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1822?–1870Runholder
Sarah Russell was baptised at Mallow, Cork, Ireland, on 21 August 1822. She was one of 13 children of Mary Tarrant and her husband, William Russell, an army officer. The family emigrated to Australia in 1838. On 8 June 1844, at Sydney, New South Wales, Sarah Russell married Edward Maurice O'...
Story: O'Connell, Sarah
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1843–1902Engineer
Charles Yelverton O'Connor was born at Gravelmount, Castletown, County Meath, Ireland, probably on 11 January 1843, the son of John O'Connor, a farmer and company secretary, and his wife, Mary Elizabeth O'Keefe. He was educated at the Waterford diocesan school, then in 1859 articled to the...
Story: O'Connor, Charles Yelverton
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1894–1975Theatrical manager, concert impresario, businessman
Born in Ponsonby, Auckland, on 13 May 1894, Daniel Joseph Augustine O'Connor was the son of Lena Agnes Martin and her husband, Timothy Beehane O'Connor, a contractor. Part of a large Irish Catholic family, he grew up in an atmosphere of amateur music-making and literary enthusiasm. Fired by...
Story: O'Connor, Doinall Dhu
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1924–1990Shearer, blacksmith, wrestler
Patrick John O’Connor, known as Pat and sometimes publicised as ‘Irish Pat’ in American wrestling, was born at Raetihi on 22 August 1924, a son of sheepfarming parents John Frederick O’Connor and his wife, Isabella McPhee. He was educated at primary schools in Raetihi and nearby Orautoha, and...
Story: O'Connor, Patrick John
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1835–1912Politician, farmer, newspaper proprietor
According to his own account Eugene Joseph O'Conor was born in Dublin, Ireland, on 23 February 1835. He was the third son of Roderic O'Conor, a barrister, and his wife, Cecilia Macdonnell. He was educated in Ireland and France, and in 1854 went to Victoria, Australia, where he ran a coach in...
Story: O'Conor, Eugene Joseph
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1857–1860?–1934Homemaker, farmer, grocer, hotel proprietor
Ann McNamara was born sometime between 1857 and 1860, the second youngest of the seven children of Kathy Curry and her husband, Patrick McNamara, a farmer of County Clare, Ireland. When a marriage was arranged for Ann she strongly opposed it. Instead, she persuaded her brothers to buy her a...
Story: O'Donnell, Ann
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1858–1927Police commissioner
John O'Donovan was born at Ross Carbery, County Cork, Ireland, on 22 May 1858, the son of Mary Hegarty and her husband, Florence O'Donovan, a farmer. John grew up in a large Catholic family and later became a teacher under the national school system in County Cork. In 1878 he arrived in New...
Story: O'Donovan, John
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1838–1891Hotel-keeper, political agitator
'Tear them down boys; I will give £100 out of my pocket this minute to prevent them from marching.' Thomas O'Driscoll was said to have incited a riot with these words on 26 December 1879, as members of the local Hibernian society and other Irish Catholics gathered in the yard of his hotel to...
Story: O'Driscoll, Thomas
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1858–1941Publican, artist, art teacher
Alfred Henry O'Keeffe was born at Long Gully, Victoria, Australia, on 21 July 1858, the son of Edmund O'Keeffe, a miner and amateur painter, and his wife, Eliza Ellen Vickers. The family came to New Zealand and settled in Dunedin by 1866; Edmund worked as a carter and a grocer before becoming...
Story: O'Keeffe, Alfred Henry
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1886–1953Lawyer, judge
Humphrey Francis O'Leary was born at Redwoodtown in the Wairau Valley, Marlborough, on 12 February 1886, the son of Irish parents Mary Falvey and her husband, Humphrey John O'Leary, a blacksmith. Before he reached school age his family moved to Masterton, where his father was later a borough...
Story: O'Leary, Humphrey Francis
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1865–1947Prospector, ferryman
William O'Leary, known as Arawata Bill, was born at Tuapeka, New Zealand, on 28 October 1865, the second child in a family of eight. His father, Timothy O'Leary, had emigrated from Prince Edward Island when gold was discovered in Otago in 1861; his mother, Mary O'Connor, came from County Clare...
Story: O'Leary, William
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1827/1828?–1900Civil engineer, architect, politician
Charles Gordon O'Neill was born in Glasgow, Scotland, probably in 1827 or 1828, the son of Mary Gallagher and her husband, John O'Neill, a hotel proprietor. He studied civil engineering and mechanics at the University of Glasgow and then served for 14 years as assistant superintendent of the...
Story: O'Neill, Charles Gordon
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1869–1947Newspaper editor, politician, lawyer
Patrick Joseph O'Regan was born in New Zealand on 6 February 1869 at Charleston, on the West Coast, the son of Irish immigrants Patrick O'Regan, a goldminer, and his wife, Mary Burke. Three years later he and his family moved inland to Inangahua Junction, where his father became a farmer and...
Story: O'Regan, Patrick Joseph
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1843?–1914Catholic priest, educationalist
Patrick O'Reilly was born at Rosscarberry, County Cork, Ireland, and baptised there on 24 February 1843, the son of Peter O'Reilly, a farmer, and his wife, Mary Keane. Peter and Mary O'Reilly brought their family to Auckland, New Zealand, in 1852. Patrick attended the boys' school attached to...
Story: O'Reilly, Patrick
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1830–1916Politician, lawyer, educationalist
George Maurice O'Rorke was born on 2 May 1830 at Moylough, County Galway, Ireland, the third son of John O'Rorke, an Anglican clergyman and large landowner, and Elizabeth Dennis, his third wife.
George O'Rorke received his primary education at Dr Smyth's school at Stillorgan, near Dublin...
Story: O'Rorke, George Maurice
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1902–1990Shepherd, clerk, farmers’ union leader, political lobbyist, meat industry representative
The man who more than anyone else came to symbolise Federated Farmers was born in Dunedin on 29 December 1902. Alexander Paterson O’Shea was the youngest of 10 children of John O’Shea, a law clerk, and his wife, Alice Marion Clark. His father was a Roman Catholic and his mother a Presbyterian;...
Story: O'Shea, Alexander Paterson
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1920–2001Filmmaker
John O’Shea occupies a decisive position in the development of the New Zealand film industry. He was responsible for the only feature production in New Zealand between 1940 and the early 1970s, and singlehandedly established a role for the independent filmmaker. In so doing he also enabled a...
Story: O'Shea, John Dempsey
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1870–1954Catholic archbishop
Thomas O'Shea was the son of Edmond Shea and his wife, Johanna Sullivan. Both born in Ireland, they married in 1869 in Charleston on the West Coast of New Zealand where Shea was a miner. The couple emigrated to California, and Thomas was born at San Francisco on 13 March 1870; they seem to have...
Story: O'Shea, Thomas
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1826?–1889Teacher, school inspector
Richard James Sullivan (later known as O'Sullivan) was born at Kilkenny, County Kilkenny, Ireland, and baptised there on 10 January 1826. He was the son of Richard Sullivan, a merchant, and his first wife, Catherine Hackett. In 1832, Sullivan's father became the first Catholic since the reign...
Story: O'Sullivan, Richard James
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1834–1873Naval seaman, Victoria Cross winner
William Odgers was born probably on 14 February 1834 at Falmouth, Cornwall, England. His parents' names are unknown, but his father is said to have been a ship's steward. The details of William Odgers's early life are sparse. He joined the Royal Navy in August 1852. He first married Ann May;...
Story: Odgers, William