Thomas Seignor Allen, Sr.

Thomas served in the war of 1812.

His family donated the land where the Wolf Creek Church and cemetary are

located today.

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His middle name of Sydnor came from Faye Eide and before that Judy Davis.

The 1830 Fountain County Census shows Thomas Allen as head of household with

14 people in the house.

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In the Roach's history in 1820 they crossed the mountains into Ky, crossing the blue Ridge and through Cumberland Gap, and settling on "Little Cainy Creed" ( possibly Caney Creek) in Morgan Co., Ky. (Near Licking River). In NOvember 1827 they moved to Indiana.

Thomas was a member of the Predestinarian or Primitive Baptist church, was Politic and a Democrat. Six feet tall, broad shouldered and not too stout in build. Brown hair and blue eyes.

Fountain Co., Court House land records:

Thomas Allen bought E frac. SE 1/4 Sec. 36 80 acres T18N R7W 12/5/1827

and W1/2 SE 1/4 (80 acres) 17 Nov. 1831

and SE 1/4 (40 acres) % Jan 1833.

Abbrev: BIO Summers, Elizabeth and Thomas Allen 1911

Title: Thomas Allen and Elizabeth Summers Biography 1911

Author: David Allen Roach, 1911

Publication: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Hills/6718/pcbioref.html #tallen

Text: «b»x Thomas & Elizabeth Summers Alle n and John Whitesides Roach

by David Alle n Roach, 1911

Contributed by Bill Bentle y, Chanute, KS

David Allen Roach, son of Henry Lewis Roach and Frances (Allen) Roach, was born in Parke County, Indiana in 1843. After his graduation from the University of Indiana Law School, he practiced law in Fountain, Parke and Montgomery Counties, Indiana. During his youth and adult years, he kept extensive notebooks and diaries concerning his ancestor s which were inherited by his only children, Mary Maude, born 1879 and Mable Louise, born 1885, both unmarried and who were still living in California in the late 1960's. The contents of the notebooks and dairies were handed-down to descendants of David's older sister, Elizabeth (Roach) Butcher, 1837-1905, of Wilson County, Ks then to this lady's grandaughter, Velva (Irwin) Peterson (1903-1981) and finally to a great grandson of Elizabeth Butcher's, Bill Bentley, born 1923, of Chanute, Ks. The following are two stories David Roach wrote about his two grandfathers, Thomas Allen and John Whitesides Roach, both Veterans of the War of 1812 , who settled in Fountain and Parke Counties in the early days.

Thomas Allen, father of Frances Allen Roach, was born in Scott Co, old Virginia on the 13th day of June, 1790. He was reared on a farm and had little educational advantages, there being no public schools at that early day. He was skilled however in the use of the gun and hunting knife. The deep unbroken woods, where the Bear leisurely ambled among the trees, the nimble Deer sped under the hills and plains, where could be heard the screams of the Panther and the barking of the Wolf and the Fox, was his most fascinating retreat.

He was married in Russell County, Old Virginia 1807 to Elizabeth Summers, daughter of John and Martha Williams Summers. Soon after their marriage they determined to make their future home on the sunset side of the Mountains (Blue Ridge). He was so fascinated with the chase that he desired a home in the unbroken woods where they could feast upon venison and wild honey. The only way of transporting freight across the mountains at that early time was by packhorse, that is they "girted" a long wooden frame called a pack saddle upon a horse or mule and fastening such articles as were to be freighted upon it so he could carry them over to the new country. So loading the necessary outfit for housekeeping into a homemade bedtick, it was placed upon a pack saddle on their family horse, then Mrs. Allen, who was a small woman (115 pounds), got up on the horse and taking upon her lap a small spinning wheel, they started upon their journey of more than 100 miles. Mr. Allen (Thomas) walked carrying an axe and gun and drove the cow, the axe and gun being two of the most necessary articles in the outfit. Passing over the mountains and down the headwaters of the Big Sandy River, they settled in Eastern Ky, where they settled down in a section wholly unsettled with no white family of whom they knew in 50 miles of them. He built a log cabin of such small logs as they could handle, split boards and covered it, built the chimney up to the arch , the cracks between the logs were chinked and daubed. There was an opening for a door but the sutter was not hung as it was made of puncheons split from a tree and hewed to an even thickness and pinned on a cross bars. Their bedstead was made by driving a forked stake into the ground of th e cabin some 5' from one wall and 6 1/2 from the other with poles from this to either wall. From these were plate d a mattress of linnbark and this formed the comfortable, though not stylish bed. Their table was a slab split from the trunk of a tree, hued to a smooth surface. Two inch auger holes bored in the underside at each of the four corners and poles driven into them for legs. Mr. Allen had begu n cutting away the timber and clearing up the brush prepara tory to raising a crop of corn the following spring. he piled the brush and limbs into heaps so he could burn them.

