Immigration: Coming to America

     Amy Johnson Crow has a 52 Ancestors Week blog challenge which I have decided to join.  I am hoping it may help me to pinpoint someone or something that I have researched and not blogged about on Flipside.  AND push me to blog about family each week in 2024.  Sometimes I get lazy. 😁  Let's see how well I keep up.

     Week #7 (February 12-18) is Immigration. 

     I have been somewhat hard pressed to figure out who to blog about on this topic.  I have covered those ancestors who I was able to find information regarding their immigration.  This morning Amy mentioned this thought, ".....consider an immigrant ancestor, where they came from, why they came or how different their life was between their "old country" and their new one."

     John George Hughes and Elizabeth Olesen Hughes, my paternal great grandparents, have been the focus of numerous blogs, immigration included.  However, I do not believe I have covered the difference between their life in England and the US.  Thank you Amy!

     John George Hughes, the son of George Henry Hughes and Mary Ann Storey Hughes was born and raised in West Hartlepool, England.  John George was born in 1873 and the family was living in a house in the Stranton Parish, West Hartlepool, England at 11 Thorne Street as listed on the 1871 census.   The author of, "Reflections beneath the Wagga Moon" paints a dire picture of the conditions the family was living in West Hartlepool at the time.  

     "However, such was the demand for houses or lodgings for people with basic labouring skills that small streets of houses were even built on pieces of open land in amongst the Iron and Steel Works along Mainsforth Terrace.  With the dust and fumes of blast furnaces at their front doors and the banging and clattering of small engineering works at their back doors, these streets can only be described as a very unhealthy and primitive place to live and raise families, yet somehow people did just that".   (Edward Powell, page 5)

     

     When John George was old enough to work, he joined his father as a puddler in the steel works.  Later, he and his brothers were employed as coal merchants.  This old photograph was given to me by a Hughes family member when we visited Hartlepool in 2003.  I do not know if my great grandfather is the one brother not named.

     John married Elizabeth Ferdinande Olesen in West Hartlepool on June 7, 1897.  Their living conditions in West Hartlepool were, needless to say, not the best.  John would be filthy from loading, unloading and hauling coal all day in a horse drawn wagon.  Their son, my paternal grandfather, George Henry Hughes, was born on March 19, 1898.  

     I have no idea what the deciding factor was for my Hughes family's decision to immigrate to the US.  Both the Hughes and Olesen families lived in West Hartlepool and John was gainfully employed.  Maybe the lure of a better life in America was the catalyst.  

     On May 8, 1906 the Hughes Family boarded the S.S. Caronia in Liverpool, England.  Ten days later they arrived at the Port of New York.  Their destination was Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to visit a friend, M.C. Mathews.  

     I have never figured out who M.C. Mathews was--a friend or a relation.  The closest I have come is a Malachi C. Matthews who was a machinist living in Pittsburgh who died in 1907.  Why did my paternal great grandfather know him?

     John George Hughes was age thirty-three, Elizabeth Olesen Hughes was age twenty-nine and my paternal grandfather, George Henry Hughes was eight.  I must admit I don't think I knew Great Grandmother Hughes or my Grandfather were from England until I was late teens or early adult years.  There was no trace of a British accent. 

Pittsburgh 1902 Lithograph
By Thaddeus Mortimer Fowler

     The Hughes Family found a home on the South Side Flats of Pittsburgh, across the Monongahela River from the City of Pittsburgh.  They lived in a smaller community where the industry was located called Birmingham (how English )😁  I have marked both the map and the photograph above with the location of the South Side and the housing area where the Hughes lived from their arrival in 1906 until about 1915.  I'm from Pittsburgh and we have some unusual pronunciations of names referred to as Pittsburgese.  South Side is pronounced "Sahside".

     Elizabeth and son, George Henry made a second voyage to England in 1907 about sixteen months after they arrived in the US.  

1910 Map of Ward 26
 Pittsburgh Historic Maps

     The 1907 immigration gives the first location of the Hughes and their home located at 2518 Carey Avenue.  According to the map, this home was closer to the mill.  When I mapped the address, there is a house still standing at the address.  Whether or not this is the actual house the Hughes lived in is always a question when looking for an address one hundred and seventeen years ago.  

