Hans Andersen - Norwegian seaman to Philadelphia
maggi	Hans Andersen, with connections to the farms Gammelsrød and Husbakke in Råde, Østfold, born 29th April 1887, was a seaman on a ship called the SS Frank from Fredrikstad , Norway to unknown destination. He is believed to have immigrated to USA between 1915-20, to have settled in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and to have continued to work as a seaman on the eastern coast of USA. Have not found a Hans Anderson with correct birthdate in the Social Security death index, and no luck so far with the Ellis Island database, which has dozens of Hans Andersens. Would be grateful for help in finding information on Hans or his descendants, or for any useful suggestions.
maggi	Have been given some additional information on Hans. On a postcard home he wrote "I am aboard the International" again. The card was postmarked from USA in 1907 and the postmark was Flushing--- Whitestone Sta---- Part of the words was too faint to read. In 1905 he sent letters home from ports in Britain and gave his address as C/O the Norwegian consulate there. On a later letter he gave his address as "Hans Andersen, Adrs. Edv-------------ansell, 2632 Richmond St. Philadelphia USA". Again part was pencilled too faintly to read, and just where the paper was folded. However, this indicates he was in the USA before 1907, and confirms Philadelphia as his residence. I was told he worked in the Philadelphia harbour on cargo boats going up the river. He may have been back in Norway and visited relatives, or worked on a transatlantic ship which visited Oslo/Christiania about 1925.
Brining	Hi There is a Hans Andersen about the correct age in the 1901 England Census and several ships listed as Frank. You have to pay for the full image. Here is the website [url="http://www.census.pro.gov.uk/"]Click Here[/url] The postcard marked Flushing is probably from New York. Your best chance of finding him would be in the census. You could try posting on the Digitalarkivet to see if anyone that has access could find him. This site has some look up volunteers for Philadelphia, [url="http://www.pa-roots.com/~philadelphia/lookup.html"]Click Here[/url] You might be able to get some information there. Carla
maggi	Thanks Carla. That may well be him in Wales in 1901. I have e-mailed the Philadelphia look-up service with a query. Will probably soon have to buy a subscription to Ancestry.com's census databases, as I'm receiving so many questions about Norwegians who emigrated to the USA. Thanks again, and greetings from Moss, Norway, where winter is still battling with spring. Margaret Strand
Brining	Hi Margaret I just found a site that gives you access to the census records at Heritage Quest for $35.00 a year subscription fee. [url="http://www.godfrey.org"]Godfrey Scholar[/url] Scroll down the page to see the info about joining All of the census are not fully indexed (for searching) but are viewable. I think it is a pretty good deal for the price. Calra
maggi	Thanks for the tip:) Ancestry is a bit expensive for foreigners who only need to access USA records occasionally. Spring is finally here and hedges are blooming. Margaret