Nolan Family Stories

Browse using the Side/End Menu

Table of Contents

Families in Queensland

You are here:
← All Topics

1876 : Edward James Nolan : Warwick, QLD

[439] Edward James Nolan (1852 – 1918) – from Co. Kilkenny, IE
[440] Annie Elizabeth Kelly (1856 – ????) – from Unknown
Children: ???

Edward James Nolan, son of James Nowlan and Ellen Dowling of Co. Kilkenny, was born in 1852 and emigrated to Australia in 1875/76. He and two other brothers, Stephen Patrick and James Stephen, with 2 of his brothers, Stephen Patrick and James Stephen. They sailed from London on the ship Gauntleton 18-Sep-1875 bound for Moreton Bay. Before reaching the ship’s final destination, sometime in January/February 1876, James Stephen got off at Robe, perhaps because a step-sister, Mary, married to an Otto DOPKING, already lived there. Stephen Patrick may also have gotten off at Robe but ultimately made his way to Queenland. Edward James appears to have only alighted at Brisbane.

A 4th brother, named John (d. 1944?), apparently stayed in Ireland and married a Kate Nolan, no relation, and they had no children. apparently John Nolan died in 1944.

In 18 81, some 5 years after his arrival in Australia, Edward James married Annie Elizabeth Kelly (b. 18-Dec-1856) on 01-Mar-1881 at Warwick, Queensland. He died on 19-Oct-1918 at Lower Freestone, Queensland.

1876 : Stephen Patrick Nolan : Warwick, QLD

[441] Stephen Patrick Nolan (1852 – 1951) – from Ruthstown, Ballyfoyle, Co. Kilkenny
[442] Anne Aloysica Topfer (???? – ????) – from Unknown
Children: ???

Stephen Patrick Nolan, son of James Nowlan and Ellen Dowling of Co. Kilkenny, was born in 1852 at Ruthstown, Ballyfoyle, Co. Kilkenny, and emigrated to Australia in 1875/76. He and two other brothers, Edward James and James Stephen, sailed from London on the ship Gauntlet on 18-Sep-1875 bound for Moreton Bay, Australia. Before reaching final destination, sometime in January/February 1876, James Stephen got off at Robe, South Australia, perhaps because a step-sister, Mary, married to an Otto DOPKING, already lived there. Stephen Patrick may also have gotten off at Robe but ultimately made his way to Queensland. A third brother, Edward James appears to have only alighted at Brisbane.

A 4th brother, named John (d. 1944?), apparently stayed in Ireland and married a Kate Nolan, no relation, and they had no children.

On 10-Apr-1899, Stephen Patrick Nolan married Anne Aloysica Topfer at Warwick, Queensland. He died on 7-Jan-1951 at Warwick, Queensland, aged 89 years.

1884 : Patrick Joseph Nolan : Brisbane, QLD

[506] Patrick Joseph Nolan (1853-1922) – from Wexford?, IE
[507] Mary Josephine Murphy (1846-1923) – from Wexford?, IE
Children: Margaret (1876), Mary (1878), Annie Mary (1880), Ellen Veronica (1883), Catherine (1883) and Patrick Joseph Stephen Francis (1887)

Patrick was born in Ireland in 1853 and, according to his death certificate, his parents were, Garret Nolan and Mary Fisher. It is, however, not known where they lived, although Co. Wexford has been mentioned as a possibility.

According to the Irish civil marriage registry, in 1875, while still in Ireland, Patrick Joseph Nolan married Mary Josephine Murphy in Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford. Following their marriage, while still in Ireland, they had 5 children: Margaret (c1876), Mary (c1878), Anne (c1880) and sometimes around 1882, two girls, Catherine and Ellen, believed to have been twins, Catherine dying before the family’s departure for Brisbane, Australia, in September 1883,

The ship, the P & O Duntrune, an iron, full rig ship of 1488 tons, considered quite modern for her day, left the port of Dundee, on the Firth of Tay, Scotland, on September 1, 1883. She was carrying over 400 passengers who, like the Nolan family, were mostly bounty immigrants and, during the course of the voyage which lasted 120 days, 19 passengers died succumbing to some of the many accidents and illnesses which were known to occur during the course of such long voyages. Unfortunately, Patrick and Mary’s youngest child, Ellen, was one of the victims.

