ALLEN, RICHMOND M.

The Richmond Allen House that once stood at 703 Grant St. was a huge, two-story Victorian-style mansion on a hill in Durham’s Hayti district. It reflected the character of the man who, according to family history, built it with his own hands. Richmond Allen was ambitious, hardworking, and self-made.¹Claudia Roberts Brown, The Durham Architectural and Historic Inventory (Durham, N.C.: City of Durham, 1982), 125.

Born on 13 March 1845 in Roxboro Township of Person County, the earliest mention we find for Richmond is in the 1870 census for Roxboro Township, where he is listed as working in the tobacco business.²Birthdate: Geer Cemetery (800 Colonial St, Durham, NC), Richmond Allen headstone, photographed by Nicholas Levy, 12 Mar 2021.

Birthplace: Susan Werbicky, “Richmond Allen,” FamilySearch. Last modified 29 Apr 2020. https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/details/G78Q-26L.

Census: U.S. Census 1870 Roxborough, N.C., “United States Census, 1870,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-6WVS-JZQ?cc=1438024&wc=K25S-4WL%3A518653801%2C519633401%2C519638301 : 14 June 2019), North Carolina > Person > Roxborough > image 19 of 28; citing NARA microfilm publication M593 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.). By 1880 he had moved to Durham Township along with his wife, the former Francis “Fannie” Glenn, and their children.³“Fannie” Glenn: Surname incorrectly indexed as “Hellie” in Richmond M. Allen death certificate, “North Carolina Deaths, 1906-1930,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-D139-KKV?cc=1609799&wc=MJ4M-T38%3A1042593301 : 3 May 2019), 004215583 > image 10 of 3224; State Department of Archives and History, Raleigh.

Their children: U.S. Census 1880 Durham ED 196, “United States Census, 1880,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GYB6-971Y?cc=1417683&wc=XWLQ-W38%3A1589411027%2C1589395954%2C1589398322%2C1589395114 : 24 December 2015), North Carolina > Orange > Durham > ED 196 > image 26 of 46; citing NARA microfilm publication T9, (National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D.C., n.d. They would eventually have four girls, six boys, and at least 17 grandchildren.⁴Werbicky, “Richmond Allen.” Richmond was by this time a carpenter, and would be remembered as prominent both in the building trade and in the Prince Hall Masons, where he was active from 1880 – 1917.⁵Prominence: “Mrs. Lola Allen Lewis Succumbs,” Carolina Times (Durham, North Carolina), 30 July 1938, p. 1. https://newspapers.digitalnc.org/lccn/sn83045120/1938-07-30/ed-1/seq-1/ : accessed 3 Mar 2021.

Masons: Nicholas Levy, “Freemasons in Geer Cemetery,” spreadsheet, (Durham, N.C.: Friends of Geer Cemetery private database, last modified 6 Jun 2021).

In a 1980 interview, Richmond’s grandson Thomas Allen, Sr., who was then living in the Grant St. home, said that his grandfather built many houses in Hayti and that his sons adopted their father’s trade.⁶Brown, Inventory, 125. The 1900 Federal Census shows a house bustling with activity—all 10 children still at home, aged 8 to 30, with the four oldest boys working in construction or related trades.⁷U.S. Census 1900 Durham ED 26, “United States Census, 1900,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-68FZ-B1?cc=1325221&wc=9BWW-4WG%3A1030551601%2C1032311101%2C1032325101 : 5 August 2014), North Carolina > Durham > ED 26 Durham Township (excl. Durham city) > image 40 of 70; citing NARA microfilm publication T623 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).

Yet by 1910 the family had dispersed. Older sons Arthur and Travis continued to pursue careers as carpenters in Durham, but Theophilus and Marcus (who also went by Lafayette) moved to Norfolk to live with their sister Lola and her husband.⁸Arthur and Travis: Durham, N.C. Directory 1909-1910 (Durham, N.C.: Hill Directory Company, 1909-1910) p. 36, Allen surname; digital image, “North Carolina City Directories,” DigitalNC (https://lib.digitalnc.org/record/25158 : accessed 4 Mar 2021), PDF p. 40.

Theophilus and Marcus: U.S. Census 1910 Norfolk, “United States Census, 1910,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9YYN-91RH?cc=1727033&wc=QZZH-J1T%3A133639801%2C139960401%2C139089701%2C1589088967 : 24 June 2017), Virginia > Norfolk (Independent City) > Norfolk Ward 4 > ED 41 > image 5 of 40; citing NARA microfilm publication T624 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.). Richmond Jr. worked in a pool room and later pleaded guilty to larceny.⁹Pool room: U.S. Census 1910 Durham ED 40, “United States Census, 1910,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9RVY-XKT?cc=1727033&wc=QZZ4-6NQ%3A133642301%2C137874101%2C137991701%2C1589088925 : 24 June 2017), North Carolina > Durham > Durham Ward 4 > ED 40 > image 1 of 60; citing NARA microfilm publication T624 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).

