Andrew or Peter Allison HELP!

[garydevine]

Hi everyone,

I was wondering if someone could help me out. it a bit of a task but hopefully someone ca help me find Him.

The person i am looking for is my GT GT uncle ? Allison. My GT grandfather only had 2 brothers that survived after 1914, they were peter Allison b. 1889, he married Annie Griffiths, and there was Andrew Allison b. 1881.

The story is that my GT grandfather rarely spoke about his siblings and parents, he was a quite man supposedly. my gran said she remembers asking her father if he knew where his brothers and and that and he said "oh i don't no. i no one went to America but i never heard from him". so my gran thought, as she was a young girl at the time that she would send a letter to America and it was posted in a newspaper asking if anyone who new this person and such if they could contact my gran and it was a few days later that my gran got a replie from her uncles daughter (my grans cousin) and it turned out that my grans uncle died exactly 2 days before receiving the letter. she said her uncle either lived in Connecticut or place like Wisconsin or Wyoming or some place like that. she cant remember her uncles name that she wrote to it was either peter or Andrew for but for some reason i have a feeling it might of been Andrew. here is some info on both of the brothers:

Peter Allison born in 1889 in Glasgow, Scotland, UK and married Annie Griffiths between 1910 and 1920 in Glasgow, Scotland, UK.
Andrew Allison born in 1881 in Glasgow, Scotland, UK and he was still single when the Scottish 191censuswas taken. both of the boys parents were Walter Allison and Margaret McFarlane he died in 1916 and she died in 1917.

Please can someone help me now my gran is now 74 and she must of been a young girl when she wrote the letter so she cant remember much.

any help will be very much a appreciated,

Gary

[shellyesq]

Might Andrew's middle name be MacFarlane?  I found WWI & WWII draft registration cards for an Andrew Mc. or MacFarlane Allison, b. 28 Feb. 1881 or 1882 in Glasgow, and he was living in Ansonia, Connecticut.  Census records show his wife as Frances/Fannie.

[shellyesq]

If that Andrew is your guy, it appears from Ansonia city directories that he died on 18 Mar. 1948 at age 67 and his wife Frances M. Allison died 9 Oct. 1960 at age 74.  The Connecticut death index indicates that Frances died in Derby, Connecticut, which is right near Ansonia.

[shellyesq]

Andrew's son is listed on the 1920 & 1930 Census as Walter A. Allison, so that seems to fit with Andrew's father being Walter.  It appears that Walter enlisted in the Army during WWII on 21 Jul. 1942 and was single at the time. 

The Social Security Death Index has W. A. Allison, born 11 Feb. 1916, died 4 Nov. 2007, and last residence of Roxbury, Litchfield Co., Connecticut.  Other public records show Walter A. Allison with that birth date, so I think it's a match.  If you go on www.newslibrary.com, you can see a portion of Walter's obituary in the Waterbury, Connecticut Republican-American.  The full obituary is pay-per-view.

It looks like Walter's wife was Vivian/Vivien K. Quist, married circa 1947.  She was born 11 Sep. 1917 in Connecticut, died 22 Jan. 1999 in Waterbury, Connecticut, was a housewife, and resided in Woodbury, Connecticut.

[garydevine]

Hi shellyesq,

You are bang on. You defiantly have the right man and family for that matter. is there anyway of finding out Andrews wife's second name and when and where they were married, and when Andrew went into the army and what he served with at the time of the war and if we get who he fought with then perhaps we can find out where he would of fought during WWI, very strange because my GT grandfather was a solider during WWI and he become a POW. is there anyway to finding out what Walter served with as well.

I know its not allowed but if you could, please, could you try to find any living relatives of Walter and Vivien i would love to send them all the info on i have on Our family. Walter's children which i would think would still be living would be my second cousins once removed and then their children would be my third cousins so i would like to get in contact with them try to write them a letter and i am sure my gran would be over the moon if she were to get in contact with her lost cousins. its the only family she has on her dads side. she never met any of her aunts and uncles or cousins on her dads side.

Thank you so much,

Gary.

[shellyesq]

All men of a certain age were required to register for the draft, but it doesn't mean they actually served.  The 1930 Census says Andrew was not a veteran, so looks like he wasn't in WWI.  The WWII Draft registration cards that are currently available to the public are for men who were older by that time and most were not drafted. 

The obituary that I found for Walter may have surviving relatives listed, but I can't see the whole thing.  It's available on newslibrary.com for a small fee. 

On the 1930 Census, Andrew was age 46, and it says his age at 1st marriage was 27.  His wife Frances was age 41 and her age at 1st marriage was 22, so it looks like they may have married around 1911.  Andrew's immigration date was listed as 1911, and Frances' was 1910.  Frances was born Scotland, as were her parents.  Andrew & Frances also had a daughter Jessie M., who was age 17 on the 1930 Census and born in Connecticut.  I see her in some Ansonia city directories in the 1940's, but nothing after that, so she may have married.

[garydevine]

It must of been Andrews daughter that answered to my grans letter then cause she said it was her uncles daughter that replied.

Is there anyway to try and find out what ship Andrew took to America at the time?

Gary

[shellyesq]

I didn't see him on any passenger lists, but if he sailed to New York, the information may be on www.ellisisland.org, which is free with registration. 

[elaine447]

Hi Gary
do you have the info from the scottish censuses for the family
they are living in Bridge of Weir 1881, 1891, they are living in Govan 1901
Elaine
sorry Walter was  born Bridge of Weir living in Hutchesontown lanarkshire
and looks like Peter had a twin brother James and all the children were born Glasgow