content:

Personal and business correspondence, legal papers, ledgers, family records, and other papers of the Allen family of Moorefield, Hardy County, West Virginia. Also includes papers of members of the Barr, Weibley, Taylor, and Gamble families. The majority of the collection includes personal and business correspondence , legal papers, and financial records of Judge James W.F. Allen (December 2, 1813 - July 16, 1875), a Hardy County lawyer, Jacksonian Democrat, and Circuit Court Judge in Hardy and Grant Counties (active ca. 1852-1865, 1872-1875). Disbarred because of Confederate sympathies, Allen regained bench in 1872. The collection also includes the papers of Allen's second wife, Caroline Williams Allen (d. 1907); son and merchant Franklin Page Allen (b. 1860); daughter Eleanor Boyd Allen (b. 1866); daughter and teacher Marie Annette Allen (b. 1841); daughter and teacher Mary E. Allen (b. 1857); and son Paul Allen. There is also business correspondence, legal papers, and financial records of Alfred Taylor, a leather worker and dealer in Moorefield; letters to Charity Johnson, a black "mammy," from her charges; correspondence and diaries of Mrs. Sophie Weibley, wife of a Kansas frontier doctor; and a large group of 19th century advertising memorabilia. The collection is divided into series, which include:

Series 1. Judge James W. F. Allen Papers (1st); 1766-1876, undated (includes facsimiles); boxes 1-20.
Series 2. Judge James W. F. Allen Papers (2nd); ca. 1830s-1880s; boxes 1-26.
Series 3. Caroline W. Allen Papers; 1848-1907, undated; boxes 1-6.
Series 4. Frank P. Allen Papers; 1878-1932, undated; boxes 1-6.
Series 5. Eleanor Boyd Allen Papers; 1878-1933, undated; boxes 1-7.
Series 6. Alfred Taylor Papers; 1828-1889, undated; boxes 1-4.
Series 7. Papers of Various Persons; 1833-1932, undated; boxes 1-4.
Series 8. Ledgers; undated; boxes 1-2 and 8 loose ledgers.

Physical location:
West Virginia and Regional History Center / West Virginia University / 1549 University Avenue / P.O. Box 6069 / Morgantown, WV 26506-6069 / Phone: 304-293-3536 / URL: West Virginia & Regional History Center
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard