PART NINE

The Aldsworth Line - 1760 to 2000

(including The Sherborne to Australia Line)

Updated September 2010

Most of the original information in this family line was kindly supplied by Stephen

Collett (Ref. 9Q19) of Solihull in England whose line is denoted by the names in capital letters

To date no actual connection has been made to any other of the Collett family lines,

although it is beginning to look hopeful there might be connections

with Part Two (see below) and possibly with Part 48 (Ref. 9O25)

Some of the early Colletts in this family line lived in the village of Sherborne near Aldsworth in Gloucestershire, so it is possible that there could be a link to Thomas Collett (Ref. 2I12) who was born at Upper Slaughter. He was referred to as Thomas of Sherborne where he and his wife lived and were buried. Further details of Thomas and his family can be found in Part 2 – The Secondary Line

The addition of the family line from Sherborne to Australia is thanks to Wayne Collett of Brisbane (Ref. 9Q16) who kindly provided all of his family’s details from George Collett in 1811

The addition of the family line to the British Columbia sunshine coast in Canada

is thanks to Pat Brearley nee Collett (Ref. 9Q5) and her brother Dennis Collett (Ref. 9Q6)

and this line is denoted by the names that are underlined

9K1	HENRY (HENERY) COLLETT - it is not known at this time whence he came. What is known is that he married Elizabeth Pincot on 25.07.1759 at St Bartholomew’s Church in Aldsworth. Both signed the register in their own name and both were listed as being of this parish although no earlier family has been found for either of them. Henry’s occupation was given as blacksmith.
	Elizabeth was buried in the churchyard of St Bartholomew’s Church and was born in 1737, as indicated by her age of 88 at the time of her death on 25.03.1825. It is not known in which year Henry was born as no age was given at the time of his death on 11.12.1808. He too was buried at Aldsworth.
	Henry was the tenant of two plots of land owned by Lord James Sherborne according to the 1799 enclosure map. One of the plots was referred to as Collett’s Close and was a pasture in the centre of the village while the other was known as Homestead and contained two buildings, possible a house and blacksmith’s forge. Together the two plots made up an area of just under one acre.
	Even today in 2006 in Aldsworth there is a property known as the Old Forge which is believed to date from 1780. It is very likely therefore that this was built during the time when Henry Collett was the blacksmith in the village.
	9L1	Elizabeth Collett			Born in 1760
	9L2	Anne Collett			Born in 1762
	9L3	Robert Collett			Born in 1763
	9L4	Thomas Collett			Born in 1765
	9L5	Mary Collett			Born in 1766
	9L6	WILLIAM COLLETT			Born in 1768
	9L7	Margaret Collett			Born in 1771 at Aldsworth
	9L8	Hannah Collett			Born circa 1775
	9L9	Jane Collett			Born in 1777 at Aldsworth
9L1	Elizabeth Collett was born at Aldsworth in 1760 and she married Richard Hyde in 1784.
9L2	Anne Collett was born at Aldsworth in 1762 and she later married Thomas Maycock in 1782.
9L3	Robert Collett was born at Aldsworth and baptised there in 1764. Robert was a blacksmith like his father, and was married three times and out-lived all three of his wives. It was the baptism record for his son John Collett, who was born in 1813, that confirmed Robert was a blacksmith.
	The first was (1) Ann whom he married prior to 1787 and most probably in Aldsworth where her only child Betty was born. His second wife was (2) Hannah and she provided Robert with his next three children all of them born at Sherborne where she was buried in early 1799 aged 34 years.
	Following her death, and still living in Sherborne, Robert married (3) Amy Fowler on 19.10.1799 and just two months after the wedding she gave birth to Robert’s first born son William. On the day of her wedding Amy was recorded as being 20 years and 18 days old compared to Robert who was 35.
	There then followed eleven further children, all of whom it was believed were born at Sherborne although it would appear that son George was born at Upper Slaughter but baptised at Sherborne.
	Amy was baptised at Sherborne on 08.11.1779 and she died there in 1837. She was buried in the churchyard of St Mary Magdalene Church in Sherborne on 12.02.1837 aged 58.
	The first national census of 1841 recorded Robert living at Sherborne at the age of 75. Also still living there with Robert were his sons Henry and Robert, and unmarried daughter Jane Collett.
	It was five and a half years later that Robert Collett died at Sherborne on the 04.01.1847 and his Will, which was made on 01.09.1846 and was proved in Gloucester on 26.04.1847, made reference to all of his children by name. (see Will in Legal Documents)
	9M1	Elizabeth Collett	Born in 1787
	9M2	Mary Collett	Born in 1789
	9M3	Sarah Collett	Baptised on 20.10.1795
	9M4	Ann Collett	Baptised on 21.02.1796
	9M5	William Collett	Baptised on 24.12.1799
	9M6	Henry Collett	Born in 1801
	9M7	Jane Collett	Born in 1804
	9M8	Charles Collett	Baptised on 10.02.1805
	9M9	Charles Collett	Baptised on 23.02.1806 at Sherborne
	9M10	Richard Collett	Baptised on 09.05.1808
	9M11	George Collett	Baptised on 15.09.1811
	9M12	John Collett	Born in 1813
	9M13	Hannah Collett	Born in 1815
	9M14	Lucy Collett	Baptised on 18.10.1817
	9M15	Robert Collett	Born in 1819
	9M16	Amy Collett	Born in 1822
9L4	Thomas Collett was born around 1765 and his inclusion in this family is based purely on the fact he was living at Aldsworth in 1841 with a rounded age of 75. In addition to which, five years later, a Thomas Collett died at Aldsworth in 1846 and was buried there on 05.11.1846 at the age of 84.
	There is a possibility that Thomas Collett, born around 1762, was the brother of Richard Collett of Aldsworth, rather than the son of Henry (Henery) Collett, as indicated here. Richard was most likely related to Henry, but all that is known of him at this time is that he was a farmer at Hall Farm in Aldsworth, was married to Eliza with whom he had a son William who was baptised at Aldsworth on 15.04.1790, and was a witness at a wedding in Aldsworth in 1791.
9L5	Mary Collett was born at Aldsworth in 1766. She was still living there thirty-two years later and was one of the witnesses at the marriage of her brother William (below) to Ann Sparrow. This may indicate that she herself was never married
9L6	WILLIAM COLLETT was born at Aldsworth where he was baptised in 1768. He later married (1) Ann Sparrow in 1796 and William’s sister Mary Collett (above) was a witness at the wedding. The marriage is known to have produced at least two children for the couple before Ann died, possibly during or after the birth of the second child,
	Some years after the death of his first wife William married (2) Elizabeth Howes on 01.04.1807 at Aldsworth with whom he is known to have had at least a further five children, although there may have been others.
	At the time of the Aldsworth census of June 1841 William had a rounded age of 70, while his wife Elizabeth was 60. Living with them was their unmarried son Charles who rounded age was 30.
	According to the 1851 Census for Aldsworth, William Collett was 83 years of age and was still listed as working as a blacksmith, like his father before him. Still listed as living with him was his wife Elizabeth and their bachelor son Charles aged 41 who was also a blacksmith.
	William survived for another three years and was buried at Aldsworth in 1854 at the age of 86. His widow Elizabeth had been born in 1779 and she continued to live at Aldsworth where she died two years after her late husband was buried there in 1856 aged 77.
	9M17	Elizabeth Collett		Born in 1797
	9M18	Jane Collett		Born in 1800
	9M19	Charles Collett		Born in 1807
	9M20	HENRY COLLETT		Born in 1810
	9M21	Mary Collett		Born in 1811
	9M22	Jane Collett		Born in 1813
	9M23	William Collett		Born in 1817
9L8	Hannah Collett was born around 1775 and most likely at Aldsworth although no positive record of this has yet been found. What is known is that she married William Harris at Aldsworth on 05.04.1796.
