Although he was raised in Paterson, and the 1900 census shows his birthplace as New Jersey,[citation needed] both the 1870 and 1880 censuses indicate that he and his three older brothers (John, Mills and Michael) were born in Canada. His parents were James and Mary Nolan, both born in Ireland. He married Mary Coyle around 1882 and they had two children, Marguerita (born 1891) and Edward (born 1895).\n', '

Nolan broke into baseball with the Indianapolis Blues of the National League in 1878. On May 21, Nolan set down the Milwaukee Grays with just 2 hits‚ but the Blues barely won the 6–5 game because of 11 errors and passed balls. He was expelled by the team on August 14 when he told the team he was going to a funeral, but instead went drinking. During the league meetings in December, Nolan\'s appeal for reinstatement was denied.\n', '

In 1881 Nolan was allowed to return to the league, this time with the Cleveland Blues. On July 23, Nolan not only pitched Cleveland to a 7–3 win over the Buffalo Bisons, but went 4-for-4 at the plate. Nolan and teammates John Clapp and Jim McCormick missed the team\'s September 20 game in Worcester because their return from a side trip to New York City was delayed by a train wreck. They were each fined $100.\n', '

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