Allen, Henry Justin

Allen, Henry Justin

(1868–1950) publisher, governor; born in Pittsfield, Pa. Starting as a reporter in Kansas, he bought his first newspaper in 1895, later publishing the Wichita Beacon (1907–28), exposing local corruption. He worked for the American Red Cross in France in 1917–18, returning to be Republican governor of Kansas (1919–23); although he generally supported fairly liberal and reform legislation, he became best known for passing the Kansas Industrial Act to curb striking unions (1920). Briefly a U.S. senator (1929–31), he returned to journalism.

The Cambridge Dictionary of American Biography, by John S. Bowman. Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1995. Reproduced with permission.