John Grant and Ellen Tierney

John Grant was born in Loughmore, Tipperary, Ireland about 1811.  His parents were Joseph Grant and Alice Fogarty.

Brothers Joseph and John Grant are listed in the Griffith Valuation of Ireland in 1850 as jointly holding the farm 17a 1r 21p (statute acres) in Graiguefrahane, Loughmore, with separate houses for each. The size of 10 1/2 Irish acres given for Joseph Grant’s farm in the Tithe Applotment Books is about the same as the 1 or so statute acres jointly farmed by John and Joseph Grant in 1850, so presumably it was the same farm.

John and Ellen came to Australia in 1851 on the “Marco Polo”.  They left behind their young children as they had the mumps, or measles, and were not well enough to travel.  The following year these children arrived on the “Abel Gower” with their uncle Peter Grant (presumably John’s brother?)

1852 – John and Ellen Grant were living in Richmond, Melbourne.

1867 – Daughter Alice’s marriage certificate states her father, John Grant, was a farmer.

1870-1889 – John was publican of the Langridge Family Hotel on the corner of Langridge and Raphael Streets, Collingwood.  John owned the Langridge Family Hotel until ill health forced him to sell to William Nichols in 1889.  William Nichols had the hotel demolished and rebuilt as the Friendly Societies Hotel.  It was renamed in 1984 to the Carringbush Hotel. after the fictitious names given to the suburbs of Abbotsford and Collingwood in Frank Hardy’s famous book, “Power without Glory”.

John’s wife, Ellen Tierney, died in April 1877 and was buried in the Melbourne General Cemetery.

Her headstone reads:

Sacred to the memory of Ellen GRANT died 4 Apr 1877, age 58 years
also Ann
the beloved wife of Michael TIERNEY who died 23 Feb 1895, age 82 years
also Mary Elizabeth GRANT
beloved wife of Thomas GRANT died 26 Aug 1896, age 33 years
also Michael TIERNEY
died 22 Dec 1898, age 87 years
also Ellen Mary
loved wife of William WESTCOTT
and eldest daughter of T. GRANT died 2 Feb 1922, age 31 years
also the above Thomas GRANT died 17 Apr 1925, age 75 years.

Later that same year, on 9 September 1877, John married 22 year old Maria Ryan.  John was 76 year old at the time!  The following year, Maria bore John a son – John Martin Grant. Sadly, Maria died 7 years later on 10 March 1884.

John Grant died on 30 August 1891 when he was 80 years old.  He is buried at Melbourne General Cemetery with his second wife.

Before his death,  John was being cared for by his daughter Alice Oakman and her husband, James, in a house at 35 Nicholson Street, Abbotsford.  John had become a reasonably wealthy man.  He bequeathed most of his estate to his son John Martin Grant.  He left the house in Nicholson Street to his daughter Alice.