9M1	Elizabeth Collett, who was also referred to as Betty, was born at Aldsworth and was baptised there on 02.10.1787 but she never married. By the time of the 1861 Census for nearby Windrush she was referred to as Eliza ‘sister to William Collett’ (below) a cordwainer of Sherborne and in whose house she was living at that time.
	Living with William aged 61 and Eliza aged 73 was their sister Mary Collett (below) aged 71 and of Sherborne which, in error, Eliza also stated was her place of birth. Mary was listed as ‘housekeeper’.
	Ten years later in 1871 she was still living at Windrush with her brother William 71 and was now listed as Betty aged 83 who had taken over the role of housekeeper from her sister Mary. On this occasion however she correctly gave her place of birth as Aldsworth.
	Betty must have passed away during the next ten years as she was not listed in the 1881 Census.
9M2	Mary Collett was born at Sherborne in 1789. Like her sister Betty (above), she too never married and in the 1851 and 1861 Censuses for Windrush she was listed as being aged 60 and 71 respectively and was housekeeper at the home of her widowed brother William Collett (below).
	As Mary was not listed in the 1871 is must be assumed that she died sometime during the previous ten years, and by that date her role as housekeeper to brother William had been taken over by her older sister Betty Collett (above).
9M3	Sarah Collett was born at Sherborne where she was baptised on 20.10.1795. She later married Mr Walker.
9M4	Ann Collett was born at Sherborne and was baptised there on 21.02.1796. She later married Mr Ireland.
9M5	William Collett was born at Sherborne where he was baptised on 24.12.1799. He was a Cordwainer (shoemaker) and was married but was widowed by the time of the 1851 Census when he was living at nearby Windrush.
	It seems highly likely that William had a son Charles who was born in the early 1820s. The reason for including this, without any positive confirmation, is that Charles Collett of the parish of Sherborne, and the son of William Collett, married Mary Andrews at Aldsworth on 07.02.1854.
	William’s older sister Mary Collett (above) was listed as living with him as his housekeeper in 1851 and again in 1861 when he was 61 years of age. Mary died between 1861 and 1871 following which his eldest sister Betty Collett (above) took over the housekeeper role for him. In 1871 William was listed as being aged 71 and of Sherborne.
	With no record of him in 1881 it must be assumed that William Collett died during the 1870s. No record has so far been found for Charles Collett who married Mary Andrews.
9M6	Henry Collett was born at Sherborne in 1801. Following the death of his mother Amy in 1837, Henry continued to live with his widowed father Robert Collett at Sherborne. Also still living with them at the family home in Sherborne were Henry’s siblings, unmarried Jane (below) and brother Robert (below).
	It was eight years later and two years after Henry’s father had died, that in 1849 he married Jane Hewer who was born at High Holborn in London around 1807. By that time in their lives the couple were both in their forties, so were past the possibility of bearing any children.
	According to the later census of 1851 for Sherborne, Henry was a 49 years old smith (blacksmith) married to Jane aged 43 who was born at St Andrews in London. Living with them, and again following the death of their father, was Henry’s younger brother Robert Collett (below) who was also a smith from Sherborne.
	Sometime during the next decade Henry left Sherborne and moved to Ampney St Peter near Cirencester where he was living in April 1861 at the age of 59 with his wife Jane who was 52. At this time the couple were being supported by two servants.
	The census of 1871 also confirmed the couple were still living in the village of Ampney St Peters where Henry was listed as being 69 and a retired farmer of Sherborne, while his wife Jane was 63 and of Holborn in London.
	Henry was sole executor to the1846 Will of his father Robert Collett who died in 1847. He also inherited the bulk of his father’s estate, save for ten pounds that was to be paid to all the other members of the family. (see Will in Legal Documents)
	Henry Collett was 73 when he died on 24.05.1873 at Ampney St Peter where he was also buried. Eight years later his widow Jane was still living at Ampney St Peter.
	By April 1881 widow Jane Collett aged 73 and from London was listed in the census as being a visitor at the Kempsford home of gentleman farmer Thomas Arkell of Kempsford. At 83 Jane was still living at Kempsford ten years later in 1891, this time with the Knipe family.
	Jane survived for almost another two years, before she died at Kempsford on 05.01.1893 at the age of 85, following which she was buried with her husband Henry Collett at Ampney St Peter.
9M7	Jane Collett was born around 1804 at Sherborne. It is understood that she was never married, although when in her very early twenties she gave birth to a base-born son William. He was born at Sherborne but then, because of the shame to the family, he was taken in by another family at nearby Fairford where he was also baptised.
	By June 1841 William was 15 and was living and working with tailor Thomas Lea at his home in Fairford. This is likely to be the reason why he gave Fairford as his place of birth in later census records, rather than Sherborne.
	In 1841 unmarried Jane Collett was 35 was still living in Sherborne with her father Robert Collett and her brothers Henry (above) and Robert (below).
	By the end of March in 1851 Jane had been reunited with her son William and both were then living with tailor and draper Thomas Lea at his home in Fairford. Jane’s occupation was that of an apprentice tailor at the age of 45 and she was described as being a visitor from Sherborne. Her son William Collett was 24 and of Sherborne, and his occupation was also that of a tailor’s apprentice.
	Ten years later in 1861 Jane Collett was 57 and was a servant at the Fairford home of 77 years old landed proprietor Mary Ann Rose of Chilton in Wiltshire.
	A further ten years on, when Jane was 67 years of age she was recorded in the 1871 Census as being an independent of Sherborne while she was still living in lodgings at Fairford.
	The census of 1881 confirmed that Jane was an annuitant aged 75 of Sherborne and that living with her was her ten years old granddaughter Amy Jane Collett. Amy, who had been born at Fairford, was the daughter of Jane’s only son William.
	Four years later Jane’s son William died as a result of an accident at work. This happened on 22^nd March 1885 and exactly one year later on 22.03.1886 Jane Collett died while living at the home of her late son at 40 Princes Street in Swindon, the death being recorded at Highworth.
	The death certificate for Jane reveals that she was 84 and a domestic servant, and that the cause of death was bronchitis. Present at the death was Jane’s younger brother John Collett (below) from West Bromwich.
	9N1	William Collett				Born in 1826
9M8	Charles Collett was born at Sherborne where he was baptised on 10.02.1805. Tragically he only survived for four days after his christening when he died on 14.02.1805.
9M10	Richard Collett was born at Sherborne and was baptised there on 09.05.1808. It would appear that Richard married Elizabeth just after 1831 and that they made their home in West Bromwich where the marriage had produced three children for the couple by June 1841.
	Richard was listed with a rounded age of 30, Elizabeth was 25, and their three children were John 3, Henry 2 and Fanny who was under one year old.
	Twenty years later in 1861 Richard was 52 and from Sherborne and he was still living in the West Bromwich area of the West Midlands with his wife and family. Elizabeth was 50 and the four children on that occasion were John 24, Fanny, 22, Robert 16, and William aged 12.
	According to the census of 1871 the family was still together and living in West Bromwich. Richard of Sherborne was 62, his wife Elizabeth was 60, and their sons were John 33, Henry 31, and William aged 23.
	Also living with the family was Richard’s and Elizabeth’s grandson Richard aged 9 whose father was their eldest son Richard. The child may have been with his grandparents at this time since his mother Emma had two young daughters to care for.
	It seems very likely that Richard and Elizabeth both died during the next ten years because their grandson Richard was living and working with his uncle Robert Collett (Ref. 9N5) in 1881 following the death of his own father around 1875.
