In 1832, the Allen brothers arrived in Texas from upstate New York to speculate in land. They materially supported the war of independence by furnishing the warship "Brutus" to the Texas Navy but did not serve militarily. In August 1836, they purchased 6000 acres of land at the confluence of White Oak and Buffalo Bayous and platted a town named for the freshly minted hero of San Jacinto. All of modern downtown was part of that initial purchase. Recently, scholars have begun giving more credit to Augustus' wife, Charlotte Baldwin Allen (1805-1895), for both using her inheritance to furnish the seed money for the land (women couldn't own property themselves) and for naming the city. John died in 1838, and Augustus and Charlotte separated (but did not divorce) in 1850. He departed for Mexico, but she remained an important figure in Houston society until her death at the age of 90. | Source: DowntownHouston.orgDownload Original File
Source
DowntownHouston.org
"John Kirby Allen (1810-1838) and Augustus Chapman Allen (1806-1864)" appears in: The Rice Building
