Ira Allen: A Hard Founding Father to Love

Revolutionary War Colonel Ethan Allen’s baby brother Ira was the longest-living, and arguably the most successful, of the many Allen brothers who shaped Vermont history. Ira was a land speculator, revolutionary, pamphleteer, politician, and an empire-builder — truly a key figure on the late eighteenth-century Green Mountain frontier. But, he died impoverished and exiled from Vermont. What happened?
Based on his new book “Ira Allen: A Biography”, J. Kevin Graffagnino’s lively talk evaluates Allen’s checkered career and makes the case for including him in our picture of Vermont’s formative decades. Q&A after the presentation. Refreshments provided.

This is part of the Ethan Allen Homestead Museum’s Monthly Lecture series sponsored by North Country Federal Credit Union, M&T Bank, AARP Vermont, and Burlington Heritage Ford & Toyota. The Ethan Allen Homestead Museum is a 501c3 nonprofit. Donations are gladly accepted at the door.