ALICE JAMES & ? FOSTER Entry to USA abt 1912

[shellyesq]

I found an entry in the California marriage index for Arthur B. Forster and Lucile Lenoir on 7 Jan. 1960 in Los Angeles.  Arthur was age 76, and Lucile was age 69.   Lucile Lenoir Forster is on the California death index with a death date of 3 Mar. 1981.

[saworth]

Hi, I said I would come back to you all once I received the marriage certificate.  The certificate certainly has alice james's father as John James (deceased), which was his name and he was dead by this time.  The age she gave on her certificate would have her at the correct birth age.  I am 90% convinced I have found her, but I am just so confused as to why she would give such a vast range of ages on different documents and say she was born in England when she was born in Wales - any suggestions?  I also think that the name Aubrey - her middle name - must be a family name, and usually a male name to my knowledge - and haven't come across anyone in the family bearing that name.  I have today ordered her birth certificate to see if it mentions Aubrey!  I am very excited to think I may have finally solved the family mystery - with the help of you wonderful experts!  To see a photo of her is fantastic too - on the passport application.  I see on the daughter's ancestry page a leaf came up with a passport application in 1926 for travel to Europe - I don't know if this would have been  the same Dorothy though.  I suppose I shall have to wait in anticipation to see if anyone comes forward with a link to the family on my Ancestry tree, while waiting for the birth certificate.   Many thanks to you all, Sally

[Erato]

As regards her birth place, she may have said Wales and this was recorded as England by the person taking the data.  Or the information may have been given by someone who was unsure of exactly where she was born.  At any rate, I don't think I've ever seen Wales listed as a birthplace on a US census - I think it just gets lumped with Enland. 

Lots of people lied about their age.

[saworth]

Oh, okay.  That makes me feel more confident about it all!  Thanks, Sally

[shellyesq]

As for the 1926 trip, I found a Dorothy Forster on the SS President Wilson from Manila to San Francisco 25 Aug. 1926.  It says she was born Fortuna, California on 27 May 1911 and was living at 1630 Lincoln Ave., Alameda.  No other Forsters appear to be on the ship.  I don't think she matches up with the info above.

I also found the family on a passenger list for the SS Montlaurier from Liverpool via Greenock to Quebec, arriving 1 Sep. 1923:

Forster, Arthur B., age 40, male, married, naturalized at US District Court of So. California at Los Angeles on Sept. 7, 1918 (last number hard to read), address in US - Route 1,  Box 59, Lankershim, Calif.

Forster, Alice Aubrey, wife, age 40, female, married, naturalized by husband's papers, same address in US

Forster, Dorothy A., child, age 9, female, single, born Jan. 22, 1914 in Los Angeles, same address in US


I just found Arthur's petition for naturalization, which gives Alice's date of birth as 19 Jan. 1874 in Llandoff, Wales. 

[saworth]

Many thanks Shelley for your input.  I didn't know where Fortuna was in comparison to LA - I hadn't got around to 'googling' it!  I suppose the passenger list for 1923 ties up with their passport application which was April 1923.  Am puzzled again over Alice's birth date and place.  I found her christening record on familysearch site which gave 20 March 1973 - and named the correct parents, so why would they give a different date for the naturalisation papers - I haven't come across any other family member who has changed their age so much as Alice - perhaps because she was that much younger than the husband?  I googled Llandoff and it is a hop, skip and a jump away from Canton - another suburb of Cardiff, which is where the christening took place.  I shall look up the ship from 1923 on the internet and see what I find.  Presumably they left the States around May/Jun heading for Europe.  Presumably a French teacher's wages must have been pretty good in those times to afford the travelling they did in Europe?!  Sally

[saworth]

Hi, I'm still mulling this all over!'  Would anyone be able to give me details on Dorothy's marriage to someone 'Plas' or 'Pias' and where that may have taken place?  Thanks again for all your help everyone.  Sally

[saworth]

Hi Erato,

Could you point me in the right direction to see where I can find the information you found on the Forster's arrival into Philadelphia? 

I have found Arthur B. Forster and his wife Alice Aubrey Forster entering the US via Philadelphia in 1911, destination Los Angeles. Their last permanent residence was Low Fell nr Gateshead.

Also, where could I find a copy of the LA Times information for Arthur Forster and would there be the same for Alice who died in 1959?

LA Times, 2 May 1965

Forster, Arthur B., beloved husband of Mrs. Lucile L. Forster, loving father of Mrs. Dorothy Plas, also survived by 4 grandchildren and 6 great grandchildren; a brother and sister in England.

Services at 10 a.m. Tuesday, Little Church of the Flowers, Forest Lawn, Glendale. Forest Lawn Mortuary.

Many thanks for your help.  Sally

[shellyesq]

I believe both of those are on Ancestry.com, but you would need a subscription for the US portion.