John Fallon Colohan
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John Fallon Colohan (c. 1862 – 27 August 1932) was an Irish physician who, in the late 1890s, imported the first petrol-powered car into Ireland.[a] Described in a number of sources as "Ireland's first motorist",[1][2][3] he was a founder member of the Irish Automobile Club.[4]
Early life and education
Colohan was born in Dublin c. 1862.[5][b] A Roman Catholic,[6] his father was the manager of the Hibernian Bank in Dublin, and he was a relative of the songwriter Arthur Colahan.[7] He studied medicine at Edinburgh Medical School, qualifying as a physician and surgeon in 1892. He practised in London, Long Ditton, Dublin, and Athenry.[7] He also reputedly studied motor engineering in Germany and learned how to drive in France.[5]
Motoring
In c. 1897, Colohan imported what is reputed to be the first petrol-engined motorcar into Ireland, an 1896 Benz Velo Comfortable.[1][4][8] He won a bet (a wager of £50), in 1899, by driving from his home in Blackrock, Dublin to Kilbeggan, County Westmeath, and back again, in under 12 hours.[1]
In 1901, he placed an order for a four-cylinder 24 h.p. Daimler, which he "boosted to near 30 h.p." to make it the largest and "most powerful car in the country" at the time.[5] Involved in motor racing and touring in Ireland, he negotiated with the Automobile Club of Great Britain and Ireland to form the (Royal) Irish Automobile Club in 1901, becoming a founder and committee member.[5] He was involved in bringing the 1903 Gordon Bennett Cup to Ireland.[5]
Colohan had ceased practicing medicine by 1903 and became a controlling partner in a coachbuilding company in Dublin. He promoted the company's expansion into a motoring engineering works and stockist.[5] He left this company in 1908, due to ill health, and bought the Grand Hotel in Malahide.[5]
Later life and death
Colohan, who was married and widowed twice,[9] left Ireland and moved to England in 1922.[5] He lived near Marlowe on Thames in Berkshire, where he became known as an eccentric and for his indulgence in alcohol.[5][7] He died at his home, Dean Cottage, at Cookham Dean, in August 1932.[5][9] He left the majority of his estate, £15,171 (equivalent to £876,000 in 2023), to his valet of 13 years, whom Colohan described as like a son to him.[10]
Colohan's first car, a Benz Velo, was purchased and restored in the 1980s,[11] and, as of 2017, was on display (as part of a private collection) in Dublin.[3] An 1890s photograph of the car, including Colohan and his first wife, was represented on an Irish postage stamp in 1989.[5]