William Allen

Allen was born in Philadelphia on August 5, 1704, the son of William Allen Sr., a successful Philadelphia merchant of Scots-Irish descent who had immigrated from Dungannon, County Tyrone, Ireland along with his brother, John, and father. The elder Allen had risen to prominence through close ties to William Penn, the proprietor of Pennsylvania.

As a youth, Allen spent much of his time in England for his education and refinement. In 1720, he was admitted to the Middle Temple in London to study law, and at the same time became a pensioner at Clare College at the University of Cambridge.

Following his father's death in 1725, Allen returned to Philadelphia to manage the family's business interests.

Land acquisition for State House

In spring 1729, Allen was named alongside lawyer Andrew Hamilton, his future father-in-law, as a trustee for the purchase and building fund to develop the State House in Philadelphia, then the capital of the province. Both men were authorized to buy the land for the project. By October 1730, Allen and Hamilton began to purchase lots on Chestnut Street at their own expense, the property on which the Pennsylvania State House, later known as Independence Hall, was built. By the will of Andrew Hamilton, dated July 31–August 1, 1741, Allen inherited all the land of the yard for the state house and its surrounding public grounds. They were to be managed by him and his brother-in-law James Hamilton. On September 13, 1761, Allen and Hamilton conveyed Lot no. 1 and the other pieces of land acquired to Isaac Norris II and the other trustees of the province. This completed the yard, which became the site of the State House and its surrounding public space.

Freemason

Allen was a Freemason, a member of St. John's Lodge No. 1, "Moderns," Philadelphia, known as the Tun Tavern Lodge. Appointed Provincial Grand Master of Pennsylvania, "Moderns" on June 24, 1731, he is the second Grand Master of the Provincial Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania and also the youngest at 26 years old. Allen served two terms as Grand Master, the first from 1731 to 1732 and the second from 1747 to 1761.

On February 16, 1734, Allen married Margaret Hamilton, daughter of Andrew Hamilton, defense lawyer in the 1735 Zenger case and sister of James Hamilton. William and Margaret had six children: John, Andrew, James, William, Anne, and Margaret. Like their father, Allen's sons were Loyalists in the American Revolution.

Anne Allen married John Penn, a proprietor of the province with a one-fourth interest, who served as the last colonial governor of Pennsylvania. She lived with him for a time in exile in New Jersey during the British occupation of Philadelphia, but they returned to the city in 1788 and lived the remainder of their lives near there.

Political career

Allen's political career began in 1727 within Philadelphia's city government, and by 1730, he was elected to the Pennsylvania House. There he supported William Penn's sons and Andrew Hamilton, who had become speaker in 1729. Together, Hamilton and Allen led the Proprietary Party, which controlled the House for much of the 1730s. Allen also communicated with Proprietor Thomas Penn regarding colonial politics. In 1735, Allen was appointed mayor of Philadelphia. The following year, in 1736, he celebrated the opening of the nearly complete State House, later renamed Independence Hall, by hosting a feast for all residents and guests of the city; it was described at the time as "the most grand, the most elegant entertainment that has been made in these parts of America."

In 1739, when both Allen and Hamilton retired from the House, the opposition Quaker Party, unhappy with the Proprietors' paper money policies and the governor's support for war with Spain, regained control for the next seventeen years. Allen lost his bid for a seat in 1740, and in 1742, the Quakers accused him of inciting sailors to riot during the Philadelphia election to intimidate their voters. The riot was unsuccessful, and Allen never ran for a legislative seat in Philadelphia again.

Allen was appointed as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of colonial Pennsylvania, serving from 1751 to 1774. He resigned due to increasing tensions resulting from his Loyalist beliefs and health concerns. He was succeeded by Benjamin Chew.

In 1768, he was elected as a member of the American Philosophical Society.