New Jersey Biographies

Newark -- Clergyman; Author.

Born in St. Louis, Missouri, on November 19th, 1854; son of George Otis and Julia Olds (Whitney) Allen.
Lyman Whitney Allen's father was a native of Boston and his mother a native of Kentucky. The historic Whitney and Thornton families are in his line.
His grandfather, on his mother's side, was the Rev. Dewey Whitney, of Vermont, and his maternal grandmother was a descendant of Col, Anthony Thornton, of Virginia, an officer in the Revolutionary War and in command of a regiment at Yorktown, and of Col. William Thornton, an officer in the war of 1812.
Dr. Allen is a graduate of Washington University and holds the degrees of B. A. and a M. A. from that Institution.
The University of Wooster later conferred the degree of D. D.
He pursued a two year's post graduate course in Philosophy at Princeton University and studied for the ministry at Princeton Theological Seminary.
Ordained by the Presbytery of St. Louis in 1882, he began work in the suburbs of his native city and was for several years afterwards pastor of the Carondelet Presbyterian Church.
In 1889 he accepted a call to the South Park Presbyterian Church in Newark and ministered there for twenty-seven years.
In October of 1916 he resigned to give his time wholly to literature.
Since then he has been constantly in literary work. When the city of Newark celebrated its 250th Anniversary, the Committee of 100 requested Dr. Allen to write the Celebration Ode for the owning exercises.
Dr. Allen's latest publication was his poem "Barnard's Lincoln", read at the dedication, in Cincinnati, March 31st, 1917, of George Grey Barnard's statue of Lincoln, the gift of Mr. and Mrs., Charles Taft to that city.
He is the author of several books, and miscellaneous poems and prose articles, which have been published in various magazines and newspapers.
Dr. Allen is a director in the Presbyterian Board of Home Missions in New York and is a member of several clubs and societies of New York City.

He is one of the Vice Presidents of the National Shakespeare Federation, First Vice President of the New Jersey State Society of the Sons of the American Revolution, Historian of the. Newark Chapter of S. A. R and a life member of the New Jersey Historical Society.

Source: Scannells New Jersey First Citizens
Transcribed by: Frances Cooley