Digging deeper

After my last post I heard from John DeCourcy who gave me some updates on the information I'd supplied and added some further details - plus an interesting picture.

Firstly he added some clarity to the story of Francis Hannagan. We've mentioned this before, some time ago. He writes:

Are you aware of this particular skeleton in the family cupboard.? How Francis had a wife in Dunedin (Catherine Comer) then went off to the Victorian goldfields, claimed Mary Ann Cairns/Kearns as his wife there, had 4 children with her, came back to Dunedin, had Charles with Catherine, Catherine then dies a few months later (no cause of death on the death certificate), and he then officially marries Mary Ann Cairns in Dunedin? No wonder our very proper grandparents thought there was no point at all in pursuing Hannagan genealogy! I have much of the official documentation around this, which I un-earthed by a chance encounter with a Marnie Hannagan in Melbourne who is a descendant of Mary Ann.

Well, that certainly adds a bit of colour to the family tree!

He also pointed out that the copy of John and Bridget's family picture that I posted is actually a reverse version of the original:

The other day I wrote that there were two girls in the photo. There aren't. One of the girls is actually John Hannagan....it wasn't uncommon to dress boys in what we would now regard as a girlish fashion, especially on formal occasions like having a photo taken. John DeCourcy thinks he would have been 3-4 years old at this point.

And now to the 'interesting' picture.


John writes about this photo: The Hannagan photo I am really interested in is attached. The version I have looks like a copy of a copy of a copy, and is a generation earlier than the one you have. I would dearly love to know where the original of this set of photos is, and would be happy to pay to have a good-quality reproduction done. Brian Hannagan?? [He's wondering if Brian Hannagan, my mother's cousin, has a copy. I haven't checked yet.]

It shows Family of Francis Hannagan, b 1825, at top. Clockwise from him, deduced by age: John H b 1844; Brigid H, b 1842; wife Catherine Connor, b 1824; Francis jnr, b 1845; Margaret, b 1848; at centre Charles, b 1867.

If you click on the photo, you'll get a larger version, which may be easier to see. If anyone knows any more about this photo, send me an email.

More Crowl Photos

More Crowl family members - or at least more photos of them...


My father, Frank Crowl, taken in Melbourne. The photo was reproduced on a post card with the stamp: Artophot, 276 Lonsdale St, Melb. C.I. Phone C 4123. It looks as though he's dressed up for something; perhaps his wedding day.


My paternal grandfather, Arthur Crowl and his wife, Karolina (nee Brock) with her parents, Francis William Brock and his wife (whose name I don't know). Karolina, my grandmother, (spelt Karolena on my father's death certificate) was born in Germany in 1873, and died in England in 1962. Occasionally I received letters from her. I don't know anything about her parents, except that two of their boys had interesting names: George Washington Brock and William Thackeray Brock. The two boys are my father and my uncle, but I'm not sure which is which.


This is 'loving sister Milly' according to the back of the photo. She was my great aunt, and the sister of Karolena. She died aged 21, but I don't know anything more about her. On the back of her photo it says: Chaffin & Sons, Photographers, Cheap Street, Sherborne, Dorset.


This photo is a mystery. I don't know who it is, and there's nothing on the back to give any indication. Perhaps it's Milly again. The photographers were Bender & Lewis, 126 George St, Croydon - facing East Croydon Station. The had a 'Day and Electric Light Studio' and were 'Patronized by H.M the King, the King of the Belgians, the King of Portugal, etc, etc.' If there was an English King patronizing them, then this must have been at the beginning of the 20th century, I suspect, since Victoria would have been on the throne before that.

Aussie Hannagans

Well, I've just spent a couple of hours inputting a large number of Australian Hannagans onto the Family Tree. Tailors abound - it was obviously a common occupation in those days - but there's a theatrical agent amongst the group, which is a bit different (!)

As always there are several common names running through the generations, but there are some unusual ones as well. One that struck me as interesting was Kearns Hannagan. The Francis Hannagan (Francis is a frequently-used name) from 1825 (my great-great grandfather, if I've remembered to put enough greats in) was married to Mary Cairns, but there seems to have been some question about the spelling of her name. It might have been Kearns. A generation or three down the track someone seems to have thought so and named one of their sons with that spelling.

The other thing about this afternoon's work is that we now have a tree going back to 1800 - approximately. In fact, it might be a little older than that, as William Hannagan's birth date isn't secure. However, he was my great-great-great grandfather (I've just checked it using the 'relationships' part of the 'People' menu). William has the distinction of being the oldest person on the tree at this point - unless he happened to have married a woman (Brigid Daly) who was older than him. Again, her birth date is not quite known.

William left a huge legacy of descendants - whatever date he was born!

Francis Hannagan

A very cold Saturday and I'm finally trying to get some of the info sent to me by Nola Marshall sorted. I might put some of it on the Family Tree site, but information space is limited to 1000 words there, and Nola has provided some extensive info on some people. Note the usual inconsistency in the spelling of the family name!

Victorian Police Gazette, February 1856: Lost or stolen, from the person of Francis HANNAGAN, on the night of the twelfth instant somewhere in Melbourne, an open faced silver lever watch, No 1152, makers name Robertson of Liverpool, with gold guard attached, gold ring with FH engraved outside , and a dark coloured pocket book, with a small ink bottle. Five pounds in gold and silver , and sundry documents. Information to the Inspector of Detective police, Melbourne 16th February 1856.

Friday February 19th 1892 NEW ZEALAND TABLET We record with regret the death of Mr Francis Hannigan, [sic] father in law of Mr John Blaney, of the Caledonian Hotel, South Dunedin, which occurred at the age of 67,on Monday last. Mr Hannigan was an old member and well-known resident of Dunedin, where he came from Victoria at the time of the gold rush. He stood high in the esteem of a large circle of friends and acquaintances. R.I.P.

There are also three other known mentions of Francis Hannagan in newspaper reports.
Otago Witness 7 May 1870, page 14
Otago Witness,Issue 1047, 23 December 1871, page 6
Otago Witness,Issue 1075, 6 July 1872, page 8

I've included these for the moment as a reference.

Another bit of the tree

A couple of days ago I received an email from a Hannagan in Australia. The writer's name is Nola Marshall, and she says:

I recently found your homepage for Hannagan.
I am a descendant of the Australian Hannagans.
My Grandfather was William Francis Hannagan, brother of Martin John Hannagan. I have information and photos of this side of the family if you are interested.

This bit of the family is a little confusing - at least at this point. William and Martin were the sons of Francis Hannagan (born in 1825) and his second wife, Mary (nee Cairns). On the family tree as it currently stands, I have two William Hannagans - I suspect they may be the same person, and we've got the information a bit confused. It isn't entirely unusual for people in the Victorian period to give two children the same name, if the first died very young. However, I don't have any evidence for this, as yet.

We'll keep you informed when I hear back from Nola.