Richard Allen

Full Name: Richard Allen
Date of birth: June 10, 1830
Date of death: May 16, 1909

Terms of Service
Biographical Notes
Committee Information

Terms of Service top

Chamber	District	Dates of Service	Legislatures	Party	City/County	Note	Counties in District
H	14	Jan 14, 1873 - Mar 22, 1873	13th ⁽¹⁾ ⁽²⁾ ⁽³⁾	Republican	Houston / Harris		Harris, Montgomery
H	14	Feb 8, 1870 - Jan 14, 1873	12th ⁽⁴⁾ ⁽⁵⁾ ⁽⁶⁾	Radical Republican	Houston / Harris		Harris, Montgomery

(1) Resolution adopted in contested election case of Gustave Cook, et al. v. Richard Allen, et al., 3/20/1873, p. 407; special order resumed, resolutions and majority report adopted, 3/21/1873, pp. 411-413; E.T. Schmidt and Gustave Cook sworn 3/22/1873, p. 414. House Journal. March 20, 1873 March 21, 1873 March 22, 1873
(2) Gustave Cook, sworn 3/22/1873, unseated Richard Allen in election contest the same day. Members of the Texas Congress 1836-1845; Members of the Texas Legislature 1846-2004, 2005.
(3) Richard Allen and Em Anderson unseated in March 1873, testimony of Goldsteen Dupree, pp. 41-42. Through Many Dangers, Toils, and Snares: Black Leadership in Texas, 1868-1898, 2016.
(4) 12th Legislature, Provisional Session - Qualified and took the oath of office on 2/8/1870. House Journal.
(5) Party affiliation, Radical. Texas Almanac for . . . and Emigrant's Guide to Texas.
(6) Radical Republican Association, established 6/4/1870, p. 26. Through Many Dangers, Toils, and Snares: Black Leadership in Texas, 1868-1898, 2016.

Terms of Service top

House District 14
Jan 14, 1873 - Mar 22, 1873
Legislatures: 13th ⁽¹⁾ ⁽²⁾ ⁽³⁾
Party: Republican
Home City/County: Houston / Harris
Counties in district: Harris, Montgomery

House District 14
Feb 8, 1870 - Jan 14, 1873
Legislatures: 12th ⁽⁴⁾ ⁽⁵⁾ ⁽⁶⁾
Party: Radical Republican
Home City/County: Houston / Harris
Counties in district: Harris, Montgomery

Biographical Information top

Resolutions and Journal entries

79th Legislature, R.S., HR 589, paying tribute to African American legislators and constitutional convention delegates of 1868-1900. Resolutions - Congratulatory and Honorary.
81st Legislature, R.S., HCR 81, paying tribute to African American legislators and constitutional convention delegates. Resolutions - Congratulatory and Honorary.
85th Legislature, R.S., HR 452, celebrating Black History Month and honoring the leadership and vision of African American lawmakers. Resolutions - Congratulatory and Honorary.
88th Legislature, R.S., SCR 13, Recognizing the Texas Black Reconstruction Legislators Recognition Act. SB 667, Texas Black Reconstruction Legislators Recognition Act. Resolutions - Congratulatory and Honorary. SB 667 SCR 13
88th Legislature, R.S., SCR 13, Recognizing the Texas Black Reconstruction Legislators Recognition Act. SB 667, Texas Black Reconstruction Legislators Recognition Act. Resolutions - Legislative Policy. SB 667 SCR 13

Biographical Sketches

Biographical sketch, p. 76 (footnote 29). Black Leaders: Texans for Their Times, 1981.
Biographical information in Alwyn Barr, "Black Legislators of Reconstruction Texas," Volume 32, Number 4, December 1986, pp. 340-352. Civil War History.
Portrait and biographical sketch. Forever Free: Nineteenth Century African-American Legislators and Constitutional Convention Delegates of Texas, 2002.
ALLEN, RICHARD (1830-1909). In 1878, "the conservative wing of the Republican party nominated him for lieutenant governor, thereby making him the first black to seek statewide office in Texas." Handbook of Texas Online.
Biographical sketch, p. 39, History of the Republican Party in Texas 1865-1965, 1965.
Biographical sketch, pp. 19-20. Chapter 11, "Richard Allen: The Opportunist," pp. 190-194. Birth year 1830, death year 1909, Appendix D. Through Many Dangers, Toils, and Snares: Black Leadership in Texas, 1868-1898, 2016.

Other Resources

"The Roots of Texas' Black Lawmakers," 3/18/1996. Describes lack of available information on Texas' first African American legislators. Austin American-Statesman.
Biographical information, pp. 56-57. Black Leaders: Texans for Their Times, 1981.
Mentioned in Black Texans: a History of African Americans in Texas, 1528-1995, 1996.
Antioch Missionary Baptist Church, Houston, Texas. "A red brick church was designed by African American Richard Allen, a former member of the Texas Legislature, and became the first house of worship owned by African Americans in Houston." BlackPast.org.
Mentioned in Minority Civil Rights and the Texas Legislature, 2018.
Mentioned in Negro Legislators of Texas and Their Descendants, 1970.
Mentioned, pp. 147-156. Time of Hope, Time of Despair: Black Texans During Reconstruction, 1981.

Photographs

Photograph. Richard Allen, State Preservation Board

Composite Photographs on Display in the Capitol

13th session composite photo of Senate and House members (Ground floor elevator vestibule, east wall. GW.V3). State Preservation Board.
13th session composite photo of Senate and House members (Ground floor elevator vestibule, east wall. GW.V3). State Preservation Board.
Pictorial Monogram of the State Government of Texas 1873 (DeGolyer Library, SMU, Lawrence T. Jones III Collection). DeGolyer Library, SMU, Lawrence T. Jones III Texas Photographs.

Committee Information top

13th R.S. - 1873 Immigration Indian Affairs Redistricting
12th Adjourned - 1871 Commerce and Manufactures Finance
12th R.S. - 1871 Commerce and Manufactures Finance
12th 1st C.S. - 1870 Finance Printing and Contingent Expenses
12th Provisional - 1870 Printing and Contigent Expenses

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