	The children listed below include John Collett born in 1853 who does not seem to appear listed with the family in 1861 or 1871, nor has he been located elsewhere in those census records. Therefore he may not be the son of Richard and Elizabeth.
	However, he does appear in 1881 and 1891 and his occupation is that of a coach-smith, a trade also carried on by Richard and his sons Robert and William. It is for this reason, and the fact he too was born at West Bromwich, that he is included here.
	9N2	Richard John Collett				Born in 1837
	9N3	Henry Collett				Born in 1839
	9N4	Fanny Collett				Born in 1840
	9N5	Robert Collett				Born in 1844
	9N6	William Frederick Collett				Born in 1847
	9N7	John Collett				Born in 1853
9M11	George Collett was born at Upper Slaughter unlike other members of his family but, just like the other members of his family he was baptised at Sherborne and this took place on 15.09.1811. It would appear that he left Sherborne when he was old enough to do so and moved to Stanway in Gloucestershire where, at the age of 35 years,9 months and 14 days, he married twenty years old Elizabeth Emes on 15.10.1846.
	Elizabeth was born at Hazleton in Gloucestershire on 01.07.1826 and was baptised at Ebrington on 20.08.1826. Her date of birth has been calculated from the fact that it was stated she was 20 years 3 months and 14 days old at the time of her wedding.
	The first of the couple’s six children were born while George and Elizabeth were living at Stow-on-the-Wold, with the next three children being born at nearby Lower Swell, and the last two at Eyford within the parish of Upper Slaughter.
	During his life George was a farm bailiff and by 1871 he and his family had moved to Cirencester. That year’s census recorded the family as George aged 59 and Elizabeth as 44, while living with them were their sons George 16, James 12 and Frederick aged 5, and their daughter Mary who was 8 years old.
	Twenty years later it was just George aged 79 and Elizabeth aged 64 who were still living at Cirencester, and it was there two years later that Elizabeth died in May 1893, followed by George who died there in November 1897.
	9N8	Joseph Collett				Born in 1847
	9N9	Oliver Emes Collett				Born in 1849
	9N10	George Collett				Born in 1854
	9N11	James Collett				Born in 1859
	9N12	Mary Collett				Born in 1863
	9N13	Frederick Collett				Born in 1866
9M12	John Collett was born at Sherborne and was baptised there on 10.10.1813, the son of blacksmith Robert Collett and his wife Amy. Just like his brother Richard (above), John eventually left Sherborne and initially headed for south to Hertfordshire. It was while there that he met and married Sarah who came from Little Gaddesden just north of Hemel Hempstead in Hertfordshire.
	It is possible, although not proved, that Sarah was very likely Sarah Wood the sister of Jane Wood who before she was married spent time with John’s sister Amy Collett (below).
	Shortly after they were married Sarah gave birth to the couple’s first child while they were still living at Little Gaddesden. However, soon after the family moved to West Bromwich to be reunited with John’s older brother Richard who had moved there some ten years earlier.
	It was also at West Bromwich that the couple’s second, and subsequent children were born and where John was located at the time of the census of 1851. He listed as being aged 37 and of Sherborne.
	Ten years later in 1861, with three new children, the family of John and Sarah was recorded as living at West Bromwich. This comprised blacksmith John aged 47, his wife Sarah 43, and their five children, Harvey 13, Sarah 11, William 9, Martha 7, and Charles aged 4.
	No further children were added to the family so by 1871 the West Bromwich family was listed as only Sarah aged 53 together with two of her sons William 19 and Charles 14. Where John was at that time has still to be revealed, although it is possible he was visiting his sister Lucy Collett (below) who lived in Wandsworth & Clapham as John Collett aged 58.
	Despite his absence in 1871, John was back with Sarah for the next census in April 1881. The couple were living at 46 Thyme Street in West Bromwich, where John was listed as a retired shoeing smith aged 67 years. Sarah was listed as being 63 years old and her place of birth was confirmed as Little Gaddesden in Hertfordshire.
	It seems likely that Sarah died during the next decade as John aged 77 was living alone at West Bromwich in 1891 and he too is assumed to have died shortly thereafter.
	It was also five years earlier, in 1886, that John travelled to Swindon to be with his sister Jane when she was dying. Jane’s only son William had been killed the previous year in an industrial accident and both John Collett and his sister Jane were staying with her widowed daughter-in-law Sarah Ann Collett at her home in Princes Street.
	9N14	Harvey Collett				Born in 1848
	9N15	Sarah Collett				Born in 1849 at West Bromwich
	9N16	William Collett				Born in 1852
	9N17	Martha A Collett				Born in 1854 at West Bromwich
	9N18	Charles Collett				Born in 1856
9M13	Hannah Collett was born at Sherborne in 1815 and she later married Mr Hardcastle.
9M14	Lucy Collett was born at Sherborne where she was baptised on 18.10.1817, the daughter of Robert and Amy Collett. It would appear that she never married and by 1871 she was aged 53 and of Sherborne, while living in the Wandsworth & Clapham district of London. Listed with her was John Collett aged 58 who may have been her brother from West Bromwich (above).
9M15	Robert Collett was born at Sherborne and baptised there on 21.12.1819, the son of Robert and Amy Collett. Following the death of his mother in 1837 Robert continued to live at the family home in Sherborne. At the time of the first national census in June 1841 he was 20 and was still living there with his widowed father Robert Collett the blacksmith, with whom Robert was also working as a blacksmith with his older brother Henry (above).
	His father died in 1847 so by 1851 he was once again confirmed as living and working in Sherborne where he was still a ‘smith’. On this occasion though he was lodging with his brother Henry who was then married to Jane. However, it was during the next decade that Robert married Ann of Little Compton in Oxfordshire who was born there in 1817.
	The Sherborne census of 1861 confirmed that Robert was 41 and that he was married to Ann aged 43. Staying with the couple on the day of the census was journeyman blacksmith Daniel Cook of Barnsley in Gloucestershire.
	Just four years later Robert died at Sherborne aged 45 and was buried there on 30.05.1865. According to the 1871 Census, Ann Collett aged 55 of Little Compton had returned to Oxfordshire and was living within the Chipping Norton registration district which included Little Compton.
9M16	Amy Collett was born at Sherborne in 1822 and was baptised there on 05.04.1822. Sadly her mother Amy died in 1837 at the age of 58 when she was only fifteen years old, leaving Amy to be looked after by her elderly father Robert Collett who was seventy-two. Perhaps this was more than the old man could cope with, which resulted in Amy being forced into domestic service.
	Amy appeared in the first national census in June 1841 as living at Westminster in the St George area of London, where she was given a rounded age of 15 (rather than her true age of 18) while working as a domestic servant at the home of Charles and Sarah Collett in Hanover Square.
	During the late 1840s she became friends with Jane Wood who was very likely the sister of Sarah who married Amy’s brother John Collett (above), both girls having been born at Little Gaddesden near Hemel Hempstead.
	By 1851 Amy Collett aged 27 and Jane Wood aged 24 were recorded together as lodging at the home of Ann Hiron within the Luton & Dunstable registration district of Bedfordshire.
	Nine years later in 1860 Amy’s close friend Jane Wood married Reuben Horn of Ivinghoe Aston in Buckinghamshire and according to the census taken in the following year Amy was lodging with the couple who were living within the Luton & Dunstable registration district.
	The full household on this occasion comprised Reuben Horn 25, his wife Jane who was 30, their baby daughter Amy Jane Horn who was not yet one year old, sixteen years old nurse maid Eliza Brinklow, and lodger Amy Collett who was 34.
	Amy continued to live with the Horn family and by 1871 the census that year revealed that also living at the home of Reuben and Jane Horn in Dunstable was Jane’s mother Mary A Wood who was 61. It would appear that ‘baby’ Amy Jane Horn must have died while still a child, as the only children living with Reuben and Jane was their son William Horn aged 7, and their daughter Sarah Horn who was five.