Up to this time, they had moved serenly on with perfect contentment, the young wife feeling the greatest security, but now it was apparent that there must be milling one (grinding the corn) and the nearest mill was 60 miles away. The woods about them were full of wolves as they were heard in the immediate neighborhood every night. Occasionally the scream of the panther rang through the woods. One might expect any hour a gang of savage Indians, merciless , angered by seeing the habitation of a white man planted on the hunting ground from which they had recently been driven, swoop down upon the little household and annihilate the family. Until now the young wife had not taken time to think of these troubles, but now they swelled her heart with great fear and sadness. Long before the sun had whitened the East with the dawn of a new day, Mr. Allen had taken the horse and gun, leaving, as he thought, the dog and axe as the only means of defense of the wife, and started upon his two day journey to the mill. After he had gone the dog slipped away and followed him. As the morning light spread back over the mountain slope, followed quickly by the golden sunshine gliding first over the upper most tips of the trees then dropping down until the whole forest was ablaze with its light. Filled with this native grandeur the young wife, forgetting her loneliness, joined the mocking bird and lark in their morning song.

But as the day was well spent that same sheen of sunlight began climbing from limb to twig, her eyes following until it had left the valley about their humble cottage. She saw it on the mountain heights lingering for a moment with diamond brilliance among the water that leadked from a summit in the rocks, and then it was gone. Then night , not unfriendly but lonesome night was there. Frightened with all the spectered imaginations that could lurk in its dark solitude. She now realized that SHE WAS LONE IN A SENSE THAT SHE HAD NEVER REALIZED BEFORE. Separated by miles of unbroken wilderness from all civilization, exposed to probable barbarity of the Indians, defenseless against the beasts of prey, in a house that afforded little or no protection from either (exactly as told to David).

In describing that night of terror she said, " I was afraid to build a fire because its light would stream out through the cracks attracting the attention of any Indians who might be in the vicinity for I knew they would either kill me or carry me away into captivity. I was afraid not to build a fire knowing the wolves could come into the house through the fireplace which was only built about five feet high so far. i went to bed covering up my head but I could not sleep and when in the night the cow came home , I heard her walking in the leaves and was sure it was the Indians. She came up close to the house just by my bed and while I held my breath, I heard her lay down and blow her breath like a cow will when full -- then I knew it was not the Indians. But I tell you I was never so glad to be near a cow in all my life. She seemed to be a dear friend."

She (Elizabeth Summers Allen, 1791-1875) spent the night under this great suspense and in the morning felt, as she expressed it "that there was an Indian behind every stump and tree and brush pile." She could not rest satisfied until she walked around every one of them. I (David , her grandson) asked her if she was not afraid to do so, and she said, "I knew if they were there they would kill me anyway and I wanted to know what was going to happen." Not until late in the night of one of the following days did her husband return. She fully realized the fact that she had in the true spirit of the sacred writ, "Left father and mother and clung to her husband" -- as in the marriage vows. They remained in this solitude until 1809 or 1810, when they returned to Scott Co, Va, "Old Virginia", making the trip with pack saddle through the pathless wilderness, as they had first moved into Ky. During the war of 1812, Thomas Allen was a soldier in that department of the US Army located at Norfolk, Va being a Pvt. in the co. of John Hammond, 7th Regt Va. militia. After peace was declared he returned to his family in SoW Virginia.

