PART
SIXTY-FOUR
The
Upper Swell / Oddington (Glos) Line – 1600 to 2000
Updated July 2023
This family line previously included
two men named Thomas Collett. Both men
were born in the same year, the first of them [64M3] on 13th
September 1781 who was baptised at Oddington on 9th November 1781, a
son of William Collett of Upper Swell and Mary Day of Oddington in
Gloucestershire – not Oddington in Oxfordshire. He and his family line continue to be the
subject of Part 64 of the global Collett family. The second Thomas Collett [formerly 64M4] was
also born around 1781 and he married Sarah Hyatt at Oddington on 5th
January 1801 who has no obvious connection to this family line and has
therefore been placed in a brand new Part 79 – The Second Oddington (Glos) Line
to Birmingham
The
earliest record of a Collett in that part of Gloucestershire, close to the
boundary with Oxfordshire, was for Parnell
Collett (Ref. 64f1) who married Thomas Hall on 3rd October
1580. The next was Anthony Collett (Ref. 64g1) whose daughter Katherine Collett (Ref. 64h1) was baptised there on 23rd
February 1626. That could place Anthony
as the son of Parnell Collett and born around 1602
After
them came the following, but three generations later, with i and j missing: Robert Collett (Ref. 64k2) who was born
around 1699, who later married Elizabeth Gillett at Oddington on 15th
March 1723; and Robert’s likely siblings John
Collett (Ref. 64k3) who was born around 1703, who married Mary Ward at
Oddington on 13th October 1724; Elizabeth
Collett (Ref. 64k4) born around 1706, and she married William Hensley at
Oddington on 18th February 1728; and William Collett (Ref. 64k5), may have been born two years after
Elizabeth, around 1708, and he married Sarah Poole at Oddington on 13th
October 1730. The daughter of William
and Sarah was Sarah Collett (Ref. 64l2)
who was baptised at Upper Slaughter on 11th July 1731, with her
parents confirmed as Will and Sarah Collett
In
addition to these, Mary Day was the daughter of Robert Day and Joanna Collett
who were married at Upper Swell on 24th December 1742, Joanna
Collett (Ref. 64l1) was baptised at Upper Swell in September 1718, the
daughter of Elizabeth and Joseph Collett (Ref. 64k1). This would place Joseph’s year of birth
around 1697, perhaps making him the older brother of Robert Collett (Ref.
64k2). If so, then Joanna Collett (Ref.
64l1) and Sarah Collett (Ref. 64l2) were very likely first cousins. The aforementioned Mary Day should not be
confused with Mary Day the wife of William Collett (Ref. 64L8)
Still
to be positively identified is Thomas Collett (64k6) a Yeoman of
Oddington, whose Will was made in 1778 and proved at London in 1780 in the
presence of the sole executor and main beneficiary William Collett (Ref.
64l3) of Oddington, with no relationship stated in the Will. That was also the case for Joseph Collett
(Ref. 64m1), not of full age in 1778 but said to be an apprentice baker living
at Stow-on-the-Wold with baker Thomas Reeve, who was left a bequeath of three
hundred pounds, half to be paid on reaching 21 years of age, and the remainder
two years later. The obvious age
different between William and Joseph could possibly mean that they were father
and son. However, within the Will it
states that William was living in the house previously purchased by Thomas
Collett and that should William have not survived, and leaving no heirs, the
house and the lands at Oddington would pass to Joseph Collett on reaching full
age. So, while William may have been a
nephew of Thomas, Joseph could not have been his son. As a nephew, William may have been the son of
William Collett and Sarah Poole (above).
If so, Thomas Collett, a Yeoman of Oddington, would have been the younger
brother of William and therefore the uncle of William junior. If proved, then William Collett, the main
beneficiary, was very likely the younger brother of Sarah Collett (Ref. 64l2)
and therefore born in the mid-1730s
During
the autumn of 2012, new information was gratefully received from Ben Collett
(previously Ref. 28T1) of Yan Yean in Victoria, Australia, whose research work
had also been supported by Gillian Collett (previously Ref. 28S16). Whilst the details, for the most part, have
been validated by various birth, death and marriage certificates, there were
members of the family who appeared in three of the then sixty-three lines that made
up the Collett families on the Collett Family History website - www.collettfamilyhistory.net.
In addition, some of the details curiously overlapped with the information
contained within the Collett Family Bible held by Paul Woodhead which refers to
members of the family detailed within the appendix to Part 12 – The Chipping
Norton Line. Upon further investigation,
it was discovered that the different sections of the family previously listed
in the aforementioned Part 12, in Part 28 – The Faringdon Line, and in Part 44
– The First Broughton Gifford Line, were in fact all members of the same
family. As a result, they were removed
from Parts 12, 28 and 44 and placed together here in this family line in 2021. Undoubtedly all of this will have the effect
of changing the ancestry line for some of the present-day descendants from
those three family lines
This
family line commences in the Gloucestershire village of Upper Swell to the west
of Stow-on-the-Wold, passing through the village of Oddington to the east of
Stow-on-the-Wold, onto Abingdon-on-Thames in what was Berkshire before 1974,
then into Wiltshire and the villages of Norton-Coleparle and Hullavington near
Malmesbury. It now also includes a
branch from Oddington to Smethwick in the West Midlands. This is the family line of Maureen Iliffe nee
Collett of Cardiff (Ref. 64R46), whose line is denoted by the names in capital
letters, which starts out as the same line for Ben Collett in Australia (now
Ref. 64T2), whose line is denoted by the names underlined
JOHN COLLETT [64I1] was born in
Gloucestershