1887 Alister Colville's birth record - Southend, Scotland

​Alister Colville 1887 - 1948

1887 Alister Colville's birth record 
Comments:
  • Alister was named Alexander Mackay, after his father Alexander McNiven.
  • McNiven, 22 years of age in the 1881 Census, was 28 years old while Margaret was only 21.
  • Margaret worked as a domestic servant at Carskey.​
  • Alister was born at Carskey - presumably at Shore Cottage - on 3 Jul 1887. 
  • His birth was recorded as "illegitimate".
  • Alister in a 1917 registration card claimed a birth date of 5 Jul 1887 (but in Winona ND) which is as close to the truth as any of his USA records. Perhaps the Scottish records are incorrect.
  • Alister was the final descendant of Malcolm McLeoran and Margaret McVicar born in Southend, Scotland.
1891 Carskey Census. 
Comments:​
  • Second last line: Ann Burns, 58, formerly a laundress, born Southend.
  • Last line: "Alaster" McNiven, Margaret's son, three, also born Southend. His birth name "Alexander" had been abandoned in favour of "Alister" - perhaps to minimise the memory of his father who Margaret pursued in the Campbeltown court.
Alister Colville - his brief history
  • Margaret's first son, Alister (spelt in a variety of ways over the years) was the son of Alexander McNiven. McNiven served in World War 1 and he and his wife had a large family in Scotland.
  • Scottish records say Alister was born 3 Jul 1887 at Southend - not the 5 Jul date Alister insisted upon in many documents and again on his headstone.
  • It appears that Alister was aware of the exact details of his Scottish birth, as in 1917 he provided a birth date of 5 Jul 1887 - see below.
  • In 1891 Alister emigrated with his grandmother, Ann Mackay, and his aunt Catherine Burns from Scotland to Fort Yates, North Dakota. He was reunited with his mother Margaret and met his new father, William, and his newly born sister, Christina (Tina). Thereafter he assumed the Colville surname. 
  • Alister became an accountant / money lender at Fort Yates for the Sioux County Land & Loan Company in the early 20th century, probably until the early 1920s. 
  • He married Lillian Petersen 1891 - 1970 in 1911 and they had daughters, Virginia 1916 - 1975 and Cleo 1921 - 2002. Lillian had emigrated to the USA with her Norwegian parents.
  • Alister and Lillian moved from Fort Yates to Mobridge where he was a gasoline garage proprietor and, in the final four years of his life, a meter reader.
  • Alister embraced the Lutheran Church, he and Lillian being confirmed at Mobridge on 3 Nov 1946.
  • Alister and Lillian are buried at Mobridge, near the grave of their younger daughter, Cleo. Older daughter Virginia is buried near San Francisco.
  • His christian name has been bestowed upon several of his brother Malcolm's descendants, suggesting he was a popular figure in the Colville family.
1891 Ann and Catherine Burns' and Alistair McNiven's arrival in New York
​Comments:
  • Alister's surname was recorded as "McNiven" and Catherine's name was spelt as "Kate".
  • Alister's age was recorded (correctly) as four - indicating his birth year was 1887.
  • The group arrived with three pieces of luggage.
  • Their destination was recorded as North Dakota via Eureka.​
1917 Alister Colville's draft registration card and registrar's report
Comments and Conclusions: 
  • Alister said he was born at Winona ND on 5 Jul 1887. 
  • He described his occupation as "abstractor of titles" - a conveyancing clerk.
  • The registrar's report describes him as "short" - like his mother - with blue eyes and red hair - similar to his nephew William Henry aka Red Colville -  and not bald.
  • Alister's flamboyant hand writing and signature perhaps indicate he was a confident individual. 
1916 List of Sioux County officers - Alister Colville "Auditor".
1918 Sioux County Land & Loan Company
​Manager Alister Colville
1917 Fort Yates - swapping arrows for ploughs
Comments:
  • An Indian firing an arrow can be seen in the middle of the photo.
  • The 1890 death of Sitting Bull heralded the end of the Indian wars.
  • Alister and family were living at Fort Yates in 1917. 
Greenwood Cemetery, Mobridge - Alister and Lillian's headstones.
Greenwood Cemetery, Mobridge - Cleo Colville and husband Alfred Hohl's headstone.
Comment - Alister Colville's Legacy
Today there is little to show for Alister's legacy, as it appears he and Lillian only had a single grandchild. However, the desire to reunite Alister with his mother, Margaret Mackay, probably played a major part in Ann and Catherine's decision to emigrate to North Dakota. Without Alister, they may well have chosen the easier path to remain in Scotland. Alister's legacy is the number of Colville descendants who carry or carried his name and the entire Chesrown family who may very well owe their existence to his illegitimate birth.