Larceny: “Court Rulings,” Durham Morning Herald (Durham, North Carolina), 13 Aug 1913, p. 1. https://www.newspapers.com/image/78457573/. The 1940 Federal Census shows Lafayette imprisoned on Rikers Island in New York.¹⁰U.S. Census 1940 Bronx, “United States Census, 1940,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89MY-X3WJ?cc=2000219&wc=QZXR-S4Q%3A790105101%2C791243401%2C793493701%2C951719701 : accessed 16 April 2021), New York > Bronx > New York City, Bronx, Assembly District 3 > 3-470 New York City, Bronx Borough Assembly District 3 (Tract 1 – part), Rikers Island Hospital, New York City Penitentiary, Municipal Farm > image 75 of 79; citing Sixteenth Census of the United States, 1940, NARA digital publication T627. Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790 – 2007, RG 29. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2012. Perhaps the burden of having such a successful father was more than some of the sons could carry.

Richmond Sr. was left in his enormous house with daughters Agnes and Lenora, and later Lola and Leonora.¹¹Agnes: U.S. Census 1910 Durham ED 193, “United States Census, 1910,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GRVY-X1P?cc=1727033&wc=QZZ4-819%3A133642301%2C137874101%2C137961801%2C1589089689 : 24 June 2017), North Carolina > Durham > Durham Ward 3 > ED 192 > image 3 of 20; citing NARA microfilm publication T624 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).

Lola: U.S. Census 1920 Durham ED 54, “United States Census, 1920,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9RXW-P7T?cc=1488411&wc=QZJ5-KT1%3A1036474001%2C1039156401%2C1039171601%2C1589333026 : 12 September 2019), North Carolina > Durham > Durham Ward 3 > ED 54 > image 18 of 34; citing NARA microfilm publication T625 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.). He kept working until nearly the end of his days, which came in March of 1921.¹²Richmond M. Allen death certificate.

Lola and Leonora relocated to Charlotte in 1926, and for the next seven years a succession of tenants moved in and out.¹⁴Lola in Charlotte: Lola Lewis death certificate, “North Carolina Deaths, 1931-1994,” database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FPJZ-T8Q : 10 February 2018), Lola Lewis, 26 Jul 1938; citing Charlotte, Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, cn222, State Department of Archives and History, Raleigh; FHL microfilm 1,943,154.

Tenants: The Durham City directories for 1926 – 1932 show 17 different occupants over this period. Richmond’s son Arthur returned to the house in 1933, along with his sons Theo and William, daughter Fannie, and her husband Edgar Lee Peoples.¹⁵Arthur: Hill’s Durham (North Carolina) City Directory 1933 (Durham, N.C.: Hill Directory Company, 1933) p.51, Allen surname; digital image, “North Carolina City Directories,” DigitalNC (https://lib.digitalnc.org/record/25150 : accessed 13 Jun 2021), PDF p. 51.

Edgar: “North Carolina, County Marriages, 1762-1979 ,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSHV-3WRJ?cc=1726957 : 28 November 2018), > image 1 of 1; North Carolina State Archives Division of Archives and History. His son, Thomas Allen, Sr., legally inherited the house on 31 Aug 1949.¹⁶Durham County Deed Book 186: 373 (https://rodweb.dconc.gov/RealEstate/SearchEntry.aspx). In turn, his son, Thomas Jr., finally sold the house in 1986, not long after his father’s death.¹⁷Durham County Deed Book 1280: 354 (https://rodweb.dconc.gov/RealEstate/SearchEntry.aspx). Staying in the family for nearly a century, surviving the destruction of Urban Renewal in the 1960s, the Richmond Allen house was demolished in 2008.¹⁸“703 Grant St. – Richmond Allen House,” Open Durham, updated 27 Nov 2013, https://opendurham.org/buildings/703-grant-st-richmond-allen-house.

Note on house numbers: As the suburbs were incorporated into Durham proper, Grant Street appears to have been named, but no numbers assigned.¹⁹Directory of Greater Durham, North Carolina 1902 (Durham, N.C.: Samuel M. Adams) Colored Directory p. 44, Allen surname; digital image, “North Carolina City Directories,” DigitalNC (https://lib.digitalnc.org/record/25145 : accessed 14 Jun 2021), PDF p. 244. In the 1903 directory, numbers were assigned up to the 600s.²⁰Durham, N.C. Directory 1903-1904 (Durham, N.C.: Hill Directory Company, 1903-1904) p. 30, Allen surname; digital image, “North Carolina City Directories,” DigitalNC (https://lib.digitalnc.org/record/25135 : accessed 14 Jun 2021), PDF p. 30. Between 1915 and 1917, the houses were renumbered, with new house numbers going into the 800s.²¹Durham, N.C. Directory 1917 (Durham, N.C.: Hill Directory Company, 1917) p. 111, Allen surname; digital image, “North Carolina City Directories,” DigitalNC (https://lib.digitalnc.org/record/25155 : accessed 14 Jun 2021), PDF p. 111. As a result, the address of the Richmond Allen house changed from its original 603 to 703.

