John Allan's Will

Welcome to Celebrate Poe - Episode 295 - John Allan’s Will

On March 27, 1834, John Allan died of a lingering illness of unknown origin.  He was undoubtedly completely utterly ignorant that he would not be remembered for his money - but because of the cast-off ward he had despised. His business partner was Charles Ellis, and Ellis’s son Thomas (citing Louisa Allan as his source) wrote in 1881 that shortly before Allan’s death, Edgar had suddenly appeared at the Allan family home, demanding to see his former guardian. Thomas Ellis claimed Mrs. Allan tried to turn him away, but Poe desperately barged his way into Allan’s sickroom, only to have the ailing but still unforgiving man chase the unwelcome visitor out with his cane. The story cannot be totally confirmed, but it would be depressingly in character for both men to end their relationship with such a mixture of bitterness, melodrama and even farce.

I would also like to discuss the actual text of the will - not surprisingly, it is typical legalese for the 19th century - but is not that long - as far as wills go - about 1,000 words.

Thank you for experiencing Celebrate Poe.

Transcript

George - plain text
Mr. Poe - italics text

Welcome to Celebrate Poe - Episode 295 - John Allan’s Will

On March 27, 1834, John Allan died of a lingering illness of unknown origin.  He was undoubtedly completely utterly ignorant that he would not be remembered for his money - but because of the cast-off ward he had despised. His business partner was Charles Ellis, and Ellis’s son Thomas (citing Louisa Allan as his source) wrote in 1881 that shortly before Allan’s death, Edgar had suddenly appeared at the Allan family home, demanding to see his former guardian. Thomas Ellis claimed Mrs. Allan tried to turn him away, but Poe desperately barged his way into Allan’s sickroom, only to have the ailing but still unforgiving man chase the unwelcome visitor out with his cane. The story cannot be totally confirmed, but it would be depressingly in character for both men to end their relationship with such a mixture of bitterness, melodrama and even farce.

Now I would like to discuss the actual text of the will - not surprising, it is typical legalese for the 19th century - but is not that long - as far as wills go - about 1,000 words.

Hello, Mr. Poe -

Greetings, Mr. Bartley -

Well, Mr. Poe - you always seem to be dropping in and out at the times you are needed the most.

Ah, Mr. Bartley - it is not very difficult for me.

Mr. Poe, I was thinking …

Always a dangerous idea, Mr. Bartley …

Mr. Poe, I was thinking of - now that you are here - asking you to read this letter sent from John Allan to your brother Henry Poe who was living in Baltimore, November 1, 1824.  I believe that it says a great deal about John Allan’s state of mind.

You can try, Mr. Bartley - let me begin.

Dear Henry,
I have just seen your letter of the 25th ult. to Edgar and am afflicted, that he has not written you. He has had little else to do for me he does nothing & seems quite miserable, sulky & ill-tempered to all the Family. How we have acted to produce this is beyond my conception—why I have put up so long with his conduct is little less wonderful. The boy possesses not a Spark of affection for us not a particle of gratitude for all my care and kindness towards him. I have given him a much superior Education than ever I received myself. If Rosalie has to relie on any affection from him God in his mercy preserve her—I fear his associates have led him to adopt a line of thinking & acting very contrary to what he possessed when in England. I feel proudly the difference between your principles & his & have my desire to Stand as I ought to do in your Estimation. Had I done my duty as faithfully to my God as I have to Edgar, then had Death come when he will had no terrors for me, but I must end this with a devout wish that God may yet bless him & you & that Success may crown all your endeavors & between you your poor Sister Rosalie may not suffer.
At least She is half your Sister & God forbid my dear Henry that We should visit upon the living the Errors & frailties of the dead. Believe me Dear Henry we take an affectionate interest in your destinies and our United Prayers will be that the God of Heaven will bless & protect you. Rely on him my Brave & excellent Boy who is willing & ready to save to the uttermost. May he keep you in Danger preserve you always is the prayer of your

Friend & Servant.
John Allan

Now I want to talk about John Allan’s will.

Yes, please do not remind me, Mr. Bartley.

Mr. Poe, I have a copy of the will, and would be most happy if you would read it - unless the contents are too difficult for you to deal with emotionally.

Ah, Mr. Bartley - thank you for your consideration, but I have had more than enough time to get over it.  Let me begin -

Last Will and Testament of John Allan 

IN THE name of God, Amen:

I, John Allan, of the City of Richmond, being of sound mind and disposing memory, do make and ordain this my last will and testament, revoking all other wills by me heretofore made. 

Item 1. I desire that my executors shall as soon as possible, pay all my just debts.

Item 2nd. I devise unto Miss Ann Moore Valentine, three hundred dollars annually, and her board, washing and lodging to be paid and found her by my executors out of my estate during her natural life, but this provision is to be in lieu and in discharge of the sum of two thousand dollars which I have in my possession belonging to her, and of which she is to discharge and acquit my estate in case she accepts of this bequest.

