THE COONANS

Margaret Sullivan (“Auntie Mag” to the Costigans) married Mick Coonan in November, 1908, presumably in her parish church of the Sacred Heart, Preston. Mick Coonan had lived for a time in Garnet St., Preston, following the death of his mother in a riding accident on the family propery at Yea, and it was no doubt through that propinquity that he met the youngest of the Sullivans.

“Cannon Vale”, the Coonan property at Yea, is said to have once sheltered Ned Kelly, and the homestead has been beautifully restored and extended by Mick’s grandson and namesake. The Coonan and Costigan cousins became close friends through frequent visits and holidays at each other’s farms. As the young Coonans reached the age for receiving their First Communion, they would be sent to the Costigans for training by the nuns at the Sacred Heart school, and on one famous occasion Mick brought Perce to Preston for an appendectomy by Dr. Horgan after a dispute with the Yea physician; opportunistically, the young Perce was thus able to attend the wedding of Joe Costigan and Ileen Martin.

As the Coonan ‘boys’ matured they acquired their own properties, Mike, Tom and Perce in Yea (Tom later moved to Wangaratta), Gerry in Flowerdale (not far away) and ‘Johnny’ in Gisborne and later Alexandria. Mary married Len Waters, a butcher in Yea, Kathleen took up nursing but tragically died in her forties from leukemia, and Margaret, unmarried, remained at Cannon Vale until her death. In 1999 only Mary Waters and John survive of this generation, Mary with her husband in Yea and John and wife Kath in retirement at Benalla.

Wool was the principal ‘crop’ the Coonans produced, but as the younger men became established their father did less hands-on farming and more dealing, making frequent -almost weekly – trips to the Newmarket saleyards. Often on these occasions he would visit Joe Costigan’s family bearing food gifts and much goodwill. Sometimes he would take Joe and the older boys to special events such as the Royal Show, a boxing match at John Wren’s old West Melbourne Stadium, and even to the Exhibition Building to hear Archbishop Mannix’s guest Eamon De Valera, the famous Irish patriot and president, address the Irish Catholics of Melbourne. These frequent trips were not without danger, as he told of a blazing tree crashing onto the road after he passed, and of overturning his ute one dark night and thinking he was done for when he felt ‘blood’ running down his face- it was actually cream from an upset billycan! The three Costigan ‘nephews’ – Joe, Frank and Eughie – benefited in various ways from Mick Coonan’s support, and their sisters of course enjoyed many Yea holidays.

When Mick Coonan died in 1950 he had been visiting Monica Meehan in Thornbury – he usually stayed there on his frequent business trips to ‘town’ – and had phoned Joe Costigan wanting to see him urgently. Unfortunately it was a night of possibly the thickest fog ever seen in the Preston-Northcote area and Joe was unable to drive to him. Early the next morning (a Saturday) Mick was found dead in bed.

As executor of the estate – he had long looked after the taxation and other interests of the Coonan family – Joe had to read the will to the family after the funeral. It must have been the most difficult task he had ever to carry out as an executor, for Mick had cut out of his will his sons John and Tom. On hearing the news, the family reacted as few other families would, and declared that the property should be divided equally between them. Joe spent a long time – at least a couple of years – negotiating with the taxation department and the law to implement the family’s wishes, and eventually was successful. Joe wondered if Mick Coonan’s call to him had been about doing something about the will.

Although the will stated that Joe Costigan should be paid full accountancy fees for all his work, he refused to accept this but was given instead a motor vehicle (an Austin “A40”) which Mick had ordered (in those days there were waiting lists, often of several years, for new cars) in lieu of payment, even though the fees would have far exceeded the value of the car. He was working for ‘family’ and love.

Another car – a Holden – was also delivered to the Coonans posthumously and surprisingly, for Mick had not told his family that he’d ordered either vehicle and in those days waiting lists for new cars were long – a matter of years for Holdens.

The Coonan-Costigan friendship continued into the next generation, with all of Joe Costigan’s children spending time at Yea, reciprocal visits being made to Preston and to the beach ‘holiday house’ in Kelso St., Mentone, and some Coonans even having weddings solemnised by clerical cousins. Peter Costigan was one of the more frequent visitors and on one well-remembered occasion rescued one of the twins – Brian – from drowning.