Allen Allensworth

Biography

Born into slavery in Kentucky, Allen Allensworth seized freedom after the Civil War, attended Oberlin College, and joined the Buffalo Soldiers, rising to command companies in the U.S. Army and earning a reputation for steady leadership along the frontier.

After retiring to California he founded the town of Allensworth in 1908 as a planned community of schools, farms, and civic institutions, embodying his belief in education and self-reliance for African Americans.