Robert Allen

Robert was born in February of 1824, in Lee County, Virginia, to John and Martha (Clark) Allen. As a child he moved with parents and siblings from their Virginia home to Edgar County, Illinois. It was there on Dec 14, 1853, that he married Nancy Simpson.

When the Nebraska Territory opened for settlement, Robert purchased a bounty land warrant, and soon after staked a claim in the hills west of Fort Calhoun where he and his family lived there for the next several years. The land was described as 160 acres in the N ½ of NW ¼ of Section 20; SW ¼ of SW ¼ of Section 17; SE ¼ of SE ¼ of Section 18 in Township 17N Range 12E. The government survey of that township and range done in March of 1856, shows Robert’s name on land positioned on a trail that was called The Fontenelle to Florence Road.  Just to the south of his claim was The Old California Trail. His dwelling was described as being a 14’ x 16’ log structure, one story high with a board roof and plank floor. There were two hung doors and one window with glass. He proclaimed at the land office that he had his house, cooking stove, necessary utensils, as well as bed and bedding for his family of wife and two children. He had about twenty acres fenced and seven acres plowed and planted to corn and beans.

Robert and his family moved to Nodaway County, Missouri, before 1860, and settled in Jackson Township, near the community of Ravenwood. During the Civil War, he served with the Union in Companies C and H, the Nodaway County Regiment of the Missouri Home Guards. After he mustered out in October of 1861, Robert, Nancy and their family apparently returned to Illinois for a while where two of their children were born. In 1868, they bought land and returned to Nodaway County where they farmed and lived out their lives. Robert died December 21, 1900, and Nancy lived until May 1, 1909. They are buried in the Sweethome Cemetery. They were the parents of six children, five of whom grew to adulthood—Julia, Marion, George, Marietta, and Huston.

 Vinton, Merri Allen, Hillbillies & Hexsigns, “A Study of the Ancestors and Descendants of William Henry Allen & Ruth Emily Bottorff, of Washington County, Nebraska”, 2008.