(Featured image: Irish salt workers about 1870)
This page is a collection point for information about the Martin Hogan family in Syracuse. Martin was the grandfather of David Joseph Hogan (1910-1975). Martin was born in Ireland. His estimated birth year based on available documents spans an unusually wide range, from 1805-1827. His parents and county/parish of birth in Ireland are unknown at this time. All available records are from Martin’s adult life in Syracuse, New York, beginning with the 1855 NY State Census.
Martin was likely part of a substantial mid-19th century wave of Irish immigrants drawn to Syracuse in the wake of the Irish Potato Famine by the city’s burgeoning salt industry and economic activity along the Erie Canal. Irish workers settled in the city’s First Ward on the far north end of the city and in the town of Geddes, now known as Tipperary Hill, where they had proximity to the industry that was built around the naturally occurring salt springs at the southern end of Onondaga Lake, known as the Onondaga Salt Reservation. It contained an estimated 50,000 solar sheds and 300 boiling blocks, where water was evaporated or boiled out of brine pumped from wells around the lake. The Irish played a crucial role in shaping Syracuse’s growth and cultural landscape.
About 1854, Martin married Mary (maiden name unknown). We don’t know if they were married in Ireland and crossed the Atlantic together, or if they met in Syracuse. In 1855 they were in Geddes, then they settled in the First Ward. Martin’s brother Patrick lived with them initially, but has not been tracked in records after 1855.
Children of Martin and Mary Hogan
The Hogans had 8 children in 12 years, all of whom lived their whole lives in Syracuse. It’s possible their eldest child, Ellen, was born elsewhere in New York prior to the family’s arrival in Syracuse. She died at age 5; subsequent children survived to adulthood.
- Ellen Hogan: Born February 1855; died March 1860, age 5; burial unknown.
- Mary A. Hogan: Born June 1858; died 24 August 1894, age 36; burial unknown. No spouse/children Obituary published 25 August 1894 in the Daily Standard, Syracuse NY.
- Margaret Theresa “Maggie” Hogan: Born about 1859 in Syracuse; died 4 December 1941 in Clay, NY, age 82; buried at St. Mary’s Cemetery, Dewitt; section 3, lot 141, grave 6A. No spouse/children. Obituary published in the Syracuse Herald-American, 7 December and Herald-Journal, 5 December.
- Julia E. (Hogan) Carroll: Born May 1861; died 2 Dec 1949, age 88; buried 6 Dec 1949 in St. Mary’s Cemetery, Dewitt; section 3; lot 134, grave 2A. Married Peter William Carroll (1859-1921) about 1885. Julia and Peter had 5 children: Mary Agnes (Carbone), 1886-1947; Julia, 1887-1898; Francis Peter, 1889-1963; Charles Joseph, 1891-1983; Lucille “Lucy” Lillian (Sommers),1894-1954.
- Edward C. Hogan: Twin, born Oct 1861; married Hannah Costello (1860-1934) about 1893; died 19 Dec 1952, age 91; buried in St. Mary’s Cemetery, Baldwinsville, plot 133.
- Owen H. Hogan: Twin, born October 1861; married Bridget C Mahon (1874-1957) about 1901; died 22 February 1950; buried 25 February 1950 in St. Mary’s Cemetery, Dewitt; section 3, lot 165, grave 2A.
- Martin J. Hogan: Born Nov 1864; no spouse/children; died 28 April 1926, age 69; buried 30 April 1926 at St. Mary’s Cemetery in Dewitt NY; section 3, lot 141, grave 4A.
- Francis Hogan: Born about 1867; no spouse/children; died 2 November 1904, age 37; burial unknown. Obituary published 3 November 1904 in the Syracuse Journal. (Note: A NY death index exists for the same name and date for a death that occurred in Ogdensburg, St. Lawrence County, NY. However Frank’s obituary states he died at the home of his sister at 620 Teall Ave in Syracuse.)