     

1910 Pennsylvania Census
Allegheny County
April 25 and 26, 1910

Wright Alley    

                  Hughes, John G., head, male, white, age 36, married once for 13 years, born in England, both parents born in England, year of immigration looks like 1902, alien, can speak English, employed as a worker in an iron mill, working on own account, worked every day in 1909, can read and write in English, rents a house.

             Hughes, Elizabeth, wife, female, white age 34, married once for 13 years, one child born and one child living, born in England, parents birth is difficult to read; however her father was born in Denmark and her mother was born in Germany, immigrated in 1905, can speak English, not employed, can read and write in English.

             Hughes, George H., son, male, white, age 12, single, born in England, both parents born in England, can speak English, year of immigration 1905, not employed, can read and write in English.

     John's year of immigration had me going back to records to see if he actually came to Pittsburgh before the family immigrated.  I can find no record of him before 1906.  The date of the family immigration is incorrect on the census, they came in 1906.  

     

1910 Map of Ward 26
 Pittsburgh Historic Maps

     Their home was a rental located on Wright Alley.  No house number was given.  Looking on Google maps the street is indeed an alley.  There are very few residences in existence today.  Back in 1910, there was a large park, a Carnegie Library, probably their Episcopalian Church and a public school nearby.  John could have easily walked to the iron mill or taken a streetcar.  The air would have been in dark with the soot from the mills.  

1910 Map of Ward 26
 Pittsburgh Historic Maps

     Unfortunately so many or my records are not organized like I wish they were.  Here I found an immigration record for Rowland Richards visiting his sister-in-law, Elizabeth Hughes in 1914.  Wahoo, and address on Wright Street is given, 2341 Wright Street.  This is now called Wrights Way.  This house is almost next door to the iron and steel works.  Frankly, it appears that the Hughes Family moved from one noisy dirty location to another.  I don't think this area of Pittsburgh was any better that West Hartlepool.  Plus, there was no family living nearby.

     The move down the Ohio River to the new Jones & Laughlin company town of Woodlawn in Beaver County, Pennsylvania was a step up.  The Hughes Family was living at 131 Spring Street by 1915 in a newly built house located in an active town and community all designed and built by Jones & Laughlin.  The air quality would still be the dirty from the caustic fumes coming from the mill.  However there was a central street with shopping, a library, park with swimming pool and a train station.  

Post Cards

     One aspect I should mention is that the town was divided into twelve numbered plans.  The Hughes lived in Plan Number 10.  Each ethnic group lived in the same plan with others from the same country.  This was an attempt by Jones & Laughlin to keep ethnic groups separated and they had police patrolling the streets to to make certain there was no fraternizing.  The Hughes neighbors would have been from England. 

     In January 1920, John George and Elizabeth Hughes traveled for six months to England.  They returned with members of Elizabeth's family.  Her mother, Ferdinande Weiss Olesen, her brother William Olesen and her sister, Emily Olesen Richards.  The Richards lived in Monaca and the Olesen's stayed at 131 Spring Street moving to Monaca several years after John George Hughes death on May 20, 1921 at age forty-seven.

     This has been a labor of love.  I had not fully researched this aspect of my paternal grandparents immigration, nor had I thought about the two different environments and lifestyles they experienced.  Perhaps the housing was a little better in the Pittsburgh areas; however the air quality was bad everywhere they lived due to my great grandfather's employment.  All family members who immigrated stayed in the greater Pittsburgh area and all are also buried there.  

Other Blogs on Flipside regarding John George Hughes and Elizabeth Ferdinande Olesen Hughes--my paternal Great Grandparents

-HUGHES, JOHN GEORGE AND ELIZABETH OLESEN HUGHES--131 Spring Street, Woodlawn, Pennsylvania

-HUGHES, JOHN GEORGE AND ELIZABETH OLESEN HUGHES--RMS Coronia, Immigration 

-HUGHES, JOHN GEORGE AND ELIZABETH OLESEN HUGHES--Crossing the Pond in 1920

-HUGHES, JOHN GEORGE AND ELIZABETH OLESEN HUGHES--Death Certificates

-HUGHES, JOHN GEORGE AND ELIZABETH OLESEN HUGHES--Scrapbooking Immigration

John George Hughes--My paternal Great Grandfather

-HUGHES, JOHN GEORGE--Court Testimony

-HUGHES JOHN GEORGE--Court Revisited

-HUGHES, JOHN GEORGE--Happy Dance Photos

-HUGHES, JOHN GEORGE--Burial Information

-HUGHES, JOHN GEORGE--Did my Paternal Great Grandfather Have Additional Sibling(s)

