[1] While attending Michigan, Hannan won a reputation as one of the university's best athletes and "made an especially good record as a sprinter.

[9] For his efforts in developing subdivisions with houses that were affordable to the working man, Hannan won the admiration of Detroit's laborers.

In 1906, the Michigan Federation of Labor wrote: Perhaps no one individual has done more to enhance the growth of Detroit and promote the interests of wage-earners than William W. Hannan, the real estate hustler.

Mr. Hannan believes that the man who fails to buy a home for his family is cheating himself and losing a splendid opportunity of purchasing valuable lots in the city and suburbs at reasonable prices.

The Pasadena, an early example of upper-class, multi-unit housing, at 2170 East Jefferson Avenue, still exists and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985.

[2] He left two-thirds of his estate to Detroit charities, including the Children's Aid Society.