Family background
Alfred was born in 1857 as the son of John McCann, who was a bricklayer, and mother Elizabeth. When he was 19 years old, he married Hannah Hall on 2 July 1876 at Bredbury, Cheshire, England. Migrating to Sydney, they had about seven children born between 1884 and 1901, at least five of which predeceased them. In 1884 the family lived in Phillip Street, Enmore. They later moved to Bankfield House, Newman Street, Macdonaldtown (Erskineville), where they lived from the late 1880s to 1895.
By 1896, McCann lived at ‘Somatic’, Rocky Point Road, Rockdale. He offered all his furniture and household effects for sale in October 1896, due to a projected departure for West Australia. In 1901, the family lived at Manly, and in 1906 at Norfolk Street, Liverpool. By 1927, they had moved to No. 1 Oxford Flats, Palmer Street, Darlinghurst, and in February 1939, when Alfred McCann died, he lived at 26 Denham Street, Darlinghurst. He was buried at Rookwood Cemetery.
Occupation & interests
The 1876 marriage certificate of Alfred and Hannah McCann noted Alfred as a bricklayer, like his father. He worked as a builder and contractor.
Local government service
Alfred McCann was elected to Newtown Council on 19 November 1892. He was an alderman on Newtown Council in 1892-97, representing Camden Ward.
References
‘Family Notices’, The Sydney Morning Herald, 25 April 1884, 1, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article13569837
‘Family Notices’, The Sydney Morning Herald, 15 October 1889, 12, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article13745674
‘Family Notices’, The Sydney Morning Herald, 12 January 1895, 16, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article14012672
‘Advertising’, The Daily Telegraph, 30 January 1895, 3, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article236005842
‘Advertising’, The Sydney Morning Herald, 27 October 1896, 3, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article14072595
‘Family Notices’, The Daily Telegraph, 5 March 1901, 10, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article240125785
‘Family Notices’, The Sydney Morning Herald, 31 January 1906, 8, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article14729061
‘Family Notices’, The Sydney Morning Herald, 10 February 1927, 7, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article16353683
‘Family Notices’, The Sydney Morning Herald, 16 February 1939, 7, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article17565264