Elizabeth Ferdinande Olesen Hughes--My paternal Great Grandmother aka Noonie

*Also Search under Elizabeth Ferdinande Olesen

-HUGHES, ELIZABETH OLESEN--Biography

-HUGHES, ELIZABETH OLESEN--With a Dog

 

I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU. All comments are welcome; however, if they are inappropriate, they will not be published.    PLEASE post your e-mail in the comment section if you would like to network about a particular surname or topic. I will capture it for my use only and not include it when I publish your comment.

© 2024, copyright Linda Hughes Hiser



Elizabeth Ferdinande Olesen Hughes Burial Information

My paternal great grandmother, Elizabeth Olesen Hughes as I remember her.
Circa early to mid 1950's

.

     Apparently, I never did a Tombstone Tuesday blog on my paternal great grandparents.  Or, if I did, I was not able to find it doing a search on Flipside.  

Page inside the prayer book with Elizabeth Ferdinande Olsen's
date of birth written by her mother

     My paternal great grandmother, Elizabeth Ferdinande Olesen Hughes was born in West Hartlepool, England on October 16, 1876.  Her parents were Christian Invart Olesen and Ferdinande (Ferdinanda) Weiss Olesen.  

     I knew my Great Grandmother Hughes.  She lived with my grandparents and spent a large portion of the day alone in her bedroom listening to the radio.  I do not remember her "hanging around" my grandparent's apartment during the day. In elementary school, during the summer, I often spent several days at my grandparents apartment when they lived in Bellevue, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania.  Great Grandma would have lunch in her bedroom and dinner with us in the dining room.  It was customary to have evening tea and a baked good before bed.  Great Grandma was already in the living room watching the television and would join in for teatime.

     She was not an overly warm or friendly individual.  I think the three of us Hughes great grandchildren were somewhat fearful of her.  It was mandatory that we go in to her bedroom to greet and give her a kiss on the cheek or at a minimum, a hug.  I think I can speak for my two younger brothers, it was not a familial duty we looked forward to when visiting Grams and Pop Pop.   

     I might mention that Great Grandmother had a nickname--Noonie.  No one alive now knows who originated the nickname.  I do not remember my Grandmother or Grandfather calling her Noonie and assuredly, we great grandchildren did not use her nickname.  Oddly, when we (cousins, too) refer to her now, many of us do use the name Noonie.

     When my brothers and I visited Hartlepool, England in 2003 and met with Hughes adult cousins, one in particular, John George Marsh, referred to her as "Lil".

Death certificate of Elizabeth Ferdinande Olesen Hughes

      Great grandmother died in her bed at 71 North Bryant Avenue, Bellevue, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania on October 11, 1961 at age eighty-four, just five days shy of her eighty-fifth birthday.   It is my understanding that Grams' niece, Catherine Wallace Billik (Kae), was attending her when she died.  George Henry Hughes, my grandfather and Elizabeth's only child, supplied the information for the death certificate.  Pop Pop did get his Olesen grandfather's name wrong.  To be fair, Pop Pop never knew him since, Christian Invart Olesen, died before Pop Pop was born.  Wm C. Olesen was the name given and it was the name of Pop Pop's uncle.

     My Dad, George VanGilder Hughes, was the attending physician who signed his grandmother's death certificate.  There was a story Dad loved to tell about this day.  Apparently, Pop Pop was extremely annoyed that it took Dad until evening to drive to Bellevue and sign the death certificate as his mother's dead body had been there all day.  My Dad's response to his Dad, "Well, I had live patients to attend to in the office all day."

     When Elizabeth's husband, John George Hughes, died on May 20, 1921, Elizabeth purchased five cemetery plots in Section A, Lot 53 at Woodlawn Cemetery, Aliquippa, Beaver County, Pennsylvania.  When the cemetery was built, the area was called Woodlawn and housed the workers and administrators of the Jones and Laughlin Steel Company.  

