John Manning (journalist)

John Manning was an Irish nationalist, journalist, newspaper proprietor and newspaper editor. He was one of the thirteen indicted rebels in the 1855 Victorian high treason trials.[1] During his childhood, Manning emigrated with his family to the United States, where he received an education in New York. As a young adult, he left the United States to participate in the Victorian gold rush.[2]

John Manning probably came to Victoria in the late 1840s. During the Eureka Rebellion, he became a reporter for the Ballarat Times. While he was involved in a council to organise a defence and determine who would be the leader of the rebellion, he was only a spectator in the battle itself.[3] Despite not actively participating in the battle, he was still indicted for high treason. He was acquitted along with the other twelve rebels in the 1855 Victorian high treason trials.[2]

Following the Eureka Rebellion, he worked as a Roman Catholic teacher until late 1867, when he emigrated to New Zealand.[4] There, he co-founded the New Zealand Celt, an Irish nationalist newspaper, alongside William John Larkin. Its first issue was published on 26 October 1867,[2] and its last was likely published in June 1868.[5]

Manning left New Zealand for San Francisco, California, on 26 November 1868.[6] There, he became a writer for the Overland Monthly.[2] Around 1876, he became the editor and proprietor of the American Celt, a short-lived newspaper based in Louisville, Kentucky.[7]

In December 1904, he appeared at a Eureka Stockade anniversary event in Ballarat, where he gave a short talk on some of his experiences during the rebellion.[8]

References

  1. ^ Corfield, Wickham & Gervasoni 2004, pp. 363–364.
  2. ^ a b c d Vaney, Neil. "John Manning". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
  3. ^ Carboni 1855, p. 48.
  4. ^ "A RENEGADE IRISHMAN". Ovens and Murray Advertiser. 19 March 1868. p. 3. Retrieved 6 October 2025.
  5. ^ "MONDAY, JUNE 29, 1868". West Coast Times. 29 June 1868. p. 2. Retrieved 8 October 2025.
  6. ^ "WEATHER REPORT". West Coast Times. 28 November 1868. p. 2. Retrieved 6 October 2025.
  7. ^ "Untitled". Grey River Argus. 20 July 1876. p. 2. Retrieved 6 October 2025.
  8. ^ "THE EUREKA ANNIVERSARY". The Ballarat Star. Retrieved 11 December 2025.