My mother
Deirdre Flanagan.
Born 28 Oct 1936, Walkinstown House, Walkinstown, Co.Dublin.
Died 15 March 2024.
Frank Flanagan
My grandfather
Frank Flanagan.
Born 11 Dec 1886.
Fought in WWI. (Redmond volunteer in 1914).
Lived in
Walkinstown House, Walkinstown, Co.Dublin.
There by 1933.
Sold Walkinstown House, 1959.
Died 23 Oct 1970.
Frank Flanagan, about 1932.
Frank Flanagan's memoirs, 1965.
Edited by Richard Humphreys, 2010.
Flanagan photos
Walkinstown House.
Frank Flanagan and Deirdre, c.1938-39.
The front of Walkinstown House.
Photo 1943.
1960s photos
The gate on Walkinstown Rd.
The drive up to the W side of the house from the gate.
The front.
The front.
Walkinstown House
Walkinstown House on the new OS map (1887 to 1913 map).
A Flanagan property since 1871, possibly slightly earlier.
Home of:
Frank Flanagan's uncle
William Flanagan (died 1886).
Frank Flanagan's brother
The Bird Flanagan (died 1925).
Frank Flanagan (my grandfather, sold it 1959).
My mother Deirdre (Humphreys) and my aunt Finola (Kennedy).
The house was demolished around 1971.
The site is now SuperValu.
See
street view.
Going up: Alderman Michael Flanagan
Alderman Michael Flanagan.
Baptised 29 Sept 1833.
Dublin Corporation councillor. Alderman.
Built a vast Flanagan market gardening "empire" in West Co.Dublin.
Died 16 Oct 1931, age 98 years.
Alderman Michael Flanagan in 1925
with his grandchildren
Liam Cosgrave (left, born 1920)
and
Míceál Cosgrave (right, born 1922).
The Alderman's daughter Louisa Flanagan married in 1919 to W.T. Cosgrave, first head of government of Ireland.
The Alderman lived through and remembered The Famine (1845-50).
Liam Cosgrave (died 2017) knew him and remembered him well.
The Royal Hospital, Kilmainham
Michael Flanagan (not yet an Alderman)
lived around 1867-68 in the
The Garden Lodge
at The Royal Hospital, Kilmainham.
Liam Cosgrave said he just rented it for a time after marriage, he wasn't actually the gardener.
His son The Bird Flanagan was born there in 1867.
The Garden Lodge
and the lane that ran past it.
Ordnance Survey of Ireland.
Map created: 1838.
Modified: 1847.
Railway now exists (visible on larger map).
St. John's Road does not yet exist.
The Bird's birth cert, 1867.
His father is a "pensioner".
Think this is an error.
The Garden Lodge today
The Garden Lodge (built c.1734), The Royal Hospital, Kilmainham.
Photo 2008.
The amazing view from the upstairs room.
Photo 2023.
2023 video of the upstairs room.
Showing high ceiling, and view out window into the formal gardens.
Is there any record of Michael Flanagan at the RHK in the late 1860s?
Was he the gardener?
Was he actually a pensioner?
Portmahon House
Alderman Michael Flanagan's house for most of his life
was Portmahon House, Rialto.
He bought it 1867.
His son was born here 1870.
The Alderman died at Portmahon House in 1931.
Portmahon House on 2nd OS map.
Old part of Grand Canal (drained in 1976) at Rialto bridge.
Entrance to the S. Liam Cosgrave
said buildings to the W were the stables.
The E (location "Fn") had a tennis court and conservatory.
The SE ("Lodge") was the farmyard.
Portmahon House today
This survives.
Portmahon House.
The Flanagan estate
Alderman Michael Flanagan built up a vast estate,
starting in the 1860s, until his death in 1931.
At its peak he
had land in:
Crumlin, Drimnagh, Rialto, Dolphin's Barn, Walkinstown, Greenhills, Tallaght, Kilmainham and Rathfarnham.
The estate was gradually sold off by Frank Flanagan in 1931 to 1960.
From
Crumlin and the way it was, Finola Watchorn, Dublin, 1985.
She considers a "Flannaganstown"
that could have been.
Most of his practical jokes seem to be in 1900-1910.
There are a long list of
jokes attributed to The Bird.
For many,
there are multiple versions of the story.
Sign on "The Bird Flanagan" pub, Rialto.
Showing the Bird pretending to steal a turkey.
During a performance at the Olympia Theatre, Dublin, during WWI,
he stood up in the middle of the show and took off his overcoat,
revealing himself to be dressed as the Kaiser.
(The above is the actual Kaiser.)
Not so funny:
The Somali village, 1907 Irish International Exhibition, Ballsbridge (later Herbert Park).
The Bird stole the baby, and brought it to a pub, or on a tram (accounts vary).
George Duffin was groom and steward for The Bird at Walkinstown House.
His son Shay Duffin
told me that in 1925, the Alderman evicted the Bird's widow, and the Duffins.
