The Hallowell family is an American family from Philadelphia and Boston, notable for their activism in the

abolitionist Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people. The British ...

movement and for their philanthropy to various universities and civil rights organizations. The Hallowell family is frequently associated with Boston Brahmins.

Notable members

John Singleton Copley, Benjamin Hallowell, Jr

Gilbert Stuart - Ward Nicholas Boylston - 1976

17th century

* Benjamin Hallowell (1699–1773): A

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

merchant and one of the Kennebec Proprietors, holders of land originally granted to the

Plymouth Company The Plymouth Company, officially known as the Virginia Company of Plymouth, was a Division (business), division of the Virginia Company with responsibility for British colonization of the Americas, colonizing the east coast of America between 38 ...

by the British

monarchy A monarchy is a form of government in which a person, the monarch, is head of state for life or until abdication. The political legitimacy and authority of the monarch may vary from restricted and largely symbolic (constitutional monarchy) ...

in the 1620s. One of the largest owners in the Plymouth Company, Hallowell owned 50,000-acres at Hallowell, Maine. Benjamin’s grandson, Robert Hallowell, took the name of Gardiner on receiving the bulk of his grandfather's ( Dr. Sylvester Gardiner's) large landed estate on the Kennebec. Sarah Hallowell Pyne

18th century

* Sarah Hallowell (1727–1809): Early-American

socialite A socialite is a person from a wealthy and (possibly) aristocratic background, who is prominent in high society. A socialite generally spends a significant amount of time attending various fashionable social gatherings, instead of having traditio ...

, wife of Samuel Vaughan and mother of diplomat

Benjamin Vaughan Dr Benjamin Vaughan MD FRSE LLD (19 April 1751 – 8 December 1835) was a British political radical. He was a commissioner in the negotiations between Britain and the United States at the drafting of the Treaty of Paris (1783), Treaty of Paris. ...

, merchant William Vaughan, and philanthropist John Vaughan, who developed Hallowell's lands on the

Kennebec River The Kennebec River (Abenaki language, Abenaki: ''Kinəpékʷihtəkʷ'') is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed June 30, 2011 river within the U.S. state of Maine. It ri ...

, including the Vaughan Homestead. * Benjamin Hallowell Jr. (1725–1799): Commissioner of Customs for the

Port of Boston The Port of Boston ( AMS Seaport Code: 0401, UN/LOCODE: US BOS) is a major seaport located in Boston Harbor and adjacent to the City of Boston. It is the largest port in Massachusetts and one of the principal ports on the East Coast of the United ...

during the

Boston Tea Party The Boston Tea Party was an American political and mercantile protest by the Sons of Liberty in Boston, Massachusetts, on December 16, 1773. The target was the Tea Act of May 10, 1773, which allowed the British East India Company to sell tea ...

, which

Samuel Adams Samuel Adams ( – October 2, 1803) was an American statesman, political philosopher, and a Founding Father of the United States. He was a politician in colonial Massachusetts, a leader of the movement that became the American Revolution, and ...

, a relation of his through marriage, helped organize. He married Mary Boylston, the daughter of

Thomas Boylston Thomas Boylston (January 26, 1644-1695) was a prominent early-American doctor and patriarch of the influential Boylston family of Massachusetts. Thomas Boylston was born in 1644 in Watertown, Massachusetts to Thomas Boylston Sr. He became a sur ...

, and a first cousin of

Susanna Boylston Susanna Boylston Adams Hall (March 5, 1708 – April 17, 1797) was a prominent early-American socialite, mother of the second U.S. president, John Adams and the paternal grandmother of the sixth president, John Quincy Adams. Early life Susan ...

, the mother of the 2nd

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...

John Adams John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, attorney, diplomat, writer, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Befor ...

, and grandmother of the 6th President,

John Quincy Adams John Quincy Adams (; July 11, 1767 – February 23, 1848) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, and diarist who served as the sixth president of the United States, from 1825 to 1829. He previously served as the eighth United States S ...

. His children included

Ward Nicholas Boylston Ward Nicholas Boylston (1747–1828; born Ward Hallowell), a descendant of the physician Zabdiel Boylston, was an American merchant, a philanthropist, and benefactor of Harvard University. He was a brother of Admiral Sir Benjamin Hallowell Carew, ...

, Admiral Sir Benjamin Hallowell-Carew, and Mary, the wife of The Hon. John Elmsley, Chief Justice of Upper Canada. * Ward Nicholas Boylston (Hallowell) (1747–1828): Merchant and benefactor of Harvard. *

Benjamin Hallowell Carew Admiral Sir Benjamin Hallowell Carew (born Benjamin Hallowell; ?1 January 1761 – 2 September 1834) was a senior officer in the Royal Navy. He was one of the select group of officers, referred to by Lord Nelson as his " Band of Brothers", ...

(1761–1834): A senior officer in the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

. He was a brother of

and a nephew of Governor

Moses Gill Moses Gill (January 18, 1733 – May 20, 1800) was an American merchant and politician who served as the acting governor of Massachusetts from 1799 to 1800, when he died in office, the only acting governor to do so. A successful businessman, he ...

. * Robert Hallowell Gardiner (1782–1864): City developer in

Gardiner, Maine Gardiner is a city in Kennebec County, Maine, Kennebec County, Maine, United States. The population was 5,961 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. Popular with tourists, Gardiner is noted for its culture and old architecture. Gardiner ...

Benjamin Hallowell (educator) Benjamin Hallowell (August 17, 1799 – September 7, 1877) was the first president of the Maryland Agricultural College. Early life Benjamin Hallowell was born in 1799. He went to school at the Westtown Boarding School. Personal life Hallowel ...

(1799–1877): The first president of the

Maryland Agricultural College Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to it ...