	By April 1881 Amy was still living at the home of Reuben and Jane Horn. Reuben was 43 and a plait merchant and he and his family were living at 1 Princess Street in Dunstable. Their son William aged 17 was working as a pupil teacher, while daughter Sarah was 15 and an apprentice dressmaker.
	Amy Collett on that occasion was described as being an unmarried dressmaker and a visitor who had been born at Sherborne in Gloucestershire. As with all of the previous census records, she gave an incorrect age when, at this time, she said she was 52 instead of her true age of 57.
	Two points are of interest. The first that the daughter of the Horn household was an apprentice dressmaker which, presumably meant that she was being taught the trade by Amy Collett, and secondly that Reuben’s wife Jane Horn nee Wood who was 48 was born at Little Gaddesden in Hertfordshire.
	As previously mentioned, it was at Little Gaddesden that Sarah, the wife of Amy’s brother John Collett (above) was born, so perhaps Jane and Sarah were sisters from the Wood family which would account for the strong connection between the two families.
	Amy Collett died at Luton nine years later in 1890, when she was 68 years of age.
9M17	Elizabeth Collett was born at Aldsworth around 1797. The only other record found for her so far is a listing in the 1851 Census when she was aged 64 and was living at Stow-on-the-Wold and her place of birth was confirmed as having been Aldsworth.
9M18	Jane Collett was born at Aldsworth in 1800 but with within a couple of years and was buried there in 1802.
9M19	Charles Collett was born at Aldsworth around 1807. He never married and was a blacksmith all his life. In 1841 and 1851 he was the only member of the family still living with his parents William and Elizabeth Collett at Aldsworth.
	In the census of 1841 he was listed with a rounded age of 30 and in 1851 he was 41. Both of his parents died in the 1850s so by 1861 he was living on his own at Aldsworth aged 53.
	The Aldsworth 1871 Census confirmed that Charles was 63 and that his occupation was still that of a blacksmith. On that occasion he had living with him his nephew Francis Collett (Ref. 9N26) aged 13 of Coln St Aldwyns, the son of Charles’ brother William Collett (below).
	Probably because of his advancing years Charles took into his home sometime during the 1870s another nephew who could help with the family blacksmith business. This was William Henry Collett (Ref. 9N14) and his family, the son of Charles’ brother younger Henry Collett (below).
	So by April 1881 Charles, at the age of 73, had living and working with him his nephew and blacksmith William aged 38 years of Aldsworth, his wife Augusta 29, and Ada their eight years old daughter.
	Charles died in 1891 and was buried in the churchyard where a tombstone bears his name. This happened after 5^th April the day of the national census that year, as this shows he was a retired blacksmith aged 82 and was still living at the home of his nephew William and his wife Augusta with then two of their children Ada and Cecil.
	Living in the house next door to Charles was his brother Henry Collett (below) and his wife Mary, who was the father of nephew William Henry Collett.
9M20	HENRY COLLETT was born at Aldsworth in 1810 and it was there that he married Mary Carter at St Bartholomew’s Church on 03.03.1837. The witnesses were his father William Collett (Ref. 9L6) and sister Jane Collett (below). All four of them signed their name in the church register in which the couple gave their ages as 27 and 19 years respectively.
	Mary was the daughter of Richard Palmer Carter and Jane Fowler who were married at Aldsworth on 16.10.1817. The Carter family are well represented in the churchyard at Aldsworth, with grave stones for Richard 11.11.1872, Mary 29.06.1858, and Richard’s father James 1793.
	By June 1841 the marriage of Henry and Mary had produced their first child and this was indicated in the census which listed Henry with a rounded age of 30, Mary as 20, and baby Ann who was still under one year old.
	During the next ten years Mary presented her husband with a further four children so at the time of the 1851 Census for Aldsworth Henry Collett was aged 40 and was a blacksmith living with wife Mary 32, and their five children.
	These were Ann aged 10, William Henry aged 8, Richard aged 6, Charles aged 4, and Elizabeth who was one year old. Their next child Robert, who was born in 1851, must have been born after 30^th March, this being the census date that year.
	Henry Collett was the enumerator for the Aldsworth censuses of 1861 and 1871 having taken over the role from his brother-in-law Joseph Waine who married Henry’s sister Jane (below).
	In 1861 the family comprised Henry 51, Mary 42, Ann aged 20 and a teacher, William 18 a blacksmith with his father, Richard 16 and Charlie 13 both agricultural labourers, Elizabeth 11, Robert 9, Lucy 6 and Mary Ann 3, and all of them born at Aldsworth.
	Moving on ten years and Henry was a 61 years old blacksmith, Mary was 53 and living with them at Aldsworth were: blacksmith son William 28; farm worker son Richard 26; blacksmith son Charles 24; daughter Elizabeth 21; blacksmith son Robert 19; daughters Lucy 16 and Mary Ann 13 and youngest son Henry 9.
	According to the Aldsworth Census of 1881 only unmarried siblings Charles Collett and Mary Anne Collett were living at home with their parents at that time.
	The census record also confirms that the children were born at Aldsworth and that Henry aged 71 and Charles aged 33 were both blacksmiths. Mary Anne who was 23 years of age married Thomas Bennett during the following years.
	The later Census of 1891 for Aldsworth listed Henry aged 81 as a retired blacksmith with his wife Mary aged 73 living next door to his son William Henry Collett and Henry’s older brother Charles Collett (above).
	Henry died in 1892 and was buried at Aldsworth on 02.04.1892. Later that same year Mary died on Christmas Day and was buried on 30.12.1892. Just outside the entrance to the church there is a well preserved gravestone for Mary, next to which there is a broken stone which is very possibly that of Henry.
	9N19	Ann Collett		Born in1840
	9N20	William Henry Collett		Born in 1842
	9N21	RICHARD COLLETT		Born in 1845
	9N22	Charles Collett		Born in 1847
	9N23	Elizabeth Collett		Born in 1849
	9N24	Robert Collett		Born in 1851
	9N25	Lucy Collett		Baptised in November 1854
	9N26	Mary Collett		Baptised on 11.01.1857
	9N27	Mary Anne Collett		Born in 1858
	9N28	Henry Collett		Born in 1862
9M21	Mary Collett was born at Aldsworth in the latter part of 1811 and was buried there in April 1814 aged 2.
9M22	Jane Collett was born at Aldsworth and it was there that she was baptised on 21.11.1813. She later married baker Joseph Waine on 02.04.1840. By 1881 Jane was a widow carrying on the family business as a baker and grocer in Aldsworth, Joseph having died in 1854.
	Still living with her was her unmarried son John Waine aged 27, grandsons Ernest Charles Waine aged 12, and Harry Edgar John Waine aged 7 and granddaughter Lucy Ann Howard aged 14 all born in Aldsworth. The household was completed by two servants. Jane died in 1899.
	Joseph Waine was the enumerator for the Aldsworth 1851 Census.
	It is interesting to note that Joseph’s mother was Susanna Waine nee Fletcher, the sister of Mary Fletcher who married Thomas Collett (Ref. 2M11) and the sister of Ann Fletcher who married Henry Collett (Ref. 2M16). This then provides another link back to the one of the main line of Collett ancestors.
9M23	William Collett was born at Aldsworth during late 1816 or early 1817 and was baptised there on 04.02.1817. He was a blacksmith just like two of his brothers. He married Jane of Coln St Aldwyns where he was living and working as a blacksmith in 1841. The couple married sometime after 1841 and before 1844 when their first child was baptised at Coln St Aldwyns, possibly where they were living at that time.