     Elizabeth is buried next to her husband in plot #3.  John George Hughes is buried in plot #2, Elizabeth's mother, Ferdinande Weiss Olesen, is in plot #1 and Elizabeth's brother, William Christian Olesen, is in plot #2.  There is one plot unused.  Perhaps Elizabeth though her son, George Henry Hughes, would be buried with his parents.  That did not happen.

     I was fourteen when my great grandmother died.  I was not told of her death until after the fact.  Consequently, I did not attend the viewing at the funeral home, the church service or burial.  I have no obituary or burial card.  I do not know if any exist.  I do know that my grandmother had no love of her mother-in-law and may have simply thrown out all reminders.  Family members always thought that Pop Pop would mourn the death of his mother.  The story told is that he threw a rose on her casket and never looked back.  I may have mentioned in another blog, that Elizabeth was not very nice to her daughter-in-law (my grandmother, Grams), in fact, I have been told by many that she was downright nasty.  Sad to say my Great Grandmother Hughes was not mourned or missed.

 

 

I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU. All comments are welcome; however, if they are inappropriate, they will not be published.    PLEASE post your e-mail in the comment section if you would like to network about a particular surname or topic. I will capture it for my use only and not include it when I publish your comment.

© 2021, copyright Linda Hughes Hiser



And the Whole Hughes/Olesen Gang was together Crossing the Pond in 1920

          Have I mentioned how much I am loving having access to the English records on Ancestry....just about every other blog recently...LOL  Here is yet another find.

     Years back I located an application for a passport for my paternal Hughes great grandparents.  It was filed on November 6, 1919 and I figured that since John George Hughes, in particular, had not traveled back to West Hartlepool, England since he and his family crossed the pond in 1906, that he was due.  As it turned out, he made it over to visit about a year before his death.  

     A bonus from the passport application, was a photo of my paternal great grandparents.

     My paternal Hughes great grandmother, Elizabeth Olesen Hughes, crossed the pond twice before the 1920 voyage.  Traveling in 1907 to West Hartlepool accompanied by her young son and my paternal grandfather, George Henry Hughes.  This crossing was about fifteen months after the family arrived in the United States.  When I visited Hartlepool in 2003, John Marsh, a Hughes cousin, recalled that whenever Elizabeth would visit, she would leave with a trunk a full of Hughes and Olesen "stuff".

     A second time Elizabeth traveled alone to England.  Her brother, Bill Olesen, accompanied her back to the US in 1910.  I will admit that I need to follow Bill Olesen's travel records.  I do not think he remained in the United States.  He was there for a visit.    

UK map showing itinerary and Olesen home in Seacombe

         

     From other travel records, it appears it took about a week to cross the pond.  John George and Elizabeth Hughes sailed from the Port of New York around December 30 or 31.  They arrived in Liverpool, England on January 6, 1920.  First stop was Elizabeth's mother's home, 39 Clarence, Seacombe, located in a town directly across from Liverpool.  Her mother, my paternal great great grandmother, Ferdinande (Ann/Annie) Weiss Olesen moved from West Hartlepool to Seacombe sometime between 1911-1920.  I have tried to track down who else lived with Ann Olesen.  My guess is, her married daughter, Emily Olesen Richards and her son, William Christian (Bill) Olesen.  Emily's husband Rowland Richards had immigrated in 1914 and was living with John George and Elizabeth Hughes in Woodlawn, Pennsylvania.

     No wonder I was not able to locate my paternal great grandparents on the 1920 census--they were in England....lol.  Years back I wondered where they were as someone else living in their company house, 131 Spring Street, Woodlawn (now Aliquippa), Pennsylvania.

Hughes Green Grocer
70 Florence Street
Longhill, West Hartlepool, England

     John George and Elizabeth stayed in England for over six months.  Certainly a portion of the time was spent in West Hartlepool, probably staying with John George's parents.  There were countless Hughes relations to visit as well as many friends.  Both John George and Elizabeth Hughes were born in West Hartlepool.  