On December 29,1883, the passengers of the Duntrune disembarked in Brisbane, at the time a bustling little metropolis, and those who did not have specific employment waiting for them, were transported to the Immigration Depot, where they were taken care of for a short time. They were usually given a few days in which to find accommodation and work for themselves. Sometimes their sponsors let them down, having found employees elsewhere and so the immigrants were left to their own devices.

In 1883, Patrick went to work at the Post Office in Brisbane and the family settled in Fortitude Valley. In 1887, Patrick Jr. (Patrick Joseph Stephen Francis Nolan) was born.

Patrick Sr. passed away on the 22nd of June 1922 at Chalk Street, Wooloowin, and was buried at Nudgee Cemetery. His wife died the following year in 1923.

Children of PATRICK JOSEPH NOWLAN and MARY JOSEPHINE MURPHY:

  • Margaret Nolan(c1876-????)
  • Patrick Joseph Stephen Francis Nolan (1877-1922)
  • Mary Nolan(c1878-????)
  • Anne Nolan(c1880-????)
  • Catherine Nolan(c1882-1883)
  • Anne Nolan(c1882-1883)

Patrick was born in Brisbane in 1877 and lived his whole there. From around age 13 Patrick started work at T C Beirne, a large drapery store in Fortitude Valley, Brisbane. He worked there for 50 years.

In 1917 Patrick married Mary Ann Doyle and had children James and Martin (twins) and Patricia. Patrick lived in the Sandgate area until his death in 1965 and is buried in the Nudgee Cemetery (7A-269).

REFERENCE: Voyage of the P&O Duntrane

1887 : William Nolan : Brisbane, QLD

[464] William Nolan (1862-????) – from Brisbane area, QLD
[465] Ellen Pearce (1869 – 1930) – from Bathurst area, NSW
Children: Denis (1889), William (1891), John (1893), George (1895), Rupert (1898), Lillian (1901) & Nellie (1911)

William Nolan was born around 1862 either in Ireland or possibly in Australia. His parents are known to have been a Patrick Nolan and a Mary Ann Doherty and they may have been living in the area of Ipswich and Stanley, near Brisbane, when William was born. However, no record of William’s birth has been found to confirm this.

Sometime in the mid 1880s in the Brisbane area, William Nolan met Ellen Pearce, a girl from the Bathurst area of New South Wales. On December 29, 1887, shortly after Ellen turned 18, they were married in St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Brisbane and, for the first couple of years they seem to have lived in Rockhampton, Queensland, where their first child, Denis, was born in 1889.

Around 1890, the family seems to have moved to the goldfields of northern Queensland where the next two children, William (1891) and John (1893) were born. According to family tradition William worked as a miner and the family lived near the town of Chillagoe which, at the time, was nothing more than a mining camp. It is not known exactly where they lived but the nearby area of Muldiva where full-scale smelting began in 1892 and where a Nolan’s Creek is found is a distinct possibility.

In the mining camp living conditions were harsh and, while there, William was even speared by the local natives. With the family increasing in number and, perhaps pregnant with her 4th child, around 1894, the family seems to have gone to live in Western Australia with Ellen’s sister and her husband who had moved there from New South Wales. In 1895 Ellen’s 4th child was born and, within the year, in 1896, they were back in Queensland for the baptism/civil registration of the new baby as “George Henry”.

Sometime around 1897, they seem to have gone again to live with relatives, this time in New South Wales where Ellen’s 5th child, Rupert, was born in 1898.

By 1901, Ellen was again pregnant and the family returned to the Perth area of Western Australia to await the birth of the child, Ellen’s 6th, Lilian. They stayed there until at least 1906 and then moved back to Queensland, this time to the coastal area where the railway line was being extended northward from Brisbane. It is not known how William made a living during this time but, in light of later events and his experience with mining practices and building techniques, it is believed that he found employment building the new railway line.

In 1911, Nellie the latecomer to the family was born and, by then, the family may have already been living in the Ayr area where work had already commenced on building a railway bridge across the Burdekin river linking the towns of Ayr and Bowen.

