The Vermont Historical Society is publishing a new book in September, titled “Ira Allen: A Biography.” Ethan Allen is a household name here in Vermont, but this book really showcases his younger brother’s important role in the entire saga that was the founding of Vermont. With the United States Semiquincentennial kicking off in 2025, there will be a lot of attention on the birth of the U.S. and the people who made it happen: this book will be an ideal read for Vermonters looking to get a better insight into the formation of the state and its role in the country’s founding.
Born on April 21, 1751, Ira Allen was a land speculator, revolutionary, pamphleteer, politician, and empire builder, and was a key figure on the Green Mountain frontier. In a remarkable Vermont pioneer generation that included such noteworthy leaders as Ethan Allen, Thomas Chittenden, Moses Robinson, Isaac Tichenor, and Stephen Row Bradley, Ira Allen stood out for his extraordinary energy, vision, and accomplishments. He helped create and sustain the independent state of Vermont; held such important state offices as treasurer, surveyor general, and member of the Governor’s Council; published hundreds of pages defending Vermont against a host of internal and external enemies; and represented Vermont in negotiations with the British Empire, other American states, and Congress.
J. Kevin Graffagnino’s biography ably details Ira Allen’s extraordinary life. As the first published examination of Allen’s career in nearly a century, this book shines new light on Allen and his prominent role in Vermont’s formative decades.
Graffagnino began his career at the University of Vermont library, where he served as curator of Vermont history from 1978 to 1995 and served as the Vermont Historical Society’s executive director from 2003 to 2008. He is the editor or author of 22 books and numerous articles on various aspects of early American history, book collecting, history administration, and related topics.
Vermont Historical Society Executive Director Steve Perkins said, “Along with his brother Ethan, Ira Allen holds a distinct place in the mythology of Vermont. Ira’s political thought contributed to early Vermont government, his mixture of private business and public service shaped much of our geographical landscape, and his pen defined an origin story for our state that persists to today. At times celebrated and villainized, this complex figure is now getting the even-handed biographical attention he deserves.”
VHS Managing Editor Alan Berolzheimer says “Graffagnino has been researching and writing about Ira Allen for more than 30 years, and now he has pulled all that scholarship together to publish the first full-length, comprehensive, critical biography of arguably Vermont’s most important Founding Father. It will enable scholars and readers interested in Vermont history to acquire a fuller and more nuanced picture of the state’s formative years.”
Former Governor Jim Douglas praised the book, saying “Surveyor, speculator, author, revolutionary: Ira Allen led a colorful and complicated life that’s captured in all its glory by one of Vermont’s foremost historians. Kevin Graffagnino brings a lifetime of scholarship to this biography of a Founding Father of the Green Mountain State. Was Ira likeable? Maybe not, but he was a key player in Vermont’s early history. You’ll know a lot more about the state’s formative years after reading this book.”
“Ira Allen: A Biography” will be released on Sept. 13. It is now available for preorder from the Vermont Historical Society store and will be available on Amazon and in Vermont bookstores.
