Oscar K. Allen
Encyclopedia
Oscar Kelly Allen, Sr. also known as O. K. Allen, was the 42nd Governor of Louisiana from 1932 to 1936. He was a key lieutenant in the political machine
of Huey Pierce Long, Jr.
, that dominated the state during the first half of the 1930s. Allen succeeded Alvin Olin King
, who served briefly in the state's highest office after Long left the governorship to take a seat in the United States Senate
.
in Winn Parish to Asa Levi Allen and the former Sophronia Perkins. He attended Winn Parish schools, the Springfield Normal School and Business College in Springfield, Missouri
, and Trinity University
, a private institution then in Waxahachie, Texas
, south of Dallas
in Ellis County
. (Trinity is now in San Antonio
.)
Allen taught school in Winn Parish in 1898 and later in Mineral Springs
, Texas, and Pleasant Hill
in Sabine Parish. In 1908, he was an assistant registrar at Trinity. Thereafter, he worked at times in farming, railroads, the mercantile business, and in oil drilling.
Allen married the former Florence Scott Love of Paris
, the seat of Lamar County, Texas, on December 4, 1912. They had three children: Joyce Love (Mrs. Frederick J. Stare), Oscar Kelly Allen, Jr. (born 1915), and Asa Benton Allen (born 1925)
in other states) from 1924-1927. He was elected to the Louisiana state Senate in 1928 in the wake of Long's landslide victory in the gubernatorial election
. He defeated the anti-Long incumbent, Henry E. Hardtner
of La Salle Parish
, who was also a former Republican
. Allen was Long's floor leader in the Senate and was named by the governor as the chairman of the Louisiana Highway Commission from 1928 until 1930, when the Louisiana Supreme Court
ruled that holding both legislative and executive positions simultaneously was unconstitutional.
Allen was elected governor in the shadow of Huey Long, who had relocated to Washington, D.C., to assume his senatorial duties. Allen merely served as an instrument
to carry through Long's wishes; there is one story, undoubtedly false but valuable for the perception of Allen that it demonstrates, that a leaf blew into Allen's office one day and that he signed it, thinking it was legislation from Long.
Elected with Allen was Huey Long's choice for lieutenant governor
, John B. Fournet
of Jefferson Davis Parish
. Fournet actually defeated Long's younger brother, Earl Kemp Long
, who had the support of most Long family members despite Huey's support for Fournet.
Allen signed into law Louisiana's popular homestead exemption
, legislation pushed to pasage by State Senator W. Scott Heywood
of Jennings
, who earlier had been the first to discover oil in his adopted Jeff Davis Parish.
. He had won the Senate nomination with an unprecedented 200,000-vote plurality, but he did not live to assume the office, which went thereafter to Allen J. Ellender
of Houma
, the seat of Terrebonne Parish
.
Allen is honored by the O.K. Allen Bridge across the Red River between Alexandria
and Pineville
.
Allen Hall on the Louisiana State University Campus, is named in his honor.
O.K. Allen Hall on the University of Louisiana (Lafayette) campus is named in his honor.
Allen is the subject of the Leadbelly
blues tune, "Governor OK Allen Blues".
His younger brother, Asa Leonard Allen
, represented the former Eighth Congressional District, based in central Louisiana, in the United States House of Representatives
from 1937-1953.
In 1993, Allen was posthumously inducted into the Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame
in Winnfield, along with the two Long governors, Huey and Earl.
"Oscar K. Allen," A Dictionary of Louisiana Biography, Vol. I (1988), p. 10
Political machine
A political machine is a political organization in which an authoritative boss or small group commands the support of a corps of supporters and businesses , who receive rewards for their efforts...
of Huey Pierce Long, Jr.
Huey Long
Huey Pierce Long, Jr. , nicknamed The Kingfish, served as the 40th Governor of Louisiana from 1928–1932 and as a U.S. Senator from 1932 to 1935. A Democrat, he was noted for his radical populist policies. Though a backer of Franklin D...
, that dominated the state during the first half of the 1930s. Allen succeeded Alvin Olin King
Alvin Olin King
Alvin Olin King was a Louisiana politician allied with the popular Long faction of the state Democratic Party....
, who served briefly in the state's highest office after Long left the governorship to take a seat in the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
.
Youth, early life and family
Allen was born in a log cabinLog cabin
A log cabin is a house built from logs. It is a fairly simple type of log house. A distinction should be drawn between the traditional meanings of "log cabin" and "log house." Historically most "Log cabins" were a simple one- or 1½-story structures, somewhat impermanent, and less finished or less...
in Winn Parish to Asa Levi Allen and the former Sophronia Perkins. He attended Winn Parish schools, the Springfield Normal School and Business College in Springfield, Missouri
Springfield, Missouri
Springfield is the third largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and the county seat of Greene County. According to the 2010 census data, the population was 159,498, an increase of 5.2% since the 2000 census. The Springfield Metropolitan Area, population 436,712, includes the counties of...
