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The Manchester New Hampshire Goonans My Family line of Goonans have been living in the Manchester, New Hampshire since about 1895 as near as I can figure. I have found records of Goonans, including home addresses and job descriptions, in the old Manchester City Directories at the Manchester Public Library. The City Directories are the equivalent of today's modern telephone books, minus the phone numbers. The Manchester Public Library has a complete collection of these directories in the New Hampshire Room of the library. In February of 1991, I spent countless hours copying the entries I found. I have also found some these City Directories in antique shops and old book stores along the famous "Antique Alley", Rte 4, in the town of Northwood, NH. I have several in my collection of old books. The first entry I found was in in the 1895 directory. It was Patrick Goonan and Catherine (Kane), who we believe were cousins to my Great Grandfather Michael Goonan, likewise with the next entry, James Goonan and Bridget (McLaughlin) and family. Though we have no definite proof yet, family stories tell of these being the cousins on Cedar Street in Manchester. The first record of my Great Grandfather Michael Goonan in the Manchester, NH City Directory is in 1905, when his name was Michael Gunning. He was also Michael Gunning on his Naturalization papers and Baptismal record. However, some time during or after 1905, he changed it to Goonan. His original name on his birth certificate was Michael Goonane. In the Manchester, NH City Directories each person has a listing of their name, spouse, occupation at the time, and whether they own a house, rented or boarded. A fairly complete snapshot. My Great Grandfather Michael is listed as having been a laborer, gardener, (This is when he worked as a groundskeeper at the Van Cortlandt Family Estate at Croton-on-the-Hudson, New York, along with his sister Elizabeth, who worked there for 40 years as the cook.) He was also the chauffeur, among other jobs. Many of this generation of Goonans worked in the textile mills, shoe manufacturing factories, and at the R. G. Sullivan Cigar Company in Manchester's Mill District. My Grandfather Thomas was a cigar maker at R. G. Sullivan's. My Grandmother Elizabeth also worked there and that is where they first met. Thomas's twin brother James also worked there, and so did his younger brothers Michael and John. The City of Manchester has preserved this historic Mill District. The 7-2-4 Sullivan Building has been restored and is now used for corporate offices. The textile mills that line the Merrimack River on Canal and Commercial Streets in downtown Manchester, near the Amoskeag Falls, are now occupied by local businesses, some tasty eating establishments, light manufacturing, and The University of New Hampshire's Manchester Campus Extension, and also Springfield College. Click to view Manchester City Directory listing of Goonans Page
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