Edward Allen and his family

I can't believe that I've not written a blog post about my grandfather, but it is not coming up on searches.  So this will be a brief sketch of him, and will also discuss briefly his children.  

Edward Franklin Allen was the son of George and Nancy McCoy Allen.  He was born January 17, 1868 in Gallatin, Daviess County, Missouri, where his parents had moved shortly before.  They had intended to live there permanently, but George had either sold his land or rented it out, and the farmer who took it over didn't keep his financial commitment.  The family moved back to Pulaski County, Indiana, where they had lived for about 20 years, and Ed spent much of his boyhood there.  

Sadly, Nancy died in 1880.  His father remarried very quickly, and the whole family went to Missouri.  Apparently his land was really sold this time.  This would have been the first time that Ed really got to know his grandfather, Archibald Allen, as Arch, a widower, had remarried and moved to Daviess County before Ed was born.  

We lost track of him for a few years, and then he is found in Montana, where his younger brother lived near Virginia City.  The younger George was a school teacher who studied nights to become an attorney, and Ed carefully noted that opportunity.  Ed himself became a school teacher, at least for a short period of time, near Soda Springs, Idaho.  That's where he met Edith Knott, and the rest is history. 

 Ed was 28 and Edith, the daughter of John Wilson and Harriet Starr Knott, was 18 when they married.  They first made their home in Idaho but moved to Salt Lake City, Utah, where they lived the rest of their lives and raised their families.  Ed worked for the post office for a few years, and studied at night to become an attorney, as his brother had.  He was admitted to the bar in 1913, or possibly sooner-the 1913 date gives him authority to practice in federal court.  

Ed was an elder of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in Salt Lake City, and of the Sons of the Veterans of the Civil War, Knights of Pythias, and Eagle lodge.  He was an assistant prosecuting attorney and then city attorney during the 1930s, which the family referred to as "the rich years".  They weren't rich, but one thing Ed did was buy his wife a fur coat or jacket during that time.  

After returning to private practice, the family income was greatly diminished because Ed refused to charge anything like the going price for legal services, especially for members of his church and the other organizations he belonged to.  Ed died July 10, 1940, after a battle with cancer.  Edith had serious health issues at the same time, so the nearby children were quite busy caring for two patients at the same time. Edith lived until 1954, but never fully recovered her health. 

The children of Ed and Edith Allen are:

Forest Wilson, born in 1898 and died in 1900

Vernon, born in 1901 in Salt Lake City.  He married Ruby Rachel Allen, the daughter of Lyman and Winona Guthrie Allen.  They adopted a son, who may be living.  

Tessora (Tessie to the family) was born in 1904.  She married Thomas McCall, the son of George and Harriet Jarret McCall, in 1922.  Their children are Thomas. Josephine, Barbara, Betty Lou, and Shirley. Tessie had rheumatic fever as a child which affected her heart, and she died apparently of complications in 1939.  

Nancy Corinne, known as Rene, was born in 1907.  She first married Guy C. Campbell.  They had one son, known as Courtney but apparently his first name was George.  Her first husband died in 1959 and she then married J. Hugh Hamilton in 1963. (The two men had known each other as professors in electrical engineering.)  Rene died in 1984.

Edith was born 9 years after Rene, so there may have been unsuccessful pregnancies that we don't know about.  Edith married Owen Carlyle Anderton, son of John and Ellen Taylor Anderton.  They are the parents of three children, two of whom are yet living.  Edith died in 1992.

Richard was the last child.  He was born in 1919, and married Gladys Holbrook, daughter of Loren and Etta Stanard Holbrook.  They had four daughters, two of who are living.  

Finally, there was a stillborn child in 1922.  As far as is known, he was not given a name.  

This is little enough information about my grandfather, who from all accounts was a good man, a loving husband, and a credit to his community.  I'd love to hear more about him.