John M. Allen (? – February 12, 1847) was a soldier and the first mayor of Galveston. He was born in

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

. He fought in support of the Greek independence from Turkey as a volunteer in the

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Lord Byron George Gordon Byron, 6th Baron Byron (22 January 1788 – 19 April 1824), known simply as Lord Byron, was an English romantic poet and Peerage of the United Kingdom, peer. He was one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement, and h ...

died in

Missolonghi Missolonghi or Messolonghi ( el, Μεσολόγγι, ) is a municipality of 34,416 people (according to the 2011 census) in western Greece. The town is the capital of Aetolia-Acarnania regional unit, and the seat of the municipality of Iera Polis ...

in Allen’s presence. He volunteered with the Texans, first with the Tampico Expedition in 1835, and with the Texas Army after he returned from Mexico late in the year. He received a commission as captain of an infantry unit and participated in the Battle of San Jacinto. He assumed command of a naval ship after independence and headed a recruiting mission in the United States until his release from service on December 2, 1836. The Republic of Texas granted to him a

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and labor for his military service. Allen was the first mayor of

Galveston, Texas Galveston ( ) is a coastal resort city and port off the Southeast Texas coast on Galveston Island and Pelican Island in the U.S. state of Texas. The community of , with a population of 47,743 in 2010, is the county seat of surrounding Galvesto ...

, elected for the post first in 1839. He served consecutive one-year terms through 1846. He became a party to a charter war in 1840 when he transported the Galveston archives to his home. He withstood a challenge by Samuel May Williams and other persons with financial interests in the Galveston City Company. Allen commandeered two cannons to guard his home and the municipal archives, though they were returned to the city and Allen resumed his term as mayor. Allen served as a United States Marshall from 1846 until his death the next year.

References

Year of birth missing 1847 deaths People of the Texas Revolution People of the Republic of Texas Mayors of Galveston, Texas Army of the Republic of Texas officers United States Marshals Republic of Texas politicians American people of the Greek War of Independence {{Texas-mayor-stub