Horgan History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
While the Anglicized versions of Irish names are familiar to most people, many Irish names have a long and proud Gaelic heritage that is often unknown. The original Gaelic form of the name Horgan is Ó hArgain.
Early Origins of the Horgan family
The surname Horgan was first found in County Cork (Irish: Corcaigh) the ancient Kingdom of Deis Muin (Desmond), located on the southwest coast of Ireland in the province of Munster, where they were part of the main tribe in prehistoric times, known as the Corca Laoidhe.
Early History of the Horgan family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Horgan research. Another 174 words (12 lines of text) covering the years 1172, 1715, 1849, 1880 and 1922 are included under the topic Early Horgan History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Horgan Spelling Variations
The archives that survive today demonstrate the difficulty experienced by the scribes of this period in their attempts to record these names in writing. Spelling variations of the name Horgan dating from that time include Horgan, O'Horgan, Horgon, Hourigan, Horrigan, O'Hourigan, O'Horrigan, Arragan, O'Arragan, Aragan, Harrigan, O'Harrigan and many more.
Early Notables of the Horgan family
More information is included under the topic Early Horgan Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Horgan Ranking
In the United States, the name Horgan is the 9,120th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 1
Horgan migration to the United States +
Thousands of Irish left in their homeland in the 18th and 19th centuries to escape the religious and political discrimination they experienced primarily at the hands of the English, and in the search of a plot of land to call their own. These immigrants arrived at the eastern shores of North America, early on settling and breaking the land, and, later, building the bridges, canals, and railroads essential to the emerging nations of United States and Canada. Many others would toil for low wages in the dangerous factories of the day. Although there had been a steady migration of Irish to North America over these years, the greatest influx of Irish immigrants came to North America during the Great Potato Famine of the late 1840s. Early North American immigration records have revealed a number of people bearing the Irish name Horgan or a variant listed above:
Horgan Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
- Dennis Horgan, who arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1745 2
- John Horgan, who settled in Frederick Co. Maryland in 1798
- John Horgan, who arrived in Frederick County, Maryland in 1798 2
Horgan Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
- Jeremiah Horgan, who landed in Mobile County, Ala in 1842 2
- Michael and Mary Horgan, who settled in Boston Massachusetts in 1847
- Cornelius Horgan, who landed in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania in 1867 2
- Michael Horgan, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1869 2
Horgan migration to Canada +
Some of the first settlers of this family name were:
Horgan Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
- John Horgan, aged 30, a labourer, who arrived in Saint John, New Brunswick in 1834 aboard the brig "Thomas Hanford" from Cork, Ireland
Horgan migration to Australia +
Emigration to
Australia followed the
First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:
Horgan Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
- Ann Horgan, who arrived in Adelaide, Australia aboard the ship "Abberton" in 1846 3
- Johanna Horgan, aged 43, who arrived in South Australia in 1852 aboard the ship "China" 4
Horgan 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:
Horgan Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
- Michael Horgan, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "John Masterman" in 1857
- T. Horgan, who arrived in Nelson, New Zealand aboard the ship "John Masterman" in 1857
- George B. Horgan, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Winterthur" in 1866
- Mary Horgan, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Winterthur" in 1866
- Anna Horgan, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Winterthur" in 1866
- ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Contemporary Notables of the name Horgan (post 1700) +
- John Patrick Horgan (1929-2021), British-born American actor, best known for playing the role of "Dr. John Morrison" in the soap opera television series The Doctors
- Stephen Henry Horgan (1854-1941), American inventor of the halftone process of engraving while working as the art director for the New York Herald
- Neal Horgan (b. 1979), American professional footballer
- John Horgan (b. 1953), American science journalist best known for his 1996 book The End of Science
- John G. Horgan (1871-1921), nicknamed "the Banker", an American professional player of pocket billiards and three-cushion billiards
- Paul Horgan (1903-1995), American writer, twice winning the Pulitzer Prize for History
- Joseph Paul Horgan (b. 1977), American professional baseball player
- John Horgan (1950-2016), Irish hurling manager and player
- Robbie Horgan (b. 1968), Irish former professional footballer
- Anthony Horgan (b. 1976), former Irish rugby union player
- ... (Another 13 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Historic Events for the Horgan family +
- Mr. John Horgan (d. 1912), aged 22, Unknown Third Class passenger from Unknown who sailed aboard the RMS Titanic and died in the sinking 5
Citations +
- "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)
- State Records of South Australia. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) ABBERTON 1846. Retrieved from http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/BSA/1846Abberton.htm
- South Australian Register Tuesday 3 February 1852. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) CHINA 1852. Retrieved http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/australia/china1852.shtml
- Titanic Passenger List - Titanic Facts. (Retrieved 2016, July 13) . Retrieved from http://www.titanicfacts.net/titanic-passenger-list.html