BORN: 13 Mar 1845²³Geer Cemetery, Richmond Allen headstone.

DIED: 3 Mar 1921²⁴Geer Cemetery, Richmond Allen headstone.

BIRTH PLACE: Roxboro Township, Person County, NC²⁵Werbicky, “Richmond Allen.”

DEATH PLACE: Durham, NC²⁶Richmond M. Allen death certificate.

SPOUSE: Francis “Fannie” Glenn (10 Jun 1853 – 27 Feb 1898)²⁷Geer Cemetery, Richmond Allen headstone. Fannie’s death date is in question, as she is listed on the 1900 census (U.S. Census 1900 Durham ED 26).

PARENTS: Unknown

CHILDREN: Fleming (7 Dec 1869 – 27 Jun 1945)²⁸Fleming Lewis Allen death certificate, “North Carolina Deaths, 1931-1994,” database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-C9PF-89F4-Z?cc=1584959 : 31 July 2014), > image 1 of 1; State Department of Archives and History, Raleigh.
Lola (1872 – 26 July 1938)²⁹Lola Lewis death certificate.
Travis J. (5 Jun 1875 – 30 Aug 1950)³⁰Travis’s birth year is given as 1878 on his death record and the 1910 federal census, and is shown as 1875 on his marriage license and the 1920 federal census.

Travis Allen death record, “North Carolina, Department of Archives and History, Index to Vital Records, 1800-2000,” database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSZH-793H-G?cc=2848682 : 13 November 2019), > image 1 of 1; North Carolina State Archives, Division of Archives and History, Raleigh.

U.S. Census 1910 Greenville NC, “United States Census, 1910,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GRVM-9CF?cc=1727033&wc=QZZ7-GGV%3A133642301%2C140648801%2C134247201%2C1589089290 : 24 June 2017), North Carolina > Pitt > Greenville Ward 1 > ED 100 > image 6 of 26; citing NARA microfilm publication T624 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).

U.S. Census 1920 Greenville NC, “United States Census, 1920,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GRJN-NN8?cc=1488411&wc=QZJY-BCX%3A1036474001%2C1038525001%2C1036814501%2C1589332282 : 12 September 2019), North Carolina > Pitt > Greenville > ED 51 > image 29 of 34; citing NARA microfilm publication T625 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).

Travis Allen marriage license, “North Carolina, County Marriages, 1762-1979,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSZH-ZV57?cc=1726957 : 28 November 2018), > image 1 of 1; North Carolina State Archives Division of Archives and History.
Arthur (6 Feb 1877 – 21 Oct 1964)³¹William Arthur Allen death certificate, “North Carolina Deaths, 1931-1994,” database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-C9P2-174X-X?cc=1584959 : 2 September 2014), > image 1 of 1; State Department of Archives and History, Raleigh.
Theophilus Harrell (b. 16 Oct 1879)³²Theophilus Allen draft registration, “U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918,” database with images, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/6482/images/005152113_00713; National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.
Olla (b. Dec 1881)³³U.S. Census 1900 Durham ED 26.
Lenora (5 Jan 1885 – 9 May 1970)³⁴Lenora A. Tyson death certificate, “North Carolina Deaths, 1931-1994,” database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-C9P2-T9V7-Q?cc=1584959 : 2 September 2014), > image 1 of 1; State Department of Archives and History, Raleigh.
Richmond Jr. (1 Jan 1886 – 23 Aug 1968)³⁵Richmond Allen Jr. death records, “Ohio, U.S., Death Records, 1908-1932, 1938-2018,” database, Ancestry (https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?indiv=1&dbid=5763&h=3586836&tid=&pid=&queryId=c832cbf2685aeae5bfb408b518fd552b&usePUB=true&_phsrc=uSB76&_phstart=successSource); Ohio Department of Health.
Agnes (b. Feb 1888)³⁶U.S. Census 1900 Durham ED 26.
Lafayette Marcus (22 Feb 1891 – 16 Apr 1961)³⁷Lafayette Allen death certificate, “North Carolina Deaths, 1931-1994,” database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-C9PF-Z33D-6?cc=1584959 : 31 July 2014), > image 1 of 1; State Department of Archives and History, Raleigh.

OTHER FAMILY: Grandson Thomas Allen, Sr., great-grandson Thomas Allen, Jr.³⁸Durham County Deed Book 186: 373; Durham County Deed Book 1280: 354.

FAMILY BURIED IN GEER CEMETERY: Wife Fannie Allen³⁹Geer Cemetery, Richmond Allen headstone.

OCCUPATION: Carpenter⁴⁰Brown, Inventory, 125.

CHURCH: N/A

AFFILIATIONS: Prince Hall Masonic Lodge⁴¹Nicholas Levy, “Freemasons in Geer Cemetery.”

ADDRESS: 703 Grant St. Durham, NC⁴²Brown, Inventory, 125.

MILITARY SERVICE: N/A