     Years back I had located the immigration records for my Great Great Grandmother Olesen.  She, her son Bill and daughter Emily all traveled from Liverpool on July 17, 1920 to the Port of New York on the S.S. Aquitania arriving on July 24, 1920.  Emily was on medical call on arrival for a possible illness, but discharged at 10:15am.  Her husband, Rowland Richards, had traveled from Woodlawn, Pennsylvania to welcome her to the United States.

      The immediate Olesen and Hughes Family destination was Ann's youngest son's, Ernest Alfred Olesen, home in Flatbush, Brooklyn, New York.

     The information that was found when I added foreign exploration to ancestry was that my paternal great grandparents were also coming back to the United States on the same ship.  Departing on the SS Aquitania on July 17, 1920 from Liverpool and arriving at the Port of New York on July 24, 1920.  The Hughes and Olesen's all traveled back together.  Once everyone returned to Pennsylvania, they all lived together, for a time, at 131 Spring Street, Woodlawn, Pennsylvania.

     Amusing to me.  While John George and Elizabeth Hughes were overseas, their son, and only child, George Henry Hughes, my paternal grandfather, married Sarah Margaret VanGilder.  In a ceremony on June 5, 1920, in Fairmont, West Virginia my paternal grandparents began over fifty years of married life together.  It is said Elizabeth Hughes never wanted her son to marry and I have been told by those who were witnesses, that she was very nasty to my grandmother.  Perhaps one reason is that they married when Elizabeth was too far away to stop the wedding.

Olesen Family Blogs on Flipside

Ferdinande (Annie) Weiss Olesen--wife of Christian Invart Olesen and mother of Elizabeth, Frederick, Bill, Emily and Ernie Olesen.

William (Bill) Christian Olesen

Emily Maude Richards Brown

Frederick Adolph Olesen

Christian Invart Olesen--husband of Annie Olesen and father of Elizabeth, Frederick, Bill, Emily and Ernie Olesen

Ernest Alfred Olesen

   

   

I WOULD LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU. All comments are welcome; however, if they are inappropriate, they will not be published.    PLEASE post your e-mail in the comment section if you would like to network about a particular surname or topic. I will capture it for my use only and not include it when I publish your comment.

© 2020, copyright Linda Hughes Hiser



Ernest Alfred Olesen

   

United Kingdom Birth Records 

     I am slowly working my way through my Olesen Family.  It appears I have not spent any quality time researching my paternal great granduncle, Ernest Alfred Olesen.  He was the youngest child born to Christian Invart Olesen and Ferdinanda Weiss Olesen.  Ernest was born on April 19, 1891  in West Hartlepool,  Durham County, England.  He joined five other children in the Olesen family.  One brother, George Invart Olesen, died in 1888, three years before Ernest was born.  Ernest was still a baby when his father died in 1892.  He was raised by his mother, a single parent.

Northern Daily Mail, West Hartlepool, England
Friday, August 17, 1894, page 3

      I have no idea how Ferdinanda paid for her family's living expenses during the 1890's while her children were still young, although children did work in England during those years.  There is a newspaper article dated August 17, 1894 that gives me a peek into the family life.  Ernest's oldest brother, Frederick, attacked his mother, Ferdinanda and was sent off to two months hard labor.  At that time, Frederick had not worked for two years, so he was not providing for the family and during the inquest, in a question and answer session, Ferdinanda says she is working; however, the occupation is not given. Various newspaper articles show that  Frederick Olesen was a occasionally in trouble in West Hartlepool before and after he joined the army in 1898.  His attestation papers list that he was employed as a laborer and continued to make his home with his mother.  Ernest grew up in a family with an older brother who was causing havoc in the family and community.

1901 United Kingdom Census
Durham County, West Hartlepool, All Saints Parish
RG13/4641

     The family suffered a loss on January 24, 1901 when Ernest's brother, Adolph Heinrich Weiss Olesen died at age fifteen.  Later that year the 1901 UK census for the family shows that the Olesen family is making their home at 7 Bolton Street.  The family has been at 7 Bolton since Christian's death in 1892  Ernest is age 9 and probably in school.  An older brother, William, age twenty one, is working at a sawyer (a person who saws wood) and his sister, Emily, age seventeen, is apprenticed as a dress maker.  My paternal great grandmother and Ernest's oldest sister, Elizabeth Ferdinande Olesen Hughes, was married and raising a son, my paternal great grandfather, George Henry Hughes, in West Hartlepool.  Frederick is not at the house for the enumeration and could be still serving in the army.