, and Trinity University
Trinity University (Texas)
Trinity University is a private, independent, primarily undergraduate, university in San Antonio, Texas. Its campus is located in the Monte Vista Historic District and adjacent to Brackenridge Park....
, a private institution then in Waxahachie, Texas
Waxahachie, Texas
Waxahachie is a city in Ellis County, Texas, United States, and a southern suburb of Dallas. The population was 21,426 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Ellis County....
, south of Dallas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
in Ellis County
Ellis County, Texas
As of the census of 2000, there were 111,360 people, 37,020 households, and 29,653 families residing in the county. The population density was 118 people per square mile . There were 39,071 housing units at an average density of 42 per square mile...
. (Trinity is now in San Antonio
San Antonio, Texas
San Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
.)
Allen taught school in Winn Parish in 1898 and later in Mineral Springs
Mineral Springs, Texas
Mineral Springs is a ghost town in Panola County, Texas, United States.-History:The town was once a flag stop on the Texas, Sabine Valley, and Northwestern Railway.-References:* Texas Handbook Online, University of Texas at Austin...
, Texas, and Pleasant Hill
Pleasant Hill, Louisiana
Pleasant Hill is a village in Sabine Parish in western Louisiana, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the village population was 786. It is best known as the site of The Battle of Pleasant Hill, fought in April 1864.- History :...
in Sabine Parish. In 1908, he was an assistant registrar at Trinity. Thereafter, he worked at times in farming, railroads, the mercantile business, and in oil drilling.
Allen married the former Florence Scott Love of Paris
Paris, Texas
Paris, Texas is a city located northeast of the Dallas–Fort Worth Metroplex in Lamar County, Texas, in the United States. It is situated in Northeast Texas at the western edge of the Piney Woods. Physiographically, these regions are part of the West Gulf Coastal Plain. In 1900, 9,358 people lived...
, the seat of Lamar County, Texas, on December 4, 1912. They had three children: Joyce Love (Mrs. Frederick J. Stare), Oscar Kelly Allen, Jr. (born 1915), and Asa Benton Allen (born 1925)
Governor of Louisiana
Allen took an early, active interest in politics and civic affairs. He was elected tax assessor in Winn Parish and served from 1916-1920. He was the clerk of the Winn Parish Police Jury (equivalent of county commissionCounty commission
A county commission is a group of elected officials charged with administering the county government in local government in some states of the United States. County commissions are usually made up of three or more individuals...
in other states) from 1924-1927. He was elected to the Louisiana state Senate in 1928 in the wake of Long's landslide victory in the gubernatorial election
Louisiana gubernatorial election, 1928
The Louisiana gubernatorial election of 1928 was held on January 17, 1928. Like in most Southern states between Reconstruction and the civil rights era, Louisiana's Republican Party was virtually nonexistent in terms of electoral support...
. He defeated the anti-Long incumbent, Henry E. Hardtner
Henry E. Hardtner
Henry Ernest Hardtner was a Louisiana businessman and conservationist regarded as "the father of forestry in the South." He founded and named the town of Urania in La Salle Parish and served single terms as a Democrat in both houses of the Louisiana State Legislature...
of La Salle Parish
La Salle Parish, Louisiana
La Salle Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. As of 2000, the population was 14,282. The parish seat is Jena.-Geography:The parish has a total area of , of which is land and is water....
, who was also a former Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
. Allen was Long's floor leader in the Senate and was named by the governor as the chairman of the Louisiana Highway Commission from 1928 until 1930, when the Louisiana Supreme Court
Louisiana Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of Louisiana is the highest court and court of last resort in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The modern Supreme Court, composed of seven justices, meets in the French Quarter of New Orleans....
ruled that holding both legislative and executive positions simultaneously was unconstitutional.
Allen was elected governor in the shadow of Huey Long, who had relocated to Washington, D.C., to assume his senatorial duties. Allen merely served as an instrument
Puppet ruler
A puppet ruler is a person who has a title indicating possession of political power, but who, in reality, is controlled by outside individuals or forces. Such outside power can be exercised by a foreign government, in which case the puppet ruler's domain is called a puppet state...
to carry through Long's wishes; there is one story, undoubtedly false but valuable for the perception of Allen that it demonstrates, that a leaf blew into Allen's office one day and that he signed it, thinking it was legislation from Long.
