Ethan Allen looms larger than life in Vermont historical mythology, a Paul Bunyon figure with substantial heroic foundations. He grew up in Cornwall, Connecticut, the oldest of six brothers and two sisters. Ethan built an iron foundry before he began his Vermont land speculations in the late 1760s. Principle partner in the Onion River Land Company and founder of the Green Mountain Boys, he led Vermont's fight for independence throughout the Revolutionary War period.
A firey political pamphleteer and author of radical philosophical tracts, Allen tirelessly promoted himself as warrior, patriot, and defender of oppressed Vermonters. As commander of the Vermont militia, he led troops against the British, against neighboring states, and in the suppression of dissent among his political enemies.
After Ethan Allen's death, the Rev. Nathan Perkins wrote in his diary, "Arrived at Onion River falls and passed by Ethan Allyn's grave. An awful infidel, one of Ye wickedest Men Yt ever walked this guilty globe. I stopped and looked at his grave with a pious horror."
Michael J. Badamo, editor/publisher