He involved the inception and development of the North Shore and is locally referred to as the Father of both Devonport and Takapuna.

[1] He participated in local and national politics, serving as Mayor for both Takapuna and Devonport, on several boards and sat in both the House of Representatives (1902–1908) and the Legislative Council (1918–1932) of New Zealand.

At 13, he finished school and became employed as a type compositor at the New Zealand Herald, but in 1867, he departed Auckland to be a part of the Coromandel Gold Rush, where he earned a small amount of money.

[2][3] The money he earned from the gold rush was enough to kickstart a career in butchering with his brother Alexander Jr.

[3] This was common practice at the time for influential members of the community and encouraged people to settle in the Devonport area but continue to work in the city.

[3] The Alison's took the absence of the Takapuna trams as an opportunity to found the North Shore Transport Company that year.

[2][3] From 1902, he served on the Auckland Conciliation Board, which worked with local employers and unions to avoid conflicts being taken to the Arbitration Court.

[2][3] He encouraged the Auckland branch of the Employers' Federation to create a nationwide defense fund that could be used in the event of union unrest or a general strike.

[6] In 1905 Alison had been associated with the breakaway New Liberal Party led initially by Harry Bedford and Francis Fisher, but had left the group before the election in December.

[7] After his term as Mayor of Takapuna, he went on to serve as a Member of the Legislative Council in 1918 to 1932, again representing the Waitemata, this time as part of the Reform Party.

[3] He married Mary Ann Coleman at St Andrews Anglican Church in Epsom on 26 July 1876.

[2][3][9] In 1906, E. W. Alison and his family moved from Melrose House in Devonport to Lochaber in Takapuna, where he lived until his death.

[9] The house had been built in the colonial style, and was surrounded by flowerbeds, a rose garden, a shrubbery and a croquet lawn.

[9] The property also contained a stone dairy, a coach house and stables as well as an orchard and a vegetable garden.

[9] This area was first used for the house cow and racing horses, but was later turned into a picnic ground called Alison's Paddock.