Zachariah Allen
| Zachariah Allen | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
September 15, 1795 Providence, Rhode Island, United States |
| Died | March 17, 1882 (aged 86) Providence, Rhode Island, United States |
| Resting place |
North Burial Ground Providence, Rhode Island |
| Alma mater | Brown University |
| Occupation | manufacturer, inventor, writer, lawyer |
Zachariah Allen (September 15, 1795 – March 17, 1882) was an American textile manufacturer, scientist, lawyer, writer, inventor and civil leader from Providence, Rhode Island. He was educated at Philips Exeter Academy and at Brown University where he graduated in 1813.
Allen became a textile manufacturer and in 1822 constructed a woolen mill in which he incorporated innovative fire-safety features and his own mechanical improvements. He also built the first hot-air furnace system for the heating of homes. In 1833 he patented his best-known device, the automatic cut-off valve for steam engines.
He founded the Manufacturers’ Mutual Fire Insurance Company in 1835, the forerunner of the present day insurance company FM Global.
Allen was also a prolific writer of scientific texts and wrote numerous books and articles during his lifetime.
Zachariah Allen was born on September 15, 1795 in Providence, Rhode Island to Zachariah and Anne (Crawford) Allen. His older brother Philip, served Rhode Island as governor (1851–1853) and later as a United States senator (1853–1859). Allen's father died in 1801, when he was only five years old, so he was mostly raised by his mother, and acquired a love of knowledge, particularly science at an early age. He was educated at a school in Medford, Massachusetts, then later at Philips Exeter Academy in Exeter, New Hampshire.
Allen's mother Anne died in 1808, just a year before he entered Brown University, where he graduated in 1813. Allen later served as a trustee of the University from 1826 to 1882. Upon graduation from Brown, he briefly considered a career in medicine, but instead studied law for two years in the office of James Burrill, and admitted to practice in the Rhode Island Courts in 1815.
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