The white settlement of Allen Township began in 1834 with the arrival of George T. Ulmer. He was a native of Maine, but came to this county directly from Summit County, Ohio, accompanied by his family, and making the journey in a wagon drawn by a large yoke of oxen. They also brought along a few young cattle. A young man named Alvord accompanied the party, but did not long remain here. The Ulmers located on a tract of eighty acres in section 4. The first birth in the township occurred in this family, though the name of the child is not now known. In the spring of 1836, Samuel Weimer, the second settler, arrived, and after twice accidentally locating on other men's land, finally found an unoccupied piece, on which he located. Alpheus Baker came in the fall of the same year, as als did Elihu Wadsworth, accompanied by a young man named Dorus Smith. From this time up to 1844 there arrived Ryland Reed, Asa Brown, Edward Adams, John Geiser, Hiram Iddings, Francis Boerck, Evan Jones, M. P. Rickett, Alfred Rick, Orrin Rice, Alvin Rice, Alonzo D. Whitford, Harrison Whitford, Augustus H. Whitford, Matthias Woodruff (the first blacksmith), George Berry, Washington Bidwel, Clark Bidwell, Joel Berry, Andrew Bixler, William Broughton, Joel Carpenter, Daniel Hide, Charles Harding, N. L. Hill (the first settler at Avilla), S. P. Haynes, Hosea Hunter, Jackson Iddings, Lewis Iddings, Ezra T. Isbell, Philander Isbell, A. E. Littlefield, Barnet Laller, John McBarns, W. H. Potter, L. D. Payne, Reuben ROss, Edwin Randall, Hiram Roberts, Matthias Saylor, John Steele, Moses Tryon, Albert Wilson Roth, and a few others. The first marriage occurred in 1837, the groom and bride being William Hill and Mary Keeler. The settlement of the township, when well begun, was rapid. The first township election was held in August, 1837, at the house of Mr. Ulmer, but was not valid, as there were but two persons preset entitled to vote. The second election was held in the folloing year at Asa Brown's cabin, and the returns were sent to Sparta, then the county seat, but as they had to go by way of Fort Wayne along the Goshen road, and the other extending from Fort Wayne in the direction of Lima, along the line of the later plank road.
The first mill in the township is said to have been a water saw-mill, built soon after 1840, by Samuel Haynes, on Syracuse Creek. Another was soon after erected by Gilbert Sherman on the same stream. The first frame house was built on the site of Lisbon, by Asa Brown, who there erected a steam saw-mill, which for many years did good work.
The house was built in 1837, and the mill at an unceratin date, some say only a year or two after the building of the house, in which case it may hav ebeen fhte first mill erected.
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Robert M. Waddell, History of northeast Indiana : LaGrange, Steuben, Noble and DeKalb Counties, Chicago: Lewis Pub. Co., 1920, Noble County, pgs. 455-