John J. Fagan, Jr. (1908- ) was born in Philadelphia to John J. Fagan (1882-1963) and Ellen A. Brown. The Fagan family originated in Ireland. John's grandfather, James A. Fagan (1858-1888) was born in Robertstown, Kildare, Ireland and immigrated to the United States, settling in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Other ancestors came to the United States at varying times. Descendants live in Pennsylvania, California and other parts of the United States.

"This register lists the names of emigrants, employees and sailors who died and were buried on Grosse Île in 1847, as well as emigrants who died at sea during the crossing or aboard ships while in quarantine off Grosse Île. The names of 8,308 victims were gathered from various archival sources"--Cover. Many of the dead were Irish immigrants.