	All of their later children were also baptised at the parish church in Coln St Aldwyns but there seems to be some conflicting information regarding whether the second child was also born at Coln St Aldwyns. Sadly it would appear that the couple’s first child died shortly after he was born, and it may have been this event which prompted the move to Quenington.
	By 1851 William was thirty-four, Jane was thirty, and their daughter Georgiana was four, and they were confirmed as living at Quenington just south of Aldsworth. The census for that year confirmed that William was a blacksmith who had been born at Aldsworth, while Jane and Georgiana were both said to have been born at Coln St Aldwyns. Jane was very likely with-child on the census day since she presented William with a second daughter later that same year.
	Ten years later in 1861 the family was living in Quenington when the census return revealed the family as William 44, Jane 41, and their children Georgiana 14, Augusta 9, Anne Priscilla 5 and Francis 3, the three younger children all being born at Quenington.
	William and Jane only had their two youngest children living with them in 1871. The census recorded the family as William 53, his wife Jane 50, their daughter Anne 15 and son Francis as 13.
	In 1881 William aged 64 and Jane aged 61 were still living at Quenington. It is likely that the couple lived most of their married life at Quenington as daughter Anne who was aged 25 years in 1881 was born there, as was Augusta who married her cousin William Henry Collett (Ref. 9N14).
	Also their son Francis was born at Quenington although he had left the family home by 1881 and was living and working in Bristol.
	There is further confirmation of this in the Census of 1901 when the couple was still living in Quenington and were listed as William, a retired blacksmith aged 84 who had been born at Aldsworth, with 80 years old Jane who was born at Coln St Aldwyns. Still living with them was their daughter Annie, a spinster of 45 years.
	William died on 28.10.1906 aged 90 and Jane passed away three years later on 11.08.1909 aged 89 and both were buried at Quenington.
	9N29	Francis Collett				Born in 1844
	9N30	Georgiana Collett				Born in 1846
	9N31	Augusta Collett				Born in 1851
	9N32	Anne Priscilla Collett				Born in 1855
	9N33	Francis Collett				Born in 1858
9N1	William Collett was the base-born son of spinster Jane Collett of Sherborne. He was born at Sherborne in 1826 but was quickly removed to live with a family in Fairford where he was baptised on 13.08.1826.
	This very uncertain start to his life was very likely the reason why, in the later census records, he was unsure about his date and place of birth. His age had the biggest variations, whereas the place his alternated between Sherborne and Fairford.
	By the time William was 15 he had left school and was living and working with Thomas Lea and his wife Betty and their two daughters Patience and Mary at their family home in Fairford. Thomas Lea was a tailor and he was teaching William how to become a tailor himself.
	Although not confirmed, it is possible that it may have been with the Lea family that William had been placed fifteen years earlier.
	Ten years later, according to the census of 1851, William was 24 and was a tailor’s apprentice still living at the Fairford home of tailor and draper Thomas Lea. Also lodging at the house at that time was William’s mother Jane Collett (Ref. 9M7) who was 45 and described as a tailor of Sherborne.
	Over the next ten years William continued to live in Fairford but by 1861 he was living on his own and in the census that year he was recorded as being a carrier aged 35 and from Sherborne.
	It was at nearby Cirencester in 1865 that William married Sarah Ann Cockbill who is pictured here at the age of sixty-one at the wedding of her youngest son Albert in September 1901 by which time she had been a widow for sixteen years. Sarah Ann Cockbill was born at Filkins north of Lechlade in Wiltshire around 1840. A note on the couple’s marriage certificate indicated that William Collett’s unnamed father had died when he was a child.
	William’s and Sarah’s first five children were all born while the couple were living at Fairford and prior to the family’s move to Swindon, where the sixth and youngest child was born.
	According to the 1871 Census for Fairford, William aged 42 was a carrier and inn keeper living with his wife Sarah 36 of Filkins. On this occasion he gave his place of birth as Fairford. Living with the couple were their first three children Harry 5, Charles 2 and Amy 1.
	Rather strangely the family also had living with them at that time a young child by the name of Charles Constable aged 7 of Lechlade.
	Between 1875 and 1879 the family moved from Fairford to Swindon where William had secured the job of labourer with the Great Western Railway. By April 1881 he and his family were living at 40 Princes Street in Swindon.
	William was described as being aged 47 and from Fairford. The census record also confirmed that he was a labourer employed by the Great Western Railway in the E & M workshop.
	His wife was confirmed as Sarah A Collett aged 40 of Filkins, and their children at that time were Henry R 14, Charles 12, Frederick 9, Hedley 6 and 10 months old Albert. Living with the family on that occasion was boarder William Strong, a workmate of William’s at the GWR.
	For whatever reason, probably one of overcrowding in the male orientated family home, William’s and Sarah’s only daughter Amy aged 10 and born at Fairford was living at Ampney St Peter near Cirencester with her grandmother Jane Collett (Ref. 9M7).
	Tragically William Collett died in hospital on 22.03.1885 as a result of an accident at work during the previous day. It transpires that William was a labourer and a track leveller and that on the afternoon of Saturday 21^st March he fell through a hole into a fire while working on the tracks near Rodbourne Lane Cottages.
	His age at that time was recorded as being 49, and the death certificate indicated that his mother Jane Collett was still alive at the age of 82. Ironically she died exactly one year later on 22.03.1886.
	An inquest into the incident that killed William took place at The Cricketer’s Arms Inn in New Town Swindon on Wednesday 25^th March 1885 at which it was said that his son Henry Robert Collett identified the badly burned body.
	As a result of the findings of the inquest, a verdict of accidental death was announced. The surviving family of William Collett of 40 Princes Street in Swindon was recorded as his a widow, his six children, and his mother who was 82.
	William’s widow Sarah Ann Collett was offered compensation for her husband’s death by the Great Western Railway, which she declined, saying that she would prefer each of her sons to be offered employment and an apprenticeship with the company, where her eldest son was already working at that time.
	And judging by the trades taken up by her sons, it seems more than likely that her demand was accepted.
	According to the next Swindon census in 1891, Sarah Ann Collett was 49 and was a widow, while still living at 40 Princes Street with four of her six children. These were Henry 24, Frederick 19, Hedley 14, and Albert 10. Her son Charles Collett had died in 1888 and no trace of Amy Jane Collett has been found in 1891.
	Just after the turn of the century Sarah A Collett of Filkins was 61 and was still living in Swindon. Also living in Swindon at that time were her sons Henry 32, Frederick 29, Hedley 26, and Albert who was twenty.
	Sarah Ann Collett nee Cockbill died at Swindon on 10.03.1910 at the age of 70.
	9O1	Henry Robert Collett				Born in 1866
	9O2	Charles Collett				Born in 1868
	9O3	Amy Jane Collett				Born in 1870
	9O4	Frederick William Collett				Born in 1872
	9O5	Hedley John Collett				Born in 1874
	9O6	Albert Joseph Collett				Born in 1880
9N2	Richard John Collett, who was also known as John, was very likely born at West Bromwich. According to the West Bromwich census of 1841 John was born in 1837 being three years old and with his parents at that time. By 1861 he was still using the name John and was still living with his family at West Bromwich at the age of 24.
	Sometime within the next few months John married Emma who was born at West Bromwich in 1842. The couple continued to live in West Bromwich after they were married and it was there that their five children were born.
	The first two children appeared with Emma in the West Bromwich census of 1871, although listed with her was her husband Richard aged 34. Emma was aged 29 and her two daughters were aged four years and one year respectively. The couple’s son Richard was staying nearby with his grandparents at that time.
	Two further children were born into the family during the next four years, but then tragedy seems to have struck the family when the children’s father died during the middle to late 1870s.
	This fact was confirmed in the 1881 Census when Emma was listed as a widow aged 39. At that time she was living with her four children at 13 Lower Trinity Street in West Bromwich. She was described as head of the household but with no occupation listed or that of her late husband.