19th century

* Edward Hallowell (1808–1860): Herpetologist * Morris Longstreth Hallowell (1809–1880): Businessman, director of the Pennsylvania Railroad and the First National Bank. He was a founding member of the

Union League of Philadelphia The Union League of Philadelphia is a private club founded in 1862 by the Old Philadelphians as a patriotic society to support the policies of Abraham Lincoln. As of 2022, the club has over 4,000 members. Its main building was built in 1865 and ...

. He married Hannah Penrose, a first cousin of

Charles B. Penrose Charles Bingham Penrose (October 6, 1798 – April 6, 1857) was a Pennsylvania attorney and politician. He served as Speaker of the Pennsylvania Senate, Solicitor of the United States Treasury, and the first Assistant Secretary of the Treasury ...

Mademoiselle Sarah Hallowell by Mary Louise Fairchild in 1886

* Caroline Hallowell Miller (1831–1905): The first president of the Maryland Woman Suffrage Association; her cousin, Issac Hallowell Clothier, was a co-founder of Strawbridge's. *

Anna Hallowell Anna Hallowell (November 1, 1831 – April 6, 1905) was an American education reformer, feminist, anti slavery activist, and welfare worker. Early life Anna Hallowell was born to Morris Longstreth Hallowell, a silk importer, and Hannah Penrose Ha ...

(1831–1905): Civil war nurse, anti-slavery activist, and the first woman elected to The Public Board of Education in Philadelphia. * Sarah Catherine Fraley Hallowell (1833–1914): Founder and first president of the New Century Club * Richard Price Hallowell (1835–1904): Abolitionist, director of the National Bank of Commerce *

Edward Needles Hallowell Edward "Ned" Needles Hallowell (November 3, 1836 – July 26, 1871) was an officer in the Union Army in the duration of the American Civil War, commanding the 54th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry following the death of Colonel Robert Gould Shaw a ...

(1836–1871): Officer in the 54th Massachusetts regiment *

Norwood Penrose Hallowell Norwood Penrose "Pen" Hallowell (April 13, 1839 – April 11, 1914) was an officer in the Union Army during the American Civil War. One of three brothers to serve with distinction during the war, he and his brother Edward Needles Hallowell bot ...

(1839–1914): Colonel in the 54th Massachusetts regiment * James Reed Hallowell (1841–1898): Politician *

Edwin Hallowell Edwin Hallowell (April 2, 1844 – September 13, 1916) was a Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania. Biography Edwin Hallowell was born near Willow Grove, Pennsylvania. He attended the public schools. He enga ...

(1844–1916): Politician *

Sarah Tyson Hallowell Sarah Tyson Hallowell or Sara Tyson Hallowell (December 7, 1846 – July 19, 1924) was an American art curator in the years between the Civil War and World War I. She curated a number of major exhibitions in Chicago, arranged the loan exh ...

(1846–1924): Art curator *

May Hallowell Loud Maria "May" Mott Hallowell Loud (August 22, 1860 - February 1, 1916) was an American artist, suffragist, and member of the Hallowell family. Family and personal life Maria Mott Hallowell, known as "May", was born in 1860 in Medford, Massachuset ...

(1860–1916): Artist, suffragist and great granddaughter of

Lucretia Mott Lucretia Mott (''née'' Coffin; January 3, 1793 – November 11, 1880) was an American Quaker, abolitionist, women's rights activist, and social reformer. She had formed the idea of reforming the position of women in society when she was amongs ...

. * Elisabeth Hallowell Saunders (1861–1910): Photographer *

Frank Hallowell Frank Walton Hallowell (August 12, 1870 – June 1, 1933) was an All-American football player and coach. He played at the end position for the Harvard Crimson football team of Harvard University, and was twice selected as an All-American, in 1890 ...

(1870–1933): Football player and coach *

Harriet Hallowell Harriet Hallowell (1873–1943) was an expatriate American artist who lived in France for fifty years. She was born in Boston to a Quaker family. During World War I she remained in France and volunteered at a hospital. The hospital was near the ho ...

(1873–1943): French-American painter * Norwood Penrose Hallowell Jr (1875–1961): President of Lee, Higginson & Co. *

John Hallowell John White Hallowell (December 24, 1878 – January 5, 1927) was a prominent American businessman and American football, football player. He played college football at Harvard University and was a consensus All-American at the End (American footb ...

(1878–1927): Football player and businessman *

Alfred Irving Hallowell Alfred Irving "Pete" Hallowell (; 1892–1974) was an award-winning American anthropologist, archaeologist and businessman. Early life and education Hallowell was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and attended the Wharton School of the Un ...

(1892–1974): Anthropologist, archaeologist, and businessman *

Hallowell Davis Hallowell Davis (August 31, 1896 – August 22, 1992) was an American physiologist, otolaryngologist and researcher who did pioneering work on the physiology of hearing and the inner ear. He served as director of research at the Central Institut ...

(1896–1992):

Physiologist Physiology (; ) is the scientific study of functions and mechanisms in a living system. As a sub-discipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ systems, individual organs, cells, and biomolecules carry out the chemical a ...

otolaryngologist Otorhinolaryngology ( , abbreviated ORL and also known as otolaryngology, otolaryngology–head and neck surgery (ORL–H&N or OHNS), or ear, nose, and throat (ENT)) is a surgical subspeciality within medicine that deals with the surgical a ...

and researcher

20th century

* Norwood Penrose Hallowell III (1909–1979): Olympic runner * Edward Hallowell (born 1949): ADHD specialist and psychologist

References

{{reflist, 30em

External links

Hallowell Family Papers
at the Massachusetts Historical Society American families of English ancestry Families from Massachusetts Families from Pennsylvania Hallowell, Maine *