A lost picture of The Bird Flanagan.
Somewhere in America, in family of
Shay Duffin (died 2010).
Larry Flanagan
Another son of the Alderman. Larry Flanagan.
Born 2 May 1874.
Listed at
Leicester House, Crumlin, from Thom's 1896 edition until death.
Died 9 Dec 1925.
Larry Flanagan and family, around 1907.
His 3 daughters married 3 prominent English jockeys.
May Flanagan married in 1918 to Billy Smith [steeplechase jockey].
Nancy Flanagan married in 1921 to Fred Winter, senior [flat race jockey].
Sheila Flanagan married in 1918 to Morny Wing [flat race jockey].
Aerial view of
Leicester House
Aerial view of
Leicester House.
20th century. Maybe 1920s.
Courtesy of Wendy Reynolds.
Another son of the Alderman. Michael Flanagan, born 1872.
He lived with his father and died unmarried in 1929.
No photo exists.
Flangans have almost no photos.
I thought I understood Michael Flanagan's life. Until 2021.
Michael Flanagan's secret family in Edwardian Dublin
In 2021, I discovered that Michael Flanagan
had a secret family with a woman called Muriel Jackson.
He had 3 children with her, born in 1905, 1906 and 1907.
How on earth did I discover this?
1911 census form showing Muriel and 3 children.
Has a "Michael Jackson" living with them.
He does not exist.
And he is not living with them. Their relationship is definitely over.
Baptised 29 July 1840.
Lived at Walkinstown House.
Died 27 Oct 1886.
Flanagan/Cosgrave political dynasty
William Flanagan the younger
was elected as a Poor Law Guardian in 1877.
The start of the Flanagan/Cosgrave/Humphreys/Kennedy political dynasty (1877 to 2019 so far).
William Flanagan is elected in Rathfarnham.
He is in the Liberal Party (Gladstone's party).
He was elected on Sat 24 March 1877.
Freemans Journal,
Mon 26 Mar 1877.
Going up: William Flanagan of Kilnamanagh
William Flanagan
of Kilnamanagh, Co.Dublin.
Baptised 3 June 1790.
Died 5 July 1874.
William Flanagan listed with 21 acres at Kilnamanagh (Greenhills Road),
Tallaght parish, Co.Dublin,
in
Tithe Survey, 1826.
The Flanagan farm, Greenhills road, Kilnamanagh, Co.Dublin
The Green Hills road,
Kilnamanagh, on Duncan's map of 1821.
The William Flanagan farm
would be house at roadside on E side of road, just above "Gayfield".
The Flanagan farm
highlighted on 1st OS map.
1865 general election
William Flanagan
had the vote in 1865.
William Flanagan listed in
Voters of Co.Dublin 1865.
This lists all voters in Dublin County in
1865 general election, and who they voted for.
Flanagan voted Liberal.
The Flanagan farm, Greenhills road, Kilnamanagh, Co.Dublin
The Flanagan house and farm surviving in the late 20th century.
Today the farm is vanished, part of Tymon Park, at edge of housing estate.
See modern map.
Go back one more generation?
I wanted to push the tree
back one more generation
before Liam Cosgrave died.
I did, in 2015.
(Liam died in 2017.)
Going up: Edward Flanagan, of Kilnamanagh
Edward Flanagan,
of Green Hills, Kilnamanagh townland, Tallaght parish, Co.Dublin.
Born maybe around 1750.
Married before 1777.
Possibly died before 1816.
First definite record in Flanagan family:
Baptism of Michael Flanagan, 7 Oct 1777,
Rathfarnham RC church.
Flanagan deeds from 1803
First known Flanagan deed (1803):
Deed of 13 Sept 1803.
Hartley Hodson, of Wilfort, Co.Dublin, and his wife, to Edward Flanagan, of Green Hills, Co.Dublin, farmer.
This is a lease to Flanagan
of the property in Kilnamanagh then occupied by Flanagan.
Size 8 acres.
1803 deed.
Signature of William Flanagan on a deed of 1825,
which refers to his father Edward.
Going up further: Edward Flanagan, of the Corkagh estate in 1750
Edward was a forgotten name.
Also a rare name, which helps.
The first record for our family may be this
Edward Flanagan.
Corkagh House in Clondalkin parish is being sold in 1750.
Edward Flanagan's farm is somewhere in the Corkagh estate.
It may be Kilnamanagh.
Sale of Corkagh House and estate.
From
Dublin Journal, March 24, 1750.
The sale includes "Flanagan's Farm", 8 acres, occupied by Edward Flanagan.
Corkagh and Kilnamanagh on Taylor's map of 1816.
Further back? Co.Roscommon
Frank Flanagan said there was a story that the Flanagans were stewards to
The O'Conor Don
at Clonalis House, Co.Roscommon.
No evidence found for this so far.
They are very Co.Dublin!
The old (early 18th century)
"Cloonalis House", Co.Roscommon, on 1st OS map.
This house is now gone.
