Patrick "Paddy" Hannan (baptised 26 April 1840 – 4 November 1925) was a gold

Gold

Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...

 prospector whose discovery on 17 June 1893 near Kalgoorlie, Western Australia

Western Australia

Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...

 set off a gold rush

Gold rush

A gold rush is a period of feverish migration of workers to an area that has had a dramatic discovery of gold. Major gold rushes took place in the 19th century in Australia, Brazil, Canada, South Africa, and the United States, while smaller gold rushes took place elsewhere.In the 19th and early...

 in the area.

Born in Quin, County Clare

Quin, County Clare

Quin is a village in southeast County Clare in Ireland. The village's main attraction, Quin Abbey, is open to the public, and although mostly ruined, much of the structure remains. The abbey was built on the foundations of an earlier Norman castle, and the foundations of its corner towers can...

, Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

, Hannan was the son of John Hannan and Bridget Lynch. Not much is known about the family history . He emigrated to Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

 in 1863.

Hannan, Tom Flanagan and Daniel Shea discovered gold near Mount Charlotte less than 40 kilometres from the Coolgardie

Coolgardie, Western Australia

Coolgardie is a small town in the Australian state of Western Australia, east of the state capital, Perth. It has a population of approximately 800 people....

 Goldfields.