McCallen, Andrew

Born: 1813-10-29 Indiana

Died: 1861-02-10 Shawneetown, Illinois

Flourished: Shawneetown, Illinois

Andrew McCallen was a merchant, militia officer, lawyer, and federal government official. Born in Palmyra, Indiana, McCallen moved with his parents to Illinois in 1814. McCallen moved to Shawneetown in 1843 and, in partnership with Bernard Timmons, established the dry goods store of Timmons & McCallen. During the Mormon War of 1844-45, he was a major general in command of the Fifth Division of the Illinois State Militia. McCallen ordered the Third Brigade to proceed to Hancock County to protect civilians against attacks by Mormon forces. McCallen left Timmons & McCallen in 1845 to read law and became a lawyer one year later. He took an interest in local and state politics, gravitating to the Whig Party. In 1847, McClellan represented Gallatin and Hardin counties and the Whigs as a member of the Illinois Constitutional Convention. From August 1849 to May 1853, he was register of the U.S. General Land Office in Shawneetown. McCallen continued to practice law, concentrating on criminal cases. In 1850, McCallen owned $800 in real estate. By 1860, he was still practicing law and had amassed $3,000 in real estate, with a personal estate of $300. In the presidential election of 1860, McCallen supported the Constitutional Union Party ticket of John Bell and Edward Everett.

McCallen married Mary Ann Reed in November 1845. They had several children together.

Arthur Charles Cole, ed., The Constitutional Debates of 1847, vol. 14 of Collections of the Illinois State Historical Library, Constitutional Series (Springfield: Illinois State Historical Library, 1919), 2:969; U.S. Census Office, Seventh Census of the United States (1850), Gallatin County, IL, 388; U.S. Census Office, Eighth Census of the United States (1860), Gallatin County, IL, 18; John M. Palmer, ed., The Bench and Bar of Illinois: Historical and Reminiscent (Chicago: Lewis, 1899), 2:857; Sangamo Journal (Springfield, IL), 2 October 1845, 3:2; 6 May 1847, 2:1; William Starr Myers, “Campaign of 1860,” Dictionary of American History, rev. ed. (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1976), 1:421; Illinois Statewide Marriage Index, Gallatin County, 20 November 1845, Illinois State Archives, Springfield, IL.