Ira Allen on the campus of the University of Vermont in Burlington VT
Overview
Ira was the youngest sibling of Ethan Allen and a co-investor in the Onion River Company. Ira became quite active in the formation of the new state of Vermont. However, he became embroiled in a mysterious plot to bring arms from Europe to Vermont with the potential to foment a Canadian Rebellion. Fighting these charges cost Ira all his assets and he died penny less in Philadelphia.
Ira provided a portion of the initial seed money to found the University of Vermont.
Primary Sources
Allen, Ethan, Ira Allen, and J. Kevin Graffagnino. Ethan and Ira Allen: Collected Works. 3 vols. Benson, Vt: Chalidze Publications, 1992.
Allen, Ira. The Natural and Political History of the State of Vermont, One of the United States of America; to Which Is Added an Appendix Containing Answers to Sundry Queries Addressed to the Author. Rutland, Vt: C. E. Tuttle Co, 1969.
Secondary Sources
Hoyt, Edwin P. The Damndest Yankees: Ethan Allen & His Clan. Brattleboro, Vt: S. Greene Press, 1976.
Wilbur, James Benjamin. Ira Allen – Founder of Vermont 1751-1814. 2 vols. Boston and New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1928.
Researching the American Revolution 