Mrs. Lanaghan

Very little biographical information could be confirmed about this author beyond the name used in publication, Mrs. Lanaghan. A library record for Antigua and the Antiguans identifies the creator as Frances Lanaghan Flanigan, while other editions and catalogs list the author simply as Mrs. Lanaghan.

Published in 1844 in two volumes, Antigua and the Antiguans was written as a full account of the colony and its inhabitants, drawing on the author's own experiences and observations of Antigua. The book ranges across history, geography, family life, local anecdote, and social conditions, and it pays particular attention to slavery, labor, and the period following emancipation.

Because so little about her life is firmly documented in the sources I found, the work itself is the clearest introduction to her voice: curious, observant, and deeply engaged with the island she described. For many readers, she stands out as an important early woman writer on the Caribbean, even if much of her personal story remains uncertain.