     In 1906, Ernest's sister, Elizabeth Olesen Hughes, and her family immigrated to the United States. I have no knowledge as to the reason why my paternal great grandmother and her family left West Hartlepool for the United States; however I am sure the move across the ocean to a new country was met with hope and anxiety for both the Olesen and Hughes families.  Ernest would have been age fifteen.  Unbeknownst to the Olesen family all but Frederick would follow Elizabeth in the upcoming years.

     In 1910, Elizabeth Olesen Hughes crossed the ocean to West Hartlepool.  At this time, William (Bill) Olesen decided to immigrate to the United States and he accompanied his sister back to Elizabeth's house on the South Side, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  I do not have any records to show whether Bill stayed in the US or if it was a visit; however, he is not enumerated on the Olesen 1911 census.

     The Olesen family was making their home at 73 South Parade in West Hartlepool by the 1911 United Kingdom Census.  They have a page all to themselves and Ernest provided and signed the report.  Ernest is age twenty and is working as a clerk in an estate office.  Also on the census is his sister Emily and her husband, Rowland Richards.

     Another family member left West Hartlepool in 1914, Emily's husband, Rowland Richards, immigrated to the US and stayed with the Hughes Family in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  Certainly in the West Hartlepool Olesen family a seed has been planted that life was better in the United States and conversation around the dinner table undoubtedly revolved around that issue.

     I have digressed a bit from the story of Ernest Alfred Olesen to provide insight into the family and the family dynamic he was living in as a child and young man.

 This photo was identified in an  album, by my paternal grandmother, as a photo of "Uncle Ernie World War I".  Uncle Ernie, Ernest Alfred Olesen, was her husband's uncle and would have been known in her family as Uncle Ernie.  She would have been able to identify him as she had met him and his wife, Annie.  

     From 1914 to 1920 Ernest had several life changing events.  Between 1914-1915 he enlisted the 22 Manchester (7th City) Battalion during England's participation in World War I.  I found a Manchester Batallion website that listed the soldiers number and Ernest's falls within those that fought with the battalion called 7th City.  His record shows he was a private, saw military conflict and received a silver badge for his service.  Shame on me, I found him also listed as a Lance Corporal; however, I did not save the website.  I will add it if I ever find it again ;-)  I do not know how many years he served with the 22 Manchester.

1915M4-O-0218

      In 1915, Ernie married Ann Wanless in a ceremony at Christ Church, West Hartlepool, England.  Ann, also known as Annie, was born on February 16, 1890 in West Haartlepool, England,  She was the daughter of Robert William and Annie Wanless.  The actual date of the marriage I have not been able to find; however, it was in the last three months of the year.  Whether Ernest was on leave from his military service or had mustered out is also unknown. 

1916B4-O-0111

     The couples only child, a son, Oscar Ernest Olesen, was born on September 28, 1916 in West Hartlepool, England.  The date of his birth has been taken from his United States records; however, the record in England lists that his birthday fell during the last three months of the year.

1920 Olesen Immigration Records

     On February 26, 1920, Ernest, Annie and Oscar boarded the SS Baltic in Liverpool, England.  They sailed tourist class and their passage was paid by the shipping broker, Simpson, Spence & Young, where Ernest would be an accountant.  The SS Baltic, also known as RMS Baltic, was one of four the big four ocean liners of the White Star Line.  I found an SS Baltic video on YouTube which shows numerous photos of this ship that primarily sailed between Liverpool and New York City. 

     On July 24 1920, Bill Olesen returned to the United States with his mother, Ferdinanda Weiss Olesen and his sister, Emily Maud Olesen Richards.  The final portion of the family traveled aboard the Cunard ocean liner, SS Aquitania, from Liverpool, England to New York City.  YouTube has an interesting video of the history of the SS Aquitania.  I have no idea if Bill Olesen returned to England to pick up his mother and sister or if he had returned years earlier and was living with them.