In 1913 the bridge, known as the Inkerman bridge, was completed and, a year later, in 1914, we find William and his family living in Ayr on the Inkerman estate. William is listed as a farmer and it is likely that he grew either sugar cane or cotton as these were the main crops for the area at the time.

By 1925, William and Ellen had moved across the river to Bowen and Nellie, the latecomer, would likely have been the only child still living at home.

In 1930, Ellen died and William arranged for her burial in the Toowong cemetery in Brisbane. After this point in time we lose sight of William and, so far, no official records have been found to indicate where he lived and eventually died. He may have gone to live with one of his children but, for now, nothing is known for sure.

Children of WILLIAM NOLAN and ELLEN PEARCE:

  • Denis Nolan b. 1889 at Rockhampton, Queensland
  • William Nolan b. 1891 near Chillagoe in north Queensland
  • John Nolan b. 1893 near Chillagoe in north Queensland
  • George b. 1895 in Western Australia
  • George Henry baptized? 1896 in Queensland
  • Rupert Walter b. 1898 in New South Wales
  • Lillian b. 1901 in the Perth area, Werstern Australia
  • Nellie b. 1911 in Queensland

William Nolan was born around 1862 either in Ireland or possibly in Australia. His parents are known to have been a Patrick Nolan and a Mary Ann Doherty and they may have been living in the area of Ipswich and Stanley, near Brisbane, when William was born. However, no record of William’s birth has been found to confirm this.

Sometime in the mid 1880s in the Brisbane area, William Nolan met Ellen Pearce, a girl from the Bathurst area of New South Wales. On December 29, 1887, shortly after Ellen turned 18, they were married in St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Brisbane and, for the first couple of years they seem to have lived in Rockhampton, Queensland, where their first child, Denis, was born in 1889.

Around 1890, the family seems to have moved to the goldfields of northern Queensland where the next two children, William (1891) and John (1893) were born. According to family tradition William worked as a miner and the family lived near the town of Chillagoe which, at the time, was nothing more than a mining camp. It is not known exactly where they lived but the nearby area of Muldiva where full-scale smelting began in 1892 and where a Nolan’s Creek is found is a distinct possibility.

In the mining camp living conditions were harsh and, while there, William was even speared by the local natives. With the family increasing in number and, perhaps pregnant with her 4th child, around 1894, the family seems to have gone to live in Western Australia with Ellen’s sister and her husband who had moved there from New South Wales. In 1895 Ellen’s 4th child was born and, within the year, in 1896, they were back in Queensland for the baptism/civil registration of the new baby as “George Henry”.

Sometime around 1897, they seem to have gone again to live with relatives, this time in New South Wales where Ellen’s 5th child, Rupert, was born in 1898.

By 1901, Ellen was again pregnant and the family returned to the Perth area of Western Australia to await the birth of the child, Ellen’s 6th, Lilian. They stayed there until at least 1906 and then moved back to Queensland, this time to the coastal area where the railway line was being extended northward from Brisbane. It is not known how William made a living during this time but, in light of later events and his experience with mining practices and building techniques, it is believed that he found employment building the new railway line.

In 1911, Nellie the latecomer to the family was born and, by then, the family may have already been living in the Ayr area where work had already commenced on building a railway bridge across the Burdekin river linking the towns of Ayr and Bowen.

In 1913 the bridge, known as the Inkerman bridge, was completed and, a year later, in 1914, we find William and his family living in Ayr on the Inkerman estate. William is listed as a farmer and it is likely that he grew either sugar cane or cotton as these were the main crops for the area at the time.

By 1925, William and Ellen had moved across the river to Bowen and Nellie, the latecomer, would likely have been the only child still living at home.

In 1930, Ellen died and William arranged for her burial in the Toowong cemetery in Brisbane. After this point in time we lose sight of William and, so far, no official records have been found to indicate where he lived and eventually died. He may have gone to live with one of his children but, for now, nothing is known for sure.

Was this article helpful?
3 out Of 5 Stars

1 rating

5 Stars 0%
4 Stars 0%
3 Stars 100%
2 Stars 0%
1 Stars 0%
5
How can we improve this article?
Please submit the reason for your vote so that we can improve the article.
Need help?

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.