Early Life and Career
Allen was born in Prince Edward County, Virginia, and educated at Marion College, Missouri, taught school and practiced law in Mississippi, and served in the Texas Revolution against Mexico. He was elected as a member of the Texas House of Representatives in 1846, after having studied law at Harvard. He later moved to Louisiana and was elected to the Louisiana Legislature in 1853. In 1859 he went to Europe with the intention of taking part in the Italian struggle for independence, but arrived too late. He toured through Europe, the incidents of which are recounted in Travels of a Sugar Planter. He was elected to the legislature during his absence, and on returning took a prominent part in the business of that body. He had been a Whig in politics, but had joined the Democratic Party when Buchanan was nominated for president in 1856.
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