William Allen ( William Griffin Orgain (1828/1829–1875) was an American planter. At age two, he inherited the Claremont Estate on the James River in

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

from his granduncle, Colonel William Allen (1768–1831). To satisfy the terms of his inheritance, his surname was officially changed to Allen in 1832. At the time of his death, newspaper obituaries reported that prior to the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

Allen was the wealthiest man in Virginia and one of the wealthiest in the South. His property included

Jamestown Island Jamestown Island is a island in the James River in Virginia, part of James City County. It is located off Glasshouse Point, to which it is connected via a causeway to the Colonial Parkway. Much of the island is wetland, including both swamp and ...

, vast plantations in three Virginia counties, lumber and shipping businesses, and a railroad. Initially a major supporter of the Confederacy, Allen resigned his military post in 1862, claiming to have already lost $450,000 in goods and material donated to the Confederate cause, as well as plantation property damaged by looters and occupying Union forces.

References

* Gregory, Eve S., ''Claremont Manor: A History'', 1990.

External links

''Claremont Manor: A History'' website
Accessed March 28, 2024. 1820s births 1875 deaths 19th-century American planters People from Surry County, Virginia 19th-century American businesspeople Date of birth missing {{Virginia-bio-stub