Nathan Allen ( – ) was a physician, social reformer, and public health advocate. Nathan Allen was born in

Princeton, Massachusetts Princeton is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. It is bordered on the east by Sterling and Leominster, on the north by Westminster, on the northwest by Hubbardston, on the southwest by Rutland, and on the southeast by Ho ...

. His parents, Moses and Mehitable Oliver Allen, were both born in

Barre, Massachusetts Barre ( ) is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 5,530 at the 2020 census. History Originally called the Northwest District of Rutland, it was first settled by Europeans in 1720. The town was incorpora ...

, the great ancestor of this family of Allens having been Walter Allen, one of the original proprietors of Old Newbury, Massachusetts, in 1648. Nathan Allen graduated from

Amherst College Amherst College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts. Founded in 1821 as an attempt to relocate Williams College by its then-president Zephaniah Swift Moore, Amherst is the third oldest institution of higher educatio ...

in 1836, received his M. D. from the Pennsylvania Medical College in 1841, and settled in Lowell the same year. Here he practiced medicine until his death, January 1, 1889, the result of a fall down stairs. He received the honorary M. D. from Castleton (Vermont) Medical College in 1847, and LL. D. from

Amherst Amherst may refer to: People * Amherst (surname), including a list of people with the name * Earl Amherst of Arracan in the East Indies, a title in the British Peerage; formerly ''Baron Amherst'' * Baron Amherst of Hackney of the City of London, ...

in 1873. Allen devoted himself to the study of physical culture, degeneracy, insanity, heredity, hygiene, education, and intemperance. In 1856 he was chosen a trustee of Amherst College, and in 1864 Governor

John A. Andrew John Albion Andrew (May 31, 1818 – October 30, 1867) was an American lawyer and politician from Massachusetts. He was elected in 1860 as the 25th Governor of Massachusetts, serving between 1861 and 1866, and led the state's contributions to ...

appointed him a member of the State Board of Charities. He served on the board for fifteen years. In 1872 he visited Europe as a delegate appointed by Governor Washburn to the international congress of prison reform in London. His published writings comprise over one thousand octavo pages. Some of the more noted are: "Physical Culture in Amherst College," "Intermarriage of Relatives," "Physiological Laws of Human Increase," "Normal Standard of Women for Propagation," "Report on Lunacy to the Massachusetts Legislature," and his best known work, "Change in the New England Population." He married first, September 24, 1841, Sarah H. Spaulding, of

Wakefield, Massachusetts Wakefield is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts in the Greater Boston metropolitan area, incorporated in 1812 and located about north-northwest of Downtown Boston. Wakefield's population was 27,090 at the 2020 census. Wakefield offers ...

. She died without children and he married a second time, May 20, 1857, Annie A. Waters, of

Salem, Massachusetts Salem ( ) is a historic coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, located on the North Shore of Greater Boston. Continuous settlement by Europeans began in 1626 with English colonists. Salem would become one of the most significant seaports tr ...

, by whom he had four children. He was for a long time connected with St. John's Hospital, Lowell, and always labored to secure a better ''esprit de corps'' in the medical profession. Nathan Allen died on 1 January 1889 in Lowell.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Nathan Created via preloaddraft 1813 births 1889 deaths American physicians People from Princeton, Massachusetts Amherst College alumni