In 1820, Thomas and family recrossed the mountains into Ky, crossing the Blue Ridge through Cumberland Gap and settling on Little Cainy Creek in Morgan Co, Ky near Licking River. In Nov 1827 they moved to Indiana where they "entered" and settled on the NE Quarter Sec of Twp 18N , Rg 6W Jackson Twp, Fountain Co, Indiana. They remained on this farm until the death of Mr. Allen which occurred July 7, 1841. Elizabeth remained on the farm during her long widowhood, for she never married a second time. This was except for a short time when she lived with her daughter, Elizabeth and husband, Alfred Fisher in Parke co, Indiana. It was on this farm, Sunday the 7th day of Feb, 1875 that she paid the final debt and passing the dark valley entered that brighter existance of eternal peace.

On many a winters evening when she was more than 80 years of age, I have sat by her fire -- for she spent her last years from 1856 when my mother, Frances Allen Roach died, to 1875, when Elizabeth died. She helped us and lived as one of my (David's) father's family. With greatest interest have I sat by the fire and heard her tell the story of her pioneer life.

Of the three long tiresome journeys across the mountains she told of the burning spring in the mountain water that would burn like alcohol. They camped at this spring and just before they started from it, Mr. Allen fired his gun close to the water and it took fire. She said there was a blue smoke which played a vapor upon the water until the basin of the spring was dry and then it could be seen coming from the cracks in the bottom of the basin. When the blaze was smothered out, the water would reappear and fill the spring as before.

She united with the regular Predestinarian or Primitive Baptist Church while living in Virginia and lived a consistent member until her death, a period of about 60 years. Her husbnad, Thomas was a member of the same church. He was in politics a Democrat. He was physically a well-formed man being 6' in height, broad shouldered and not too stout in build. He had brown hair and blue eyes. He was a fine type of manhood.

Mrs. Allen (Elizabeth) was well formed but small, weighing from 90 to 115 pounds. She was born in Augusta Co, Old Virginia on the 5th day of Nov 1791. Her father, John Summers, Sr, who was born in Pa, was of German ancestry. Her mother, Martha Williams, was of English ancestry.

Thomas Allen's mother was Frances Pettit, born in Southern Old Virginia. His father, Isaac C. Allen (1755-1831) of English ancestry and a soldier in the Revolutionary War. He was born in Scott or Russell Co on the 15th day of March 1755. I am unable to learn much of Isaac Allen's early life. He was reared on a farm, and, like most of the farm boys of his time, started in life at his majority (21 years) with but little education. But like his Virginia peers, his whole being radiated with patriotism and when his state made the first call for volunteers to fight in the American Revolutionary War, he shouldered his rifle and hastened to join the army of George Washington, in whose army he remained until England acknowledged the independence of each of the 13 colonies and peace was declared. During that 7 years of hardship and suffering, he stood in the forefront of that noble army and never flinched from duty. When the state of Virginia, before ceeding the north western Territory , comprising Ohio, Indiana and other states of the middle west of the US Government, the state offered to each of her soldiers of the War of 1776, a quarter section; of land in this territory if they would just go out and survey it of f, making their selection of location. He (Isaac Allen) absolutely refused to accept it saying, "I did not fight in the War of the Revolution for money, but for the liberty of our country and that so long as I am able to make a living f or myself, I will not ask charity of our country." Much of the sentiment of his life is expressed in a verse on the marble shaft that marks his grave in Wolfe Creek Cemetery in Northeastern Parke Co, Indiana: "Unyielding in his country's cause, This Christian patriot stood, Devoted e'vr to right, to laws, to country, home, to God."

NOTE: As a widow of Thomas Allen, in Dec 1850 Elizabeth applied for and received two 40 acre tracts of bounty land on warrant #91551. In January, 1873 she applied for and received a widow's pension of $8.00 per month which dated from 14 Feb 1871. Copies of these applications are available from the National Archives, Washington, DC.

Children of Thomas & Elizabeth (Summers) Allen were:

Martha "Polly", b. 1808; James, b. 1810; John, b. 1811; Isaac, b. 1813; Anna, b. 1814; Frances A., b 7-20-1816; Maria B., b. 1818; Thomas, b. 1820; Elizabeth, b. 1822; William , b. 3-26-1826 and David, b. 1827

Thomas had a son named Isaac Allen (1813-1888). His grandson is James Allen, also buried in Wolf Creek Cemetery.* Reference: Find A Grave Memorial - SmartCopy: Apr 21 2020, 1:42:40 UTC