William Allen (1733-1793)

There is another portrait identified as William Allen. Both portraits descended in the family at Claremont Plantation. William Allen was in his twenties when Wollaston worked in Virginia, matching the approximate age of the man in this portrait. This portrait also descended with the portrait of the woman most likely to be William Allen’s first wife, Clara Walker. William Allen married his second wife, Mary Lightfoot, in 1765. William Allen built the family’s home at Claremont, moving his family seat from Bacon’s Castle.

Dimensions: 35 7/8 x 28 1/4 in. (91.1 x 71.8 cm.)

The portrait represents a man wearing a brown jacket and white waistcoat. A ribbon flies at the nape of his neck. His left hand is on his hip while his right forearm rests on a stone plinth. He stands against a plain background, turned three-quarters to his left.

See: Brooklyn Museum Online Collection