Contents [hide]

Bresnahan History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Citations

Bresnahan History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland
Scotland
England

The ancient Bresnahan surname is derived from the Irish Gaelic "ó Brosnacháin," which may be derived from the place name Brosna in Kerry. 1

Early Origins of the Bresnahan family

The surname Bresnahan was first found in Kerry (Irish: Ciarraí) part of the former County Desmond (14th-17th centuries), located in Southwestern Ireland, in Munster province, where they held a family seat as Chiefs and kin to both the Dunns and the Dempseys. Irish history, after the Norman Conquest of England, was strongly influenced by the invasion of Strongbow in 1172, almost equal to the enormous Irish cultural impact on England Scotland, Wales and the whole of Europe before the Norman Conquest from the 1st to 7th centuries. Many Irish clanns, sept names were intermixed and family groupings became almost indistinguishable.

Early History of the Bresnahan family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bresnahan research. Another 78 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Bresnahan History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Bresnahan Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Brosnan, Brosnahan, O'Brosnan, Brosnochain, Bresnahan, Bresnan, Brosna, Brosnihan and many more.

Early Notables of the Bresnahan family

More information is included under the topic Early Bresnahan Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Bresnahan Ranking

In the United States, the name Bresnahan is the 8,961^st most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 2

Bresnahan migration to the United States +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Bresnahan Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

John Bresnahan, who arrived in St Clair County, Illinois in 1873 3

Bresnahan migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Bresnahan Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Patrick Bresnahan, English convict who was convicted in Clerkenwell, London, England for 10 years, transported aboard the "Edwin Fox" on 24th August 1858, arriving in Western Australia, Australia

Bresnahan migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Bresnahan Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Samuel Bresnahan, aged 26, a blacksmith, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Maori" in 1864
Ellen Bresnahan, aged 28, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Maori" in 1864
Ellen Bresnahan, aged 2, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Maori" in 1864

Contemporary Notables of the name Bresnahan (post 1700) +

Brigadier-General Thomas Francis Bresnahan (1892-1971), American Commanding General Bremerhaven Port of Embarkation (1947-1948) 4
Donald Joseph Bresnahan, United States Army recipient of the Silver Star
Patrick Francis Bresnahan (1872-1940), American naval watertender, recipient of the Medal of Honor for bravery
Charles "Chuck" Bresnahan (b. 1960), American football coach
Roger Philip Bresnahan (1879-1944), nicknamed "The Duke of Tralee" an American Major League Baseball player
Lawrence J. Bresnahan, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for U.S. Representative from Massachusetts 14th District, 1938 5
John T. Bresnahan (b. 1911), American Democratic Party politician, Member of Michigan State House of Representatives from Wayne County 4th District, 1945-46; Defeated in primary, 1946 5
John M. Bresnahan, American Democratic Party politician, Candidate for U.S. Representative from Massachusetts 6th District, 1944 5
John C. Bresnahan, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Massachusetts, 1960 5
James A. Bresnahan, American politician, Socialist Labor Candidate for Secretary of State of Massachusetts, 1904 5
... (Another 7 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Citations +

MacLysaght, Edward, Irish Families Their Names, Arms and Origins 4th Edition. Dublin: Irish Academic, 1982. Print. (ISBN 0-7165-2364-7)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
Generals of World War II. (Retrieved 2011, November 3) Thomas Bresnahan. Retrieved from http://generals.dk/general/Bresnahan/Thomas_Francis/USA.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, November 25) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html