The ALLEN family of Chelsea, London.

Early days in England David Allen, born around 1780 in Berkshire and worked as a carpenter, and died on 8 March 1840 aged 60 years at Pond Place, Chelsea, and was buried 16 March 1840 in St Luke's Churchyard. His wife Ann Crosby who was born about 1787 in Reading, Berkshire and shown in the 1861 Census in Hastings, Sussex aged 72 years. Ann was baptised on 2 February 1789 at St. Giles, Reading, Berkshire, the daughter of James Crosby and his wife Rachel (nee Miller) — the youngest born of nine issue, and they had a daughter known as Ann Crosby (Aunt Stratford) who was born around 1809 and died on 5 September 1888, aged 78 years. David and Ann Allen also had three sons: • James born on 23 July 1823 at Kennington, baptised 19 September 1824, and was a sailor in the 1851 Census living at 4 James Street, Chelsea living with his mother. He was married about June 1850 to Mary A., a dressmaker born about 1830 at Willesborough, Kent, and died after 1901. In the 1881 Census they are shown as living at 20 St. Mary Road, St. Mary in the Castle, Hastings where James is recorded as a gardener. They had two daughters named Mary Ann born 1853, and Sarah, born about 1856, who was not home at the time of the census.. • David the second son born on 22 July 1826 in Chelsea — his branch of the family is continued below, • Thomas born on 5 March 1829 and was baptised on 3 May 1829 at St Luke's Church, Chelsea. On 27 August 1855, at St. John the Baptist at Hoxton, London. He married Eliza Pincher who was the daughter of Hannah Fogden born in Chichester on 27 March 1825. At one time Thomas was a hotel waiter, and the 1901 Census records them both as lodging house keepers at 10 Alexandra Street, St Mary Magdalen, Hastings. Thomas died on 11 November 1903 at Ore, Hastings, and Eliza died also at Ore, Hastings, on 29 September 1907. They had four children: ° David William Allen born 18 August 1856 at 7 Castle View Place, Hastings, was educated at a private school in Bexhill, and his later occupation was given as a merchant's invoice clerk. On 1 January 1878 at Camden Grove North, Camberwell, U.K. he was married to Maud Mary Ward who was born in 1858, and they migrated to the United States in 1891 where he worked as a tiffany glass and mirror salesman. David died in November 1923 at Williamsport, Pennsylvania. ° Frances Emma Allen was born 15 January 1858 and baptised 14 February 1858 at All Saints, Hastings. She married Frederick Daviss (born 1857 at Camberwell) on 24 June 1882 at St. Mary Magdalen Parish Church, Hastings. Frances died 1 September 1951 in South London. They had six children. ° Elizabeth (Lizzie) Ann Allen was born 21 September 1860 at 26 Eversfield Place, Hastings. She married Edwin Charles James (born 1857) at the Registry Office, Kensington on 25 June 1881. Eliza died on 20 February 1944 in the West London Hospital following a buzz bomb at 3 Melrose Terrace, Shepherds Bush. They had 13 children. ° Alice Edith Allen was born on 16 December 1865, also at Eversfield Place. On 4 July 1890 at the Parish Church, Hastings, she married Joseph James Green born 6 January 1858 at 17 Jessamine Terrace, Deptford, London. Joseph's occupation is given as a master printer and bookbinder, and apparently spent some time in India. Alice died on 4 September 1945, and Joseph earlier on 19 October 1896 — both are buried in the Brockley Cemetery at Deptford. They had three children.
	'Grandma' Ann Allen David Allen the son
	Thomas Allen & Eliza Pincher
	David William Allen & Maud Mary Ward
	Alice Edith Allen

David Allen & Mary Ann Foden (my Great Grandparents)	The son David Allen was born on 22 July 1826 at N. Manor Street, Chelsea, London, and was baptised on 26 November 1826 at St Luke's Chelsea. According to the 1841 Census, he is listed at the age of 15 as a marine apprentice living in Liverpool. He became a mariner for about 9 years and came to Melbourne on the "Joshua" in 1852. He then returned to London to marry Mary Ann Foden at St Mary Abbots Kensington, London on 20 Dec 1852. His home address was 4 James Street, Chelsea, where his mother lived. Mary was born on 17 November 1834 to James Foden and Elizabeth Burrows, baptised 28 April 1838 at St. Lukes, Chelsea. [ See also The Foden Family of Chelsea ] David and Mary Allen then departed from Liverpool on 22 April 1853 on the "Albinus" at a fare of £40 Second Class, and arrived Melbourne 2 August 1853. They were to head for 'The Golden Triangle' of Victoria searching for gold. In October 1854 David Allen bought a 'Gold License' for three months for £2 at which time he is believed to have been at Creswick, Victoria. They had a family of eight children of which the first two were born at Creswick, and two died as infants. The mother Mary Ann Allen died on 9 July 1882 aged 48 years at 173 Skipton Street, Ballarat, and is buried in the Old Cemetery Ballarat. In May 1882 David Allen bought a 'Miner's Right' for 5 shillings to dig for one year on his property in Skipton Street. David Allen died on 31 May 1912 aged 85 years at Richmond, Victoria and is buried at Boroondara Cemetery, Kew.
The children of David and Mary Allen
	° Emma - Born 10 November 1854 at Creswick, Victoria and died as an infant 17 days later.
Ann Allen	° Ann was born on 16 October 1855 at Creswick. She did not marry, and died on 3 May 1911 at Richmond, Victoria, and is buried Boroondara Cemetery Kew.
Thomas Allen	° Thomas was born on 23 April 1857 at Smythes Creek in Victoria. He married Louisa Giles who was born on 12 July 1861 at Ballarat, on 13 October 1882 and they had a family of nine children. Thomas died on 11 December 1930, aged 73 years at Canterbury, Victoria, and Louisa died 2 June 1947 at Glenferrie aged 85 years.

