Henry Tureman Allen

Who was Henry Tureman Allen?

Henry Tureman Allen was a United States Army officer known for exploring the Copper River in Alaska in 1885 along with the Tanana and Koyukuk rivers by transversing 1,500 miles of wilderness. His trek has been compared by General Nelson A. Miles to that of Lewis and Clark.

Henry was born in Sharpsburg, Kentucky. He graduated from West Point in 1882, and was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the cavalry. He served on the staff of General Nelson Miles. He later served as a military attaché to Russia and Germany. Allen also served in the Spanish-American War in the Battle of El Caney.

Allen was then stationed to the Philippines to serve as military governor of Leyte in 1901. Eventually he organized and commanded the Philippine Constabulary, before going on in 1904 as an observer with the Japanese Army in Korea.

In August 1917, he was promoted Brigadier-General and given command of the 90th Infantry Division, then a National Guard division based in Texas. His instructions were to bring them to full strength and convey them to France in June 1918, where they would participate in the First World War.