Item 3rd. I give and bequeath to my sisters Nancy Fowlds, Jane Johnston and Elizabeth Miller of Scotland three hundred pounds sterling each and to my sister Mary Allan one hundred pounds sterling.

Item 4th. I will and desire that my whole estate, real and personal shall be kept together and under the management of my executors hereinafter named, until my eldest child arrives to the age of twenty one years, except my present residence, with all the ground thereto attached, & the lot of ground at the intersection of F and 2nd Streets, opposite the present residence of Charles Ellis, which property I hereby authorize and empower my executors, or such of them as may act, to sell at the expiration of five years from this date if they shall think it advisable, and invest the proceeds arising from such sales in Bank Stocks or other public or private securities, which is to be held as the residue of my estate.

Item 5th. I give and bequeath to my beloved wife, Louisa Gabriella Allan, one third of the net annual income of my whole estate during her natural life, or until our eldest child becomes of age, to be paid her annually by my executors. If she should be living when our eldest child becomes of age and the division of my estate takes place, then I desire that my beloved wife shall have during her natural life one third of my whole estate, to be so laid off as to include in her share my whole property in the City of Richmond, which may then remain unsold, but if the net annual rent or value of my property in Richmond shall not be equal to one third of the net annual rent or value of all my estate then I desire and request that the difference may be made up to her out of some other part of my estate, and in case it shall exceed the one third of the net annual rent or value of my estate, then I desire that so much of the property in Richmond as may produce the excess may be withdrawn from her share.

Item 6th. I desire that the remaining two thirds of the income of my estate shall be applied by my executors to the support, maintenance & education of my children or so much thereof as may be necessary, and the balance invested for their benefit in stocks or other securities.

Item 7th. I give and bequeath all the residue of my estate to my children who may be living at the time of my death and to such as may be born after my death, to be divided among them when the eldest becomes of age in the following manner, if they shall all be boys then I desire that the division may be equal among them, or if they shall all be girls, then that the division shall also be equal among them, but if I should have children living at the time of both sexes, then I will and desire that the shares or parts of the boys shall be double that of the girls. 

Mr. Poe - I doubt that you find that practice in a will today.

Nevertheless, Mr. Bartley - this was the 19th century.  Permit me to continue.

Item 8th. I will and desire that the part of my estate above devised to my wife for life, shall at her death be divided among my children in the same manner, and in the same proportions as the residue of my estate is above directed to be divided.

Item 9th. In the event all my children should die before they marry or arrive at the age of twenty one years, I then give and devise to my relations William Galt and James Galt and to Mr. Corbin Warwick and to the survivors and survivor of them and the heirs, executors and administrators of such survivor, all my estate, real and personal herein above devised to my children. Upon this special trust and confidence that they or the survivors of them or the survivor of them, and the heirs, executors and administrators of such survivor shall and will sell publicly or privately, as to them may seem best, the said estate real and personal, and pay over and apply four fifths of the proceeds of such sales to the sole and separate use and benefit of John Allan Fowlds son of my sister Nancy Fowlds, William Galt Johnston, son of my sister Jane Johnston and to the eldest son of my sister Elizabeth Miller, but in the event that they or either of them may be dead at that time, then I desire that the parts or shares of such of them as may be dead, may be divided among the brothers and sisters which he may have living, the remaining one fifth part of the proceeds I wish held and disposed of as I may hereafter by codicil direct and appoint.

Lastly. I constitute and appoint my beloved wife, Louisa Gabriella Allan and James Galt and Corbin Warwick executrix and executors of this my last will and testament. In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and affixed my seal this Seventeenth day of April, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and thirty two.

JOHN ALLAN (Seal)

Signed, sealed, published & declared by John Allan, as & for his last will & testament in our presence & attested by us in his presence.

TH. NELSON
M. CLARK
ROBERT H. CABELL

Mr. Bartley, may I point out that when John Allan died, the Richmond Enquirer referred to him as "one of the worthiest citizens of Richmond... — and none was better known, none more highly respected — distinguished for his humanity, his hospitality, his attachment to his friends, his devotion to his family.   If they only knew …

Ah, Mr. Poe - I know that just the thought of many of your works served as a balm.  Before leaving, would you favor us with a relevant poem from Al Aaraaf, Tamerlane, and Other Poems - call home that was likely written when you were departing as noted in the second stanza.

Certainly, Mr. Bartley - where I take pleasure in my newly impoverished lot in life and boldly claim that I will defy in the face of it  - then I must depart -

Should my early life seem,
[As well it might,] a dream —
Yet I build no faith upon
The king Napoleon —
I look not up afar
For my destiny in a star:

In parting from you now
Thus much I will avow —
There are beings, and have been
Whom my spirit had not seen
Had I let them pass me by
With a dreaming eye —
­If my peace hath fled away
In a night — or in a day —
In a vision — or in none —
Is it therefore the less gone? —

I am standing ‘mid the roar
Of a weather-beaten shore, [page 60:]
And I hold within my hand
Some particles of sand —
How few! and how they creep
Thro' my fingers to the deep!
My early hopes? no — they
Went gloriously away,
Like lightning from the sky
At once — and so will I.