	Emma’s children were confirmed as Annie 14, Sarah 11, Mary Jane 8, and five years old John, all having been born at West Bromwich. To make ends meet Emma was letting a room in the house and this was occupied by a sixty-four years old spinster Sarah Essen from Long Buckby in Northamptonshire.
	Although it would appear rather premature, it does seem that Emma may had died during the 1880s as no record of her or daughter Ann or Annie has so far been found. The alternative might be that Ann was already married by 1891 since she would have been 24, and Emma may have remarried.
	What is known is that Emma’s other children were all living in the Harborne area of Birmingham in 1891 and it may have been there that Emma was also living with them. Certainly Sarah 21, Mary Jane 18 and John aged 15 were together there.
	And also living at Harborne at that time was Emma’s son Richard who was then married with a family of his own.
	9O7	Richard Collett				Born in 1862
	9O8	Ann Collett				Born in 1866 at West Bromwich
	9O9	Sarah Collett				Born in 1869
	9O10	Mary Jane Collett				Born in 1872
	9O11	John Richard Collett				Born in 1875
9N3	Henry Collett was born at West Bromwich in 1839 and was aged two years in June 1841. Rather curiously he was not listed with his family in 1861 but had returned to the West Bromwich home of his parents by 1871 when he was aged 31 and was still a bachelor. Perhaps it was his work as a carpenter that had taken from his family.
	From the information contained in the 1881 Census Henry became a married man sometime after 1871 but had been made a widower by 1881. In April 1881 he was 39 years old and was living at Taylors Lane in West Bromwich and his occupation was confirmed as being that of a carpenter.
	The census record also confirmed that he was a widower and that his live in housekeeper was Annie Ince aged 40 who was also a dressmaker. With her were her three children Arthur 7, Dora 5, and Wilbert aged one. Each child was described as the son or daughter to the housekeeper.
9N4	Fanny Collett was born at West Bromwich in 1840 and was under one year old in June 1841. Twenty years later she was still living with her parents in West Bromwich and was aged 22.
9N5	Robert Collett was born at West Bromwich in 1844 and was still living there with his parents in 1861 at the age of 16. Sometime around 1865 he married Mary Ann who was the same age as Robert and was also born in West Bromwich.
	During the first five years of their marriage Mary Ann presented Robert with the first three of their thirteen children, so by 1871 the family was made up of Robert and Mary Ann both aged 26, their three daughters aged 4 and 2 with the youngest one still under one year old.
	The three names recorded in 1871 were Martha Elizabeth, Mary Ann, and Ann. None of these names corresponded with the names given for the same three girls ten years later so it can only be assumed that the enumerator mixed up the names, either that or his handwriting was so poor that the names have been interpreted incorrectly.
	According to the census of 1881 the family was living at 56 Hallam Street in West Bromwich from where Robert at the age of 36 was working as a shoeing and coaching smith and was employing two men. Mary also 36 and of West Bromwich was confirmed as being his wife.
	The couple’s first three daughters were now referred to as Mary Elizabeth aged 14, Margaret Ann aged 12, and Amy C Collett aged ten. Mary had left school by then, whereas the next four children were still receiving their education.
	In addition to the three oldest daughters, the other children in 1881 were Lucy aged 8, Elizabeth aged 6, Robert aged 4, Henry (who was referred to as Harry) was two, and baby Frank was just seven months old. All of the children were confirmed as having been born at West Bromwich.
	Also living with the family in April 1881 was Robert’s nephew Richard Collett aged 19 who had been living with Robert’s parents ten years early.
	Over the next ten years a further five children were added to the family. So by the time of the 1891 Census there were ten children living with Robert and Mary Ann at West Bromwich, with two of the five oldest daughters having already left the family home.
	Robert and Mary Ann were 46 and with them were Mary 22, Amy 20, Lucy 18, Robert 14, Henry 12, Thomas 11 (who was Frank in 1881), Hannah 8, Richard 7, James 5, Joseph aged 3 and Minnie aged 2.
	Just after the turn of the century eight of the children of Robert and Mary Ann were still living at home in West Bromwich with their parents. The total 1901 family comprised general blacksmith Robert aged 56 and his wife Mary Ann, sons Robert 24, Henry 22, Thomas 20, Richard 17, Arthur 15, and Joseph aged 13, together with the two youngest daughters Hannah 18 and Minnie aged 10.
	During the next ten years, judging by the census of 1911, Robert must have died, since Mary Ann Collett of West Bromwich was 66 and was still living within the West Bromwich registration district with four of her children for company. These were Henry, James, Joseph and Minnie.
	9O12	Martha Elizabeth Collett				Born in 1866 at West Bromwich
	9O13	Mary Ann Collett				Born in 1868 at West Bromwich
	9O14	Amy C Collett				Born in 1870 at West Bromwich
	9O15	Lucy Collett				Born in 1872 at West Bromwich
	9O16	Elizabeth Collett				Born in 1874 at West Bromwich
	9O17	Robert Collett				Born in 1876
	9O18	Henry Collett				Born in 1878
	9O19	Frank Thomas Collett				Born in September 1880
	9O20	Hannah J Collett				Born in 1882 at West Bromwich
	9O21	Richard Collett				Born in 1883
	9O22	James Arthur Collett				Born in 1885
	9O23	Joseph Edward Collett				Born in 1887
	9O24	Minnie Collett				Born in 1890
9N6	William Frederick Collett was born at West Bromwich in 1847 and was aged twelve in the West Bromwich census of 1861 and twenty-three by 1871.
	He married the much younger Amelia Fanny when he was around thirty years of age, when she had not reached her twentieth birthday. Shortly after they were married Amelia presented William with the first of their three children and one year later they had two children.
	By the time of the West Bromwich census of 1881 William was 28 (sic) and his wife Fanny was 23 and from Smethwick. Did William consciously give his age as 28 when he would have actually been 33? And was this out of embarrassment for the fact he was ten years older than wife, or was it just an error in transcription?
	At that time in April 1881 William and Amelia were living at 8 Cottrell Street in West Bromwich with their two children Amelia, referred to as Fanny aged one and William who was three months old, both of them having been born at West Bromwich.
	William’s occupation at that time in his life was that of a farrier. Three years later Amelia presented her husband with their third child, but tragically he was born deaf and dumb.
	By 1891 the family had moved away from Cottrell Street and instead were living at 38 Victoria Street in West Bromwich. Head of the house William was 43 and a farrier and general smith, Amelia his wife was 32, and living with them were their three children. These were Amelia F Collett 11, William F Collett 10, and six years old Albert A Collett.
	The family was still living in West Bromwich in 1901. William F Collett of West Bromwich was confirmed as a farrier and shoeing smith aged 53 and his wife was Amelia aged 44 and of Smethwick. Their son, also listed as William F Collett, was living with them aged 20 and was working with his father, his occupation being that of a shoeing smith.
	Their daughter Amelia F Collett had left the family home by then and was working away at nearby Tipton at the age of 21.
	The West Bromwich census of 1911 provided his full name of William Frederick Collett aged sixty-three who was born there, while his wife was confirmed as Amelia Fanny Collett aged 54. Still living with them was their handicapped son Albert.
	9O25	Amelia Fanny Collett			Born in September 1879
	9O26	William Frederick Collett			Born in December 1880
	9O27	Albert Arthur Collett			Born in 1884
9N7	John Collett was born at West Bromwich in 1853 but it is not yet confirmed that he was the son of shoeing and coach-smith Robert Collett of Sherborne and West Bromwich. Nor has his whereabouts been revealed in the census records for 1861 and 1871. (see italics footnote below)
	However, by April 1881 John was married and had started a family of his own. The census confirmed he was aged 27 and that he had been born at West Bromwich. At that time his occupation was that of a coach smith and grocer and he and his family were living at 43 Oxford Street in Wednesbury.
