Willis ALLEN, Congress, IL (1806-1859)

ALLEN, Willis, (father of William Joshua Allen), a Representative from Illinois; born near Roanoke, Va., December 15, 1806; attended the common schools; taught school; moved to Tennessee and settled in Wilson County; moved to Franklin (now Williamson) County, Ill., in 1830 and engaged in agricultural pursuits; studied law; was admitted to the bar and commenced practice in Marion; sheriff of Franklin County 1834-1838; member of the State house of representatives 1838-1840; prosecuting attorney of the first judicial circuit in 1841; member of the State senate 1844-1847; member of the State constitutional convention in 1847 and 1848; elected as a Democrat to the Thirty-second and Thirty-third Congresses (March 4, 1851-March 3, 1855); was not a candidate for reelection in 1854; resumed the practice of his profession; elected judge of the twenty-sixth circuit court of Illinois March 2, 1859, and served until his death while holding court in Harrisburg, Saline County, Ill., April 15, 1859; interment in Marion Cemetery, Marion, Ill.

Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1771-Present