So young? ah! no — not now —
Thou hast not seen my brow,
But they tell thee I am proud —
They lie — they lie aloud —
My bosom beats with shame
At the paltriness of name
With which they dare combine
A feeling such as mine —
Nor Stoic? I am not:
In the terror of my lot
I laugh to think how poor
That pleasure “to endure!”
What! shade of Zeno! — I!
Endure! — no — no — defy.

Now I must leave, Mr. Bartley.

Ah, Mr. Poe - could you favor us with the FINAL revision of that poem

Ah yes, then I MUST depart.

A Dream Within a Dream

Take this kiss upon the brow!
And, in parting from you now,
Thus much let me avow —
You are not wrong, who deem
That my days have been a dream;
Yet if hope has flown away
In a night, or in a day,
In a vision, or in none,
Is it therefore the less gone?
All that we see or seem
Is but a dream within a dream.

I stand amid the roar
Of a surf-tormented shore,
And I hold within my hand
Grains of the golden sand —
How few! yet how they creep
Through my fingers to the deep,
While I weep — while I weep!
O God! Can I not grasp
Them with a tighter clasp?
O God! can I not save
One from the pitiless wave?
Is all that we see or seem
But a dream within a dream?

EXIT GHOST

In John Allan’s will, Edgar Allan Poe is not mentioned once - nor does he receive any of John Allan’s considerable assets.  It is as though Edgar Poe never existed - but Poe’s absence in the will and treatment by his foster-father - is probably the only reason we are interested in John Allan or any of his actions today.

So, in one sense, it makes sense that Allan would never fulfill the fatherly duty of providing support for his son after his death. On the other hand, Poe called Allan "Pa" for parts of 15 years. And, remember, Allan died an incredibly wealthy man — one of the richest in Richmond. Either way, when John Allan sat down on April 17, 1832 to write the first draft of his last will and testament, Edgar Poe was purposely excluded.

Oh yes, before ending this episode - I think it would really add to our knowledge of Poe’s background to look at the three individuals who signed John Allan’s will.

I mean, they weren’t just three average Joes off the street.  For what it is worth, the three men who witnessed the signing of the will were VERY important people in Virginia society and I want to talk a little bit about their accomplishments to show the kind of individuals who associated with John Allan - they say a man is known by the company he keeps, and this men were certainly notable.

Those three men were: 

M. CLARK
ROBERT H. CABELL
T. NELSON

Now, I just couldn’t find a M. Clark in 19th century Virginia or his accomplishments - perhaps if I were doing this episode for a doctoral thesis, I might travel to Richmond, for example, and do some serious research.

Then there was the name ROBERT H. CABELL - a name that I had heard before - then it hit me - there is a Cabell Hall at the University of Virginia.
I found quite a bit of information about the medical accomplishments of the Cabell family, but no direct association with John Allan - although again, the Cabells were a distinguished family who John Allan probably knew.

But I did find a T. Nelson Jr. (December 26, 1738 – January 4, 1789) who was a Founding Father of the United States, general in the Revolutionary War, member of the Continental Congress, and a Virginia planter. In addition to serving many terms in the Virginia General Assembly, he twice represented Virginia in the Congress, where he signed the Declaration of Independence in 1776. Fellow Virginia legislators elected him to serve as the commonwealth's governor in 1781, the same year he fought as a brigadier general in the siege of Yorktown, the final battle of the war.  Unfortunately the dates do not line up, but I did find a brief mention of his son - who would have been incredibly wealthy - and to those old Virginia families - wealth and prestige were everything.

Well, thank you for listening to Celebrate Poe - in episode 296 I want to talk about a subject that many scholars have come to believe regarding Edgar Poe - his inner need for a family and marriage to his cousin.   Parts of episode 296 are from episode 268 - Marrying Your Cousin - one of the most popular episodes this podcast has a ever had.  So join Celebrate Poe for Poe Searches for a Family.

Sources include The Life and Times of Edgar Allan Poe by Hervey Allen, The Complete Works of Edgar Allan Poe, by Edgar Allan Poe, edited by James Albert Harrison, The Poe Log: A Documentary Life of Edgar Allan Poe by Dwight R. Thomas and David K. Jackson, Edgar Allan Poe: A Life From Beginning to End (Biographies of American Authors,) Evermore by Dr. Harry Lee Poe: Edgar Allan Poe and the Mystery of the Universe: The Reason for the Darkness of the Night by John Tresch, Poe and Place by Phillip Edward Phillips, Poe in His Own Time by Benjamin F. Fisher, and The Afterlife of Edgar Allan Poe by Scott Peoples.

Thank you for listening to Celebrate Poe.