891 East 14th Street, Flatbush, New York in 2018
This may have also been the first home to the Ernest Olesen Family in 1920

     The immigration record lists the intended destination, of the final three Olesens,  is brother and son (Ernest) who was in 1920 was living in an apartment located in the neighborhood of Brooklyn, 891 E 14th Street, Flatbush, New York.

     Although the immigration record shows that the family of Ernest Olesen planned to be in the US for only six months, I believe that they came and stayed. The only US records for them from their arrival until a vacation cruise in 1924, is that they made their first home in Flatbush after they arrived.  I have not located any documents of Ernest becoming a US citizen.  In the 1930 and 1940 US census, Ernest and family do list 1920 as the year they immigrated; however, there is no NA (naturalized) after the date.  Instead, there is an AL, "AL: The immigrant had not yet naturalized or even begun the process.  Not every immigrant naturalized."  (Family Search United States Naturalization and Citizenship)  Perhaps they lived in the US until their deaths, but never became citizens.  I have also not located any US passport applications, which would probably make sense if they never naturalized. 

     Sometime between 1920 and 1924 the Olesen's purchased a home at 228 Broadway, Lynbrook, New York.  From searching on Google maps, it appears that the house no longer exists or has been renumbered.  The family lived at this address from 1924 until 1933 taken from a 1925 New York Census, the 1928 New York City Directory, the 1930 United States Census for New York and several passenger lists from cruises and vacations out of the country.

     During the period of time from 1924 to 1933 there were eight passenger records for either Ernest alone or for the family.  These records have proven invaluable.

1924

    On October 4, 1924 the Olesen family sailed aboard the ocean liner, SS Fort St. George, from Hamilton, Bermuda arriving at the port of New York City on October 6, 1924.

1925

     1.  On March 23, 1925 Ernest Olesen returned to New York City from a trip to Hamilton, Bermuda.  There is no other information as the first page of the passenger list is missing. 

     2.  On September 25, 1925 the Olesen family sailed aboard the ocean liner, SS Fort St. George, from Hamilton, Bermuda arriving at the port of New York City on September 26, 1925.

     3.  On November 11, 1925 the Olesen family sailed aboard the ocean liner, SS London Mariner, from New York City to London, England.  The London Mariner was a ship owned by Furness, Withy & Company.  Ernest gave his address in London as the office of Furness, Withy & Company.  The family left London, England on the SS London Commerce arriving at the port of e York City on December 4, 1925.  The name and addrsess of Ann's mother was given on the incoming passenger list  Perhaps the Olesen's traveled from London to West Hartlepool to visit with family during their trip.

     The Olesen family took a cruise on a Furness ship in 1924 and It appears that by 1925 that Ernest Olesen had left the shipping broker Simpson, Smith & Young and joined the British transport business of Furness, Withy & Company as an accountant.  The address given as a person in the United States who knew Ernest on the 1925 Bermuda trip is the address of Furness, Withy & Company and the family sailed on Furness, Withy & Company ships to and from England along with going to the firms office in London.  Oddly, the company began in Hartlepool, England and I would assume that Ernest was well acquainted with it before he left for the United States in 1920.

1927

     On September 10, 1927 the Olesen family sailed aboard the ocean liner SS Fort St. George from Hamilton, Bermuda arriving at the port of New York City on September 12, 1927

1929

     On September 24, 1929 Ernest and Annie Olesen sailed aboard the ocean liner SS Bermuda from Hamilton, Bermuda arriving at the port of New York City on September 26, 1929.

1931

     On July 11, 1931 the Olesen family sailed aboard the ocean liner SS Fort St George on a cruise to Halifax, Nova Scotia and St. John's, Newfoundland arriving at the port of New York City on July 23, 1931.

1933

    

     On March 1, 1933 Ernest Olesen sailed aboard the SS Monarch of Bermuda from Hamilton, Bermuda arriving at the port of New York City on March 3, 1933.

1930 United States Census Report cropped

     

     The first United States census report for the Olesen family is 1930.  They continue to live at 228 Broadway, the village of Lynbrook, in Nassau County, New York.  Ernest owned his home with a value of $12,000.00.  I was able to calculate the cost of the house in 2018 using DollarTimes which factors in inflation and came up with a little over $171,000.00.  An interesting article, The 1930 Census in Perspective, gave me some insight into a few of the new questions found on the census.