Elected with Allen was Huey Long's choice for lieutenant governor
Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana
The Office of Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana is the second highest state office in Louisiana. The current Lieutenant Governor is Jay Dardenne, a Republican...
, John B. Fournet
John B. Fournet
John Baptiste Fournet was a Speaker of the Louisiana House of Representatives, lieutenant governor of his state, and associate justice and Chief Justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court...
of Jefferson Davis Parish
Jefferson Davis Parish, Louisiana
Jefferson Davis Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The parish seat is Jennings. As of 2000, its population was 31,435. Jefferson Davis Parish is named after the president of the Confederacy during the American Civil War, Jefferson Davis. It is located in southwestern...
. Fournet actually defeated Long's younger brother, Earl Kemp Long
Earl Long
Earl Kemp Long was an American politician and the 45th Governor of Louisiana for three non-consecutive terms. Long termed himself the "last of the red hot poppas" of politics, referring to his stump-speaking skills...
, who had the support of most Long family members despite Huey's support for Fournet.
Allen signed into law Louisiana's popular homestead exemption
Homestead exemption
Homestead exemption is a legal regime designed to protect the value of the homes of residents from property taxes, creditors, and circumstances arising from the death of the homeowner spouse...
, legislation pushed to pasage by State Senator W. Scott Heywood
W. Scott Heywood
Walter Scott Heywood, known as W. Scott Heywood , was a member of the Louisiana State Senate who earlier headed a family-owned company which struck the first oil well in Louisiana on September 21, 1901 near Jennings in Jeff Davis Parish.Heywood was born in Cleveland, Ohio. As a young man, he...
of Jennings
Jennings, Louisiana
Jennings is a small city in and the parish seat of Jefferson Davis Parish, Louisiana, United States, near Lake Charles. The population was 10,986 at the 2000 census....
, who earlier had been the first to discover oil in his adopted Jeff Davis Parish.
Death and honors
Allen died in the governor's mansion of a brain hemorrhage. At the time of his death, he was the Democratic nominee for Long's vacated seat in the United States SenateUnited States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
. He had won the Senate nomination with an unprecedented 200,000-vote plurality, but he did not live to assume the office, which went thereafter to Allen J. Ellender
Allen J. Ellender
Allen Joseph Ellender was a popular U.S. senator from Houma, Louisiana , who served from 1937 until his death. He was a Democrat who was originally allied with the legendary Huey Pierce Long, Jr.. As Senator he compiled a generally conservative record, voting 77% of the time with the Conservative...
of Houma
Houma, Louisiana
Houma is a city in and the parish seat of Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana, and the largest principal city of the Houma–Bayou Cane–Thibodaux Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city's powers of government have been absorbed by the parish, which is now run by the Terrebonne Parish...
, the seat of Terrebonne Parish
Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana
Terrebonne Parish is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The parish seat is Houma. Its population was 111,860...
.
Allen is honored by the O.K. Allen Bridge across the Red River between Alexandria
Alexandria, Louisiana
Alexandria is a city in and the parish seat of Rapides Parish, Louisiana, United States. It lies on the south bank of the Red River in almost the exact geographic center of the state. It is the principal city of the Alexandria metropolitan area which encompasses all of Rapides and Grant parishes....
and Pineville
Pineville, Louisiana
Pineville is a city in Rapides Parish, Louisiana, United States. It is adjacent to the city of Alexandria, and is part of that city's Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 13,829 at the 2000 census....
.
Allen Hall on the Louisiana State University Campus, is named in his honor.
O.K. Allen Hall on the University of Louisiana (Lafayette) campus is named in his honor.
Allen is the subject of the Leadbelly
Leadbelly
Huddie William Ledbetter was an iconic American folk and blues musician, notable for his strong vocals, his virtuosity on the twelve-string guitar, and the songbook of folk standards he introduced....
blues tune, "Governor OK Allen Blues".
His younger brother, Asa Leonard Allen
A. Leonard Allen
Asa Leonard Allen was an educator, attorney, and member of the United States House of Representatives from the state of Louisiana...
, represented the former Eighth Congressional District, based in central Louisiana, in the United States House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
from 1937-1953.
In 1993, Allen was posthumously inducted into the Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame
Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame
The Louisiana Political Museum and Hall of Fame in Winnfield, Louisiana, highlights the careers of more than a hundred of the state’s leading politicians and political journalists. Because three governors, Huey P. Long, Jr., Oscar K...
in Winnfield, along with the two Long governors, Huey and Earl.
External links
- Winn Parish Enterprise, from 1/30/36, on Gov. Allen's funeral and obituary
- State of Louisiana - Biography
- Cemetery Memorial by La-Cemeteries
"Oscar K. Allen," A Dictionary of Louisiana Biography, Vol. I (1988), p. 10