	His wife was Rebecca aged 26 and of Wednesbury and later census records would indicate that it was she that ran the grocery shop. Their children at that time were Alfred 5, John 3, Edith 2, and Charles who was only two months old, all of them having been born at Wednesbury.
	Their business must have been flourishing as they could afford to employ a general servant in the form of fourteen years old Ann Maria Gwilt of Darlaston.
	During the following couple of years Rebecca presented John with a further two children so by 1891 comprised John aged 37, Rebecca 36, Alfred 15, John 13, Edith 12, Ernest 10, Arthur 8, Harold 7, and five years old Florence.
	According to the Wednesbury census of 1901 only Rebecca was listed with six of her seven children. Where he husband John and son John were at that time has not been determined. Rebecca was 46 and was listed as a beer retailer, presumably running an outdoor beer house which small shops were often called.
	Still living with her on that occasion were her sons Alfred 25, Charles 20, Arthur 18, and Harold 17, and daughters Edith 22 and Florence 15.
	Following the death of her husband, it would appear that Rebecca, together with her youngest child Florence, moved to North Devon sometime after 1901. By 1911 the couple were living in the Bideford area of Devon where Rebecca of Wednesbury was 56, and her daughter was 25.
Note	It is possible that John Collett born around 1853 may have been the son of John Collett of Willenhall who was also a coach smith. This John Collett (born in 1828) was married to Anne and in 1881 they were living at 89 Albert Street in Wednesbury with their son William Collett who was 14 and a pupil teacher born at nearby Hill Top. By coincidence a John Collett born at Dudley in 1827 had a son John born in 1854 as detailed in Part 48. Therefore further work is needed to fully verify all the details.
	9O28	Alfred Collett			Born in 1875
	9O29	John Briton Collett			Born in 1877
	9O30	Edith M Collett			Born in 1878
	9O31	Charles Ernest Collett			Born in January 1881
	9O32	Arthur Collett			Born in 1882
	9O33	Harold Collett			Born in 1884
	9O34	Florence Amy Collett			Born in 1886
9N8	Joseph Collett was born at Stow-on-the-Wold in May 1847.
9N9	Oliver Emes Collett was born at Lower Swell in June 1849 where he was baptised on 15.07.1849. His second Christian name came from his mother’s maiden name.
	He married Martha Finney of Newton-le-Willows in Lancashire in 1877 with whom he had four daughters. The first child and the fourth child were born while Oliver and Martha were living in Liverpool, while the two children in between were at Garston, on the east bank of the Mersey River just south of Liverpool.
	By 1891 the family was still living in the Toxteth Park district of Liverpool where Oliver was 41, Martha was 38, and their children were Gertrude aged 11, Ada aged 8, Martha aged 6, and baby Jane who was not yet one year old.
	Also at that time there were three other Colletts living at Toxteth Park and these were Charles C Collett aged 40, Betsey M Collett aged 30, and Sarah Collett aged 22, although no connection with any of these to this family line has so far been found.
	During the next decade the family left Liverpool and had moved to Cheadle near Stockport where they were living according to the 1901 Census. The family on that occasion comprised Oliver aged 52 of Lower Swell, Martha aged 48 of Newton-le-Willows, and daughters Gertrude aged 21, and Martha who was sixteen years of age.
	It is possible that missing daughter Ada, who would have been 18 years old in April 1901, had married by then, but with no record of the couple’s youngest child Jane, who would have been ten years old it is possible that she had suffered an infant death.
	Certainly the next census in 1911 confirmed that daughter Jane did not exist at that time, thus supporting the notion that she had died as a child under ten years old. And again as in 1901 daughter Ada was not listed as living at the family home within the Stockport registration district in April 1991.
	Instead the Collett family at that time comprised Oliver 61 and his wife Martha 57, and still living with the couple were their two other daughters Gertrude who was 31 and born in Liverpool, and Martha who was 26 and born in Garston.
	9O35	Gertrude Collett			Born in 1879 at Liverpool
	9O36	Ada Collett			Born in 1882 at Garston, Merseyside
	9O37	Martha Collett			Born in 1884 at Garston, Merseyside
	9O38	Jane Collett			Born in 1890 at Toxteth Park, Liverpool
9N10	George Collett was born at Lower Swell on 26.08.1854 and was baptised there on 19.11.1854. In 1871 at the age of 16 he was still living with his parents who had left Eyford near Upper Slaughter a few years earlier and had moved to Cirencester.
	George is known to have worked from the Great Western Railway during his life where he was a goods guard. It was at Swindon in November 1874 that he married Kezia Duck who was born at Wroughton near Swindon in November 1856. Kezia was exactly 18 years old when she married George, whose age was recorded as being 20 years and 3 months.
	Kezia presented her husband with the first of their seven children shortly after they were married and this was followed by another two children while the family was living in Stratton St Margaret. This was confirmed by the census of 1881 which placed the family of five living there at a house in the High Street.
	At this time the family comprised head of the house George 26 who was confirmed as being a railway goods guard from Lower Swell, his wife Kezia 24 from Wroughton, and their three children Arthur 6, Lilley 5, and two years old Edith, all three listed as having been born at Stratton St Margaret.
	Also lodging with the family on this occasion was carpenter Joseph Green who was 31 and from Oldbury in Worcestershire.
	Shortly after the census day in 1881 George and Kezia left Stratton St Margaret and moved to Gorse Hill in Swindon where their remaining four children were born, the first of which was born later that same year.
	The census ten years later confirmed that George’s family was complete, although by then the couple’s eldest daughter ‘Lily Collett’ was already working away from home at the age of 15. The couple’s other children were George who was 36, Kezia 34, Arthur 17, Edith 12, George 9, Ernest who was five, Beatrice who was four, while baby Elsie was under one year old.
	By the time of the Swindon census of 1901 only three of George’s and Kezia’s children were still living with them. George was still employed by the GWR as a goods guard at the age of 46, Kezia was 44, and the three children were Ernest 15, Beatrice 13, and Elsie 11.
	Ten years later in April 1911 George was 56, Kezia was 53, and at this time it was only their son George Henry Collett who was still living with them in Swindon, albeit just two months before he was married.
	9O39	Arthur Collett			Born in 1874
	9O40	Lilley Amelia Collett			Born in 1876
	9O41	Edith Emily Collett			Born in 1879
	9O42	George Henry Collett			Born in 1881
	9O43	Ernest Albert Collett			Born in 1886
	9O44	Beatrice Frances Collett			Born in 1887
	9O45	Elsie Frances Collett			Born in 1890
9N11	James Collett was born at Lower Swell in November 1859 and during the 1860s the family had moved to Cirencester where they were living in 1871 and where James was listed as being aged 12.
	In 1880 James married Mary Ann Garrett who was five years his senior, she having been born at Warminster in Wiltshire in 1854. It would appear that James and Mary never had any children as they are listed living alone in all of the census records up to 1901, by which time the couple were living at Bath in Somerset where James was 42 and Mary was 46.
	The couple were still living at Bath ten years later. James from Lower Swell was 52, while Mary of Warminster was 55; the age different between them reducing with each ten years that passed.
9N12	Mary Collett was born at Eyford during 1862 and was aged 8 at the time of the Cirencester census of 1871 and 18 in 1881 when she was still living with her family in Cirencester.
9N13	Frederick Collett was born at Eyford in 1865 and was listed living with his family in 1871 at Cirencester at the age of five years. In 1897 at Cirencester Frederick married Minnie Midwinter who was born at Aldsworth in 1874. Once married it would appear that the couple initially settled in South Cerney before moving to Ampney Crucis.
