Capt. Jeremiah William Nagle

Jeremiah William Nagle was born in Cork, Ireland on 21 November 1801 to Garret and Mary Nagle (nee Meany). He was baptised at Saints Peter and Paul's Catholic Church just off St Patrick's Street in Cork on 25 December 1801. By the age of 25 Jeremiah had established himself as a Captain, travelling extensively. Jeremiah married Catherine Holmes in Liverpool on 24 June 1834. They had 10 children together. The family arrived in Auckland, New Zealand, prior to the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840.

In 1907 William Porter wrote: Nagle was a pre-Treaty purchaser of land on Great Barrier Island.... Nagle published a map of Great Barrier in 1848 with a Porter Bay and an Alice Island. Neither name is on modern maps: they are modern Bowling Alley Bay and Oyster Island. Porter Bay is still a name in use by locals. Nagle’s wife Catherine nee Holmes hailed from Liverpool which may have established the connection. Porter passenger Mrs Twohey and Nagle were siblings (p. 23). Source: http://www.lawas.co.nz/HUNTLYshort.pdf

In 1850 the Nagle family left New Zealand for California. Jeremiah died in Victoria, Canada, on 25 January 1882. Newspaper 'The British Colonist' reported:

Died at Victoria, BC, Jan 5, 1882, Jeremiah Nagle, n/o Cork, Ire, age 81. Deceased one of our oldest residents who early in life took up with a seafaring vocation. He commanded ships in the merchant service to Aus and NZ in the early days of the settlement of those colonies, and was one of the pioneer residents of both NSW and NZ. From Eng's antipodean empire he sailed to this coast and after a sojourn of a few years in CA came to this city. In 1859 he was appointed Harbormaster and occupied that position during the piping times of the old free port system till the free port was abolished in 1863. He was again Harbormaster after confederation, and held that position till quite recently when old age and increasing infirmities obliged him to resign it. Deceased leaves a large grownup family. Two sons are in CA, a daughter is w/o Rev Mr Holmes of Cowichan, and Mrs Phillip Hankin is another daughter. Mrs Nagle, his estimable wife, survives him; but is feeble and bedridden. Pallbearers: Hon Senator Macdonald, Hon Justice Crease, Mr T Sidney Dobbin, Capt Clarke, Dr Davie, Mr J W McKay, Mr C Ward, William McKay, jr.

Jeremiah was buried in the Ross Bay Cemetery in Victoria, Canada. Catherine died in East Oakland, California, on 14 April 1886.

Sources:

• Ancestry.com
• Porter, W (1907) Recollections of a Voyage to South Australia and New Zealand. Commenced in 1838 http://www.lawas.co.nz/HUNTLYshort.pdf