JOSEPH W. ALLEN.
For over forty-five years Joseph W. Allen, veteran, merchant, and descendant of an old and distinguished colonial family, has been identified with the civic and mercantile life of the city of Atchison. He comes of rugged New England stock, noted for their integrity, honesty and proverbial industry throughout the United States, and has been one of the builders of Atchison’s largest wholesale grocery house. Mr. Allen has grown up with Atchison, and has come to be one of its best known and highly respected citizens, having risen from moderate circumstances at the outset of his career to a position of affluence and decided prestige among the commercial men of northeast Kansas.
Joseph W. Allen was born in Craftsbury, Orleans county, Vermont, March 2, 1841, a son of Hollis F. and Sophia (Root) Allen, natives of Massachusetts. The father was a merchant and when a young man removed from his native State to Craftsbury, Vt., where he was engaged in the mercantile business for a number of years, and in the latter part of his life he came to Atchison, Kan., dying in 1874. He had three sons who served in the Union army: Frank H., who later came to Atchison and was a member of the wholesale drug firm of McPike & Allen; George R. Allen, a retired manufacturer, living at Alton, Ill., and Joseph W., with whose career this review is directly concerned. A daughter, Anna H., wife of the late Frank Howard, founder of the Frank Howard Manufacturing Company of Atchison, died in 1915 at her home in this city. Another daughter, Nellie, makes her home with her brother, Joseph W., in Atchison, and is now in Honolulu. The Allen family is of Scotch origin, and Ethan Allen, of Revolutionary fame, was a member of the same family.
Mr. Allen was reared to manhood in Vermont and received a good common school education, attending the Craftsbury Academy. On October 2, 1861, in answer to the President’s call for volunteers to defend the Union, he enlisted for three years in Company I, First regiment, Vermont cavalry. He was mustered in with the regiment November 19, 1861, at Burlington, Vt., as bugler, and was mustered out of the service November 18, 1864. He left Burlington December 12, 1861, for Washington, D. C., and remained there with his regiment until February, 1863, at which time he was detailed at General De Forest’s headquarters as musician. Afterwards, he was detailed to General Kilpatrick’s headquarters as musician and remained there until General Wilson took command of the division in April, 1864. He was then detailed to General Sawyer’s headquarters until October, 1864, at which time he came to Burlington Vt., where he was mustered out of the service. Mr. Allen was in thirty-seven engagements during his three years of service, and was never wounded nor captured, nor was he absent from duty a single day on account of sickness. His regiment did notable service under Generals Sheridan and Custer, and he was engaged in the famous battle of Winchester. An incident of Mr. Allen’s army career is well worth recording. He effected, single handed, the capture of four Confederate soldiers, and the story of the capture is one of the historical incidents of the great conflict. The incident took place near Lightersville, Md., and it was after the regiment had taken part in the battle of Huntersville, Pa., July 2, 1863, and the battle of Gettysburg, July 3, 1863, the battle of Monterey on the Fourth of July, Lightersville on July 5, and on the sixth of July occurred the battle of Hagerstown. The men were all fatigued and had been deprived of both sleep and rest for several nights in succession, Joseph Allen among the rest. When they had ridden nearly all night to a point near Lightersville, they halted for rest in the small hours of the morning. Many were dismounted and fell asleep on the ground, Mr. Allen doing likewise. He slept so soundly, however, that when he awoke his comrades were gone. It was dark and he was uncertain in which direction the command had gone. He mounted his horse and let the animal pursue its own way without guidance. Dashing down the road, horse and rider came out into a main highway and unexpectedly came upon four men who were as much taken by surprise and fright as Allen himself. The rebels, supposing that there was a larger number of Union men following, made haste to surrender without waiting for an invitation. Allen promptly accepted their surrender and took them along to the main body which was some distance ahead. His prisoners proved to be a major, a captain and two lieutenants of the Eighth Georgia regiment.
Mr. Allen rode during the war a very sensible and intelligent cavalry horse, and thereby hangs a tale. In one of the cavalry engagements in which he participated he and his comrade were riding together under heavy fire. His riding partner was shot from the saddle and Mr. Allen felt his own horse sinking under him. Believing that the animal was mortally hurt he dismounted and jumped on the back of his dead comrade’s mount and rode away to safety. That night while lying in his blankets with the earth for his couch and the starlit sky for a canopy overhead he felt something soft and gentle nudging him. Startled, he arose hastily and was overjoyed to find that it was his favorite horse which had returned safely, but badly wounded, from the battlefield, and had hunted out his master from among the hundreds of recumbent and sleeping forms on the camping ground.
He returned to Craftsbury after his war service and engaged in mercantile business which he continued until 1870, when he came to Atchison at the solicitation of his brother, Frank H., who was at that time the junior member of the firm of McPike & Allen, wholesale druggists of Atchison. Mr. Allen entered the employ of the company as traveling salesman and was thus engaged for a period of three years. He then embarked in the grocery business in partnership with Colonel Quigg under the firm name of Quigg & Allen. Colonel Quigg commanded the Thirteenth Kansas infantry regiment during the Civil war. The firm of Quigg & Allen carried on a wholesale grocery business for about three years. Then Mr. Allen purchased his partner’s interest, and three years later consolidated with the A. B. Symns Grocer Company. A. B. Symns became the president of the company and Mr. Allen became vice-president. When Mr. Symns died in 1905 Mr. Allen became president and held the position until 1911 when he retired from active participation in the business, although he still retains a substantial interest in the company. Mr. Allen was one of the dominant individuals in the development of the Symns Grocer Company in the extensive concern which it is at the present time. When he joined forces with Mr. Symns their combined capital did not exceed $15,000, and during his period of association with this company their business developed into enormous proportions, and the capital of the Symns Grocer Company now amounts to $300,000. Mr. Allen was a natural salesman and had complete charge of the traveling sales department of the Symns Grocer Company, and, in fact, during the first few years was the entire traveling sales force himself. Later, as additional salesmen were added to the force he continued to direct the sales department of the business. Mr. Allen is a prominent factor in the business world of Atchison, and is vice-president of the Atchison Savings Bank. He is a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, and in his political views is absolutely independent.