1. The Legacy of Henry Watkins Allen Whats in a name?

2. Henry Watkins Allen was born in Virginia in 1820. He studied law in Missouri, and in 1846 he moved to Louisiana to become a sugar planter.

3. Mr. Allen purchased a tract of land near Port Allen which became his plantation. Can you determine where exactly his plantation was? Hint: think of the name of a local road.

5. The Civil War started in 1861 following the election of Abraham Lincoln as president. Which side do you think Mr. Allen chose to take during this conflict? The Union or the Confederacy?

6. Mr. Allen was wounded fighting in the battles of Shiloh and Baton Rouge. He required a peg leg as a result of his leg injuries, which is now in the Confederate Museum in New Orleans.

7. After being injured, he was elected governor of Louisiana, which was one of the Confederate States. How do you think he felt in 1865 when the South lost the Civil War?

8. Mr. Allen fled to Mexico at the conclusion of the Civil War, and died there at the age of 46. Have you ever considered who Port Allen was named after?

9. What other institutions are named after Mr. Allen? Given that he owned slaves, and fled to Mexico after the war, do you think it is appropriate to have his name honored as it is? Do you think our American history has other examples of lives of conflicting meaning?

10. Were slaves allowed to read or write?

11. How might we honor Mr. Allens name going forward?