	By the time of the census of 1901 the marriage had produced two children for Frederick and Minnie, and by that time the family was living at Ampney Crucis. Frederick, who was a carter on a local farm, was aged 35 and of Eyford, while his wife Minnie was aged 26 and was confirmed as from Aldsworth.
	Their two children at that time were Mabel aged 2, and Frederick who was not yet one year old, but it is very likely that further children were born to the couple in the years that followed.
	The couple were living within the Winchcomb registration district at the time of the census in 1911 and this gave Frederick’s age as 46, his wife Minnie’s as 36, and their son Frederick George as ten. No record has been found of their daughter Mabel who would have been twelve.
	Frederick senior is known to have died at the age of 52, which could place the time of his death as the latter half of 1917 or early in 1918.
	9O46	Mabel Collett			Born in 1898 at South Cerney
	9O47	Frederick George Collett			Born in 1900
9N14	Harvey Collett was born at Little Gaddesden during the June quarter of 1848, the birth being registered in the Berkhamsted district. Shortly after he and his parents moved north to West Bromwich to join his father’s older brother Richard who had moved there ten years earlier. And it was at West Bromwich where all of Henry’s other brothers and sisters were born.
	It should be noted that he was referred to as Harvey, Henry and Harry in some of the census records, but the one constant time, apart from 1871, was his place of birth as Little Gaddesden.
	By 1861 the West Bromwich family was complete with Harvey as the oldest child at the age of 13. Upon leaving school it would appear that he had a love of animals, probably through the contact he had with the horses that came to his father for shoeing, and went to London to qualify as a veterinary surgeon.
	And it was at Camden Town that 23 years old Harvey was situated at the time of the census of 1871. Perhaps out of ignorance bearing in mind the short amount time spent there, he gave his place of birth as West Bromwich rather than Little Gaddesden.
	During the following year he married Ann of Stourport in Worcestershire and returned to West Bromwich where he set up his veterinary business alongside his father’s blacksmith business. Over the next ten years Ann presented Harvey with six children, all born at West Bromwich.
	By April 1881 Harvey of Little Gaddesden was aged 33 and was living at 41 Carters Green in West Bromwich. His occupation was recorded as ‘veterinary surgeon employing three smiths’ and these were most likely members of his Collett blacksmith family.
	His family in 1881 comprised his wife Ann aged 30 and their children Frances 7, William 6, Amy 4, Margaret 2, Ethel aged one year, and baby Emily who was ten months old. In addition to all of these the family was supported by Eliza Jones aged 17 from Dudley who was employed as a general servant.
	Four more children were added to the family over the next decade, so by 1891 Harvey’s and Ann’s children still living at home in West Bromwich with them were Frances 17, William 16, Amy 14, Margaret 12, Ethel 11, Elsie 9, Norman 6, Sidney 4, and two year old Eliza.
	The only missing member of the family was their daughter Emily, who would have been ten years old, and her absence may suggest that there had been a death in the family.
	During the next ten years some members of the family left home and it might even have been the case that Harvey’s wife Ann also passed away. According to the West Bromwich census of 1901 Harvey was aged 53 of Little Gaddesden and his occupation was still veterinary surgeon.
	Still living with him on that occasion were his unmarried daughters Frances, Amy, Margaret, Ethel, and Elsie, and his two youngest sons Norman and Sidney. None of them was credited with having an occupation, so presumably they were supporting their father now that his wife was no longer with him. A notable absentee at this time was his youngest daughter Eliza who would have been 12, so perhaps she too had suffered a childhood death.
	By April 1911 Harvey was still living at West Bromwich and was 63. The only members of his family still living with him were his eldest daughter Frances Helen who was 37, and his youngest son Sidney Howell Collett who was 25.
	9O48	Frances Helen Collett				Born in 1873
	9O49	William Harry Collett				Born in 1874 at West Bromwich
	9O50	Amy Sarah Collett				Born in 1876 at West Bromwich
	9O51	Margaret Collett				Born in 1878 at West Bromwich
	9O52	Ethel Mary Collett				Born in 1879 at West Bromwich
	9O53	Emily Collett				Born in June 1880 at West Bromwich
	9O54	Elsie G Collett				Born in 1882 at West Bromwich
	9O55	Norman T Collett				Born in 1884 at West Bromwich
	9O56	Sidney Howell Collett				Born in 1886
	9O57	Eliza Collett				Born in 1888 at West Bromwich
9N16	William Collett was born at West Bromwich in 1852 and was nine years old in April 1861. He was still living at West Bromwich with his parents ten years later in 1871 when he was 19.
	Very little is known about William as he does not appear to be listed in the 1881 or 1891 census records, perhaps because he was out of the country.
	He does however reappear in Stockport in Cheshire in the census of 1901. In this he was living alone at that time and was a 49 years old Wesleyan Minister. His place of birth was confirmed as having been West Bromwich. It may therefore be assumed that he never married.
9N18	Charles Collett was born at West Bromwich in 1856 and was just four years old by 1861. He was still living with his West Bromwich family in 1871 and was aged 14, but after leaving school he left the West Midland and moved south to Bedfordshire.
	By 1881 he was listed in the census that year as Charles Collett aged 24 from West Bromwich and was working as a clerk for the widow Maria Taylor who ran a draper’s business from premises at 12 and 14 George Street in Luton where Charles was also living as a boarder at that time.
	No trace of Charles has so far been found in either the 1891 or 1901 census.
9N19	Ann Collett was born at Aldsworth and was baptised there on 30.09.1840. She was a school teacher in 1861 and later married Samuel Archer. By 1881 she and her family were living at Turk Dean by which time she had had eight children.
9N20	William Henry Collett was born at Aldsworth where he was baptised on 25.12.1842. He too was a blacksmith like his father Henry Collett (Ref. 9M20) and was 18 in 1861. At the time of the 1871 Census he was still an unmarried blacksmith of 28 years of age living with his parents. However, shortly after the census that year he married his cousin Augusta Collett (Ref. 9N24), the daughter of his father’s brother William Collett (Ref. 9M23).
	From the 1881 Census William 38 of Aldsworth, his wife Augusta 29 of Quenington and eldest daughter Ada aged 8 of Aldsworth were living at the home of William’s 72 year old uncle Charles Collett (Ref. 9M19).
	Ten years later the family was living next door to William’s father, retired blacksmith Henry Collett (Ref. 9M20) aged 81, with William having now taken over the family business. The census listed the family as William aged 48, Augusta 39, Ada 18, and Cecil 4. Living with them was William’s uncle Charles Collett aged 82, another retired blacksmith of Aldsworth.
	According to the 1901 Census William was aged 58 and was a blacksmith and a shoeing smith. Listed with him was his wife Augusta aged 49 and of Quenington, and living with them was their son Cecil W H Collett aged 14 born at Aldsworth.
	Ten years later William was 68, Augusta was 59, and still living with then at Aldsworth was their blacksmith son Cecil who was 24.
	William Henry Collett died at Aldsworth four years later at the age of 72 and was buried there on 15.02.1915, while his wife Augusta survived for almost another two years when she died at the age of 65 died in 1917 at Aldsworth where she was buried on 27.01.1917.
	9O58	Ada Collett				Born in 1872
	9O59	Rosa Georgiana Collett				Born in 1875
	9O60	Cecil William Henry Collett				Born in 1886
9N21	RICHARD COLLETT was born at Aldsworth where he baptised on 31.03.1845. In 1861 he was aged 16 and was an agricultural labourer which had changed to farm worker by 1871 and for both censuses he was living at home with his parents in Aldsworth.
	He married Jane Porter on 31.05.1873 at St Bartholomew’s Church. He was aged 28 and Jane was 23. The marriage was witnessed by Richard’s brother