Amohamed Milai (Malai, Melai?)

Project: We are looking for immigration information on how our ancestor got to the United States and what if any other travel he did between countries.

Amohamed Milai (Malai, Melai?)

b September 21, 1873 or 77Madrid, Spain

(parents from India)

d. March 1, 1924 Detroit, Michigan, USA

Buried in Pittsburgh, Pa.

He put his name as Alonso Davio from Madrid Spain on my Grandfather’s birth certificate.

He said his native tongue was Spanish.

His US residential records show he said two different dates for his immigration 1892 and 1898. We have no other immigration information or information about his family.

His maternal family was supposedly artists. He was a church muralist and photographer. He was educated and trained as a fine artist. We believe he or his mother converted to Christianity.

We are not absolutely sure of his ethnicity, he may even have been North African but are fairly sure he was raised in Spain.

We only have US information. There is one set of murals finished in 1917 at Central Baptist Church in Charleston, South Carolina US.

Here is my article about that: He also said in an article he was born in Calcutta but we doubt that. He possibly traveled to the US from England or Italy.

My Family: Milai Family Tree

Wife: Sarah (Sallie) E. Tibbs 1877-1932

• Florida B. daughter 1902 (she is Tibbs daughter that Milai adopted) She also went by the name Poita.
• Effaaha daughter 1905 She went by the name Fay or Eppie.
• Elisha Samuel son 1908 [Samuel] Later changed his name to Ahmed Samuel and went by the name Sam.

1910:

Home: Locustdale, Madison, Virginia

Birthplace: Spain

Immigration year: 1898

Parents both from India

1912-1916 He was an Artist in Residence on and off in Charleston, South Carolina to paint church murals. See mural information and news paper clippings.

1916 City Directory 174 Auburn Street Pittsburgh, Pa.

1918 (Sept. 12) WWI Registration Card

b. September 21, 1873

Citizenship: British, India

Business: Oriental Art Company

2186 E. 55th Street Cleveland, Ohio Cuyahoga County

Medium height, stout, brown eyes, black hair

1920:

Home: 174 Auburn St. Ward 12, Allegheny County , Pittsburgh, Pa.

Birthplace: India

Immigration year: 1892

Parents are both Asian Indian, his mother born in Spain.

Native Tongue: Spanish

Status: Alien

His Other Family:

Wife: Mary Magdalene Conway6/16/1892-1963 (married later to Rogers)

Her family originally resided in South Carolina

Nathaniel son 1904 (?) died young

Fatima Ida Milai daughter 1914-1933

Amohamed (Amo) daughter 1916-1969

1920:

Home: State St. Chicago Ward 31, Cook County, Chicago, Illinois

Widowed: Hair-dresser

Children listed:

Nathaniel 16 1904 (died young)

Fatima 6

Ano [Amo] 4

______

What we do know:

He was educated, eloquent in his speech (with an accent), had fine penmanship and had studied fine art. He labeled himself Oriental although on city records he was also called black or mulatto.

AdditionalFamily Lore:

Amohamed came from Calcutta, studied art in Italy and lived in Spain. His mother was half Italian from the Byngotti family. His maternal grandfather was an artist. He had 8 brothers and sisters. My great grandparents were estranged. When my great grandmother and my great Aunt went to pick up his body in Michigan, they said there were turbaned, Arabic people there. Based on new information of his second family that looks doubtful.

I think a possible scenario based on our DNA testing of female descendants is he was of Spanish and North African Descent living in Spain. There are no living direct male descendants.

Photo Studio Information

He was a not only a muralist but also a photographer his studio is listed as both A. Mila or Mila and Jerome. The address is 1248 Ninth Street N.W. Washington D.C.

Thank you for your time. Kimberly Milai