     The family owned a radio.  A question that was added as a consumerism and mass communication question.  Ernest lists his father as having been born in Denmark and his mother as having been born in Germany--two facts that I already knew; however, it is confirmation.  All three family members are listed as having immigrated in 1920 and are still aliens.  Ernest is the only family who is employed and he works as an accountant with a shipping company.  This census asked if anyone was a veteran of a war and which one.  Ernest lists World War I.

     I would like to momentarily digress to compare Ernest's lifestyle with his siblings who were at that time living in two different cities in Butler County, Pennsylvania.  His sister, Elizabeth Olesen Hughes, brother Bill Olesen and mother, Ferdinanda Weiss Olesen were living together in a Jones and Laughlin company house located in Aliquippa, Pennsylvania renting it for $35.00 a month.  Bill was supporting the family as a locomotive engineer with the J&L steel company.  The inflation factor computes $35.00 per month to $501.00 in 2018.  Ernest's other sister, Emily Maud Olesen Richards and her husband, Rowland Richards owned a home in Monaca, Pennsylvania valued at $5,000.00 which would be valued at a little over $71,000.00 in 2018.  Rowland was a laborer at a steel mill.  Both households did own a radio.

     Ernest's mathematical ability as an accountant with a large international shipping company afforded him a much more comfortable lifestyle than his siblings.

1940 United States Federal Census cropped 

     The primary record for the family during the 1940's is the census report.  

     The Olesen's moved to a new house at 316 Broadway, in the village of Lynbrook sometime between 1930-1935.  Basically they moved a couple of blocks down the street. They owned the house and the cost was $7,000.00 which translates to 2018 value as $123,000.00.  The house still stands today and is pictured on Google map.  It was built in 1920 and is a lovely two story home on a residential street.  Zillow lists the current price, if it was for sale, would be almost $488,000.00.

1942 World War II Draft Record for Ernest Alfred Olesen

     The records and documents from 1940 on are somewhat limited.  I would imagine that the Olesen's continued to travel outside the United States.  There is a World War II draft document dated 1942 for Ernest showing his employment, still with Furness Withy and living at the house pictured above.

     I have not intentionally ignored my paternal great grandaunt, Ann (Annie) Wanless Olesen; however the records I have found are either for her husband or the family.  In the late 1940's I have several for her.   

     Rummaging around in my "baby box" I found the little card above signed by Great Great Aunt Ann.  I was born in 1947 and was the first great grandchild of Ann's sister in law, Elizabeth Olesen Hughes.  I am going to digress here to share a difference in nomenclature.  Ancestry calls Ann my great great aunt, while searching in Google, I have found great grandaunt.  I have decided to use great grandaunt and uncle.
   

     In June 1949, Annie traveled to Canada, perhaps alone.  I located a Boarder Crossing document for her crossing from Canada to Detroit on June 22, 1949.  Of interest:  Ann is listed as a British citizen.  I was also excited to have a photograph of her.

     I have two photographs of Annie that were identified by my Aunt Faith, who is pictured with Annie in one and another of Annie with her sister in law and my paternal great grandmother, Elizabeth Olesen Hughes.   Faith's relation to Annie Olesen would be her grandaunt.  I would like to mention that when I interviewed my Aunt Faith her comments regarding Ann Olesen were, " Ann Olesen, wife of Ernie Olesen. Aunt Ann was a fun lady.  Class lady.  She had a lovely British accent.  Faith remembers that she visited in Florida and visited in Avalon."   

1952 New York Death Record for Ernest Alfred Olesen

Obituary for Ernest Alfred Olesen
Hartlepool, England

     On January 12, 1952, at age sixty one, Ernest died at his home in Lynbrook.  I was, once again, fortunate to have access, for a brief time in 2016, to the newspapers of the UK and found an obituary for Ernest Alfred (Ted) Olesen in the Hartlepool newspaper.  It was interesting to find that he was nicknamed, Ted.  To date I have not located an obituary in the United States or where he is buried.

     In October 1966, Annie Wanless Olesen died in Lynbrook, New York at the age of seventy six.  As with Ernie, I have not , to date, found  her obituary or burial place.

  
   

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