David Allen

° David was born on 31 December 1860 at Amherst, Victoria. He went to New Zealand and married Ellen Easton Clarkson on 25 April 1865 in Auckland, NZ. They also had a family of nine children, and David who had worked as a blacksmith died in 23 March 1950 at Inglewood, Taranaki, New Zealand. Ellen was born on 29 October 1865 in Glasgow, and died at Taranaki on 21 August 1955 aged 89 years.

James Allen
(my Grandfather)

Sarah Dunning Higgins
(my Grandmother)

Sarah Higgins family history may be traced through the Descendants of James HIGGINS & Margaret Conran page.

° James was born on 21 July 1863 at McCallums Creek, Majorca, Victoria. On 21 July 1887 he married Sarah Dunning Higgins at Richmond, Victoria. James was in Durban, South Africa where he joined the army for the Boer War where he served in several areas and did not return to Australia.

His wife Sarah was born on 1 December 1869 at Ballarat, and died in Richmond, Victoria on 3 June 1898 aged 28 years, at Richmond, Victoria. Their three children aged six, eight and ten years were raised by their mother's sister. They were Maude (1888), Robert (born 1890 — my father whose details continue below), and Ethel (1892).

James was later a prospector in Rhodesia, and died in 1912 aged 49 years in the Gatooma Hospital in Zimbabwe.

Allen Family picnic - Boxing Day1887

Robert Allen as a young man

James Allen Family

° George also died in infancy. He was born on 4 January 1867 and died on 28 January 1867 at Amherst, Victoria.

Elizabeth Allen

° Elizabeth was born on 16 December 1867 at Amherst, and married Charles Augustine Browne on 23 March 1885 at Richmond, Victoria. Charles was born at Marleybone, London in February 1863 and died in Burnley on 14 January 1937 aged 73 years after serving in WWI.

They had two children before Elizabeth died 16 April 1889 in Melbourne aged 21 years, and is buried at Boroondara Cemetery, Kew.

Mary Allen

° Mary was born on 2 October 1871 at Sebastopol, Victoria. On 20 March 1899, Mary married Thomas Henry Allen [not related] in Boulder, Western Australia. Thomas was born 23 June 1873 in Adelaide, South Australia, and they had four sons.

Thomas died in the Fitzroy Hospital on 26 August 1934, and Mary died on 8 September 1943 at the age of 71years.

Robert James Allen (son of James, my father)

Robert Allen selling tickets
at the Oakleigh RSL

My father Robert James Allen was in New South Wales and enlisted at Liverpool for WWI on 30 June 1915. He came on leave and had a photograph taken in Melbourne with his aunt and uncle.

He embarked at Sydney on troopship "Argyleshire" in September 1915 for Egypt. He then developed trouble with his ear and had a mastoid operation, and was on the dangerously ill list for 17 days at Australian General Hospital, Heliopolis (formerly Palace Hotel). After the operation which left him deaf, while recuperating at Ras el Tin Palace, Alexandria he with others and some nursing sisters went sight seeing to the Pyramids and other sights.

He returned to Sydney 22 July 1916 on the ship "Port Sydney" and attended Welcome Home Banquet in August at the Sydney Town Hall. He was discharged due to deafness on 11 September 1916.

He returned to Melbourne however there was no work available for a tailor during the war. He re-enlisted on 25 May 1918 in the Sea Transport Section, but was subsequently discharged medically unfit on 1 July 1918.

My mother Bertha May Good was a tailoress, and they met about 1917, and married in 1922. They built their home at Oakleigh, but during the Depression in 1930 my father was out of work and on the "Susso", and was employed on replacing railway-sleepers on the line to Adelaide at Tarranginnie near Nhill.

Later he worked on a cutting in Huntingdale Road using pick and shovel as was normal in those days, and we had delivered to us free firewood in lengths long enough to fit across the rail trucks which then had to be sawn and stacked.

If any readers of this page have any further information on this branch of the Allen Family,
please e-mail direct to Betty Moyle

This photograph is titled "Aggie", although I cannot
find any mention of her in the Allen Family.
If you can help, please write to me.

Robert James Allen (my Father)	Bertha May Good at 21 (my Mother)	Robert Allen working as a tailor	Bertha and Robert in later years.
My father later worked again as a tailor at Southwell Coultas, Collins Street, Melbourne where he worked until his death 1956 following a fall from the roof of a fernery and dying the next day. Dad was made a Life Member of the Returned Servicemen's League, for services rendered selling admission tickets to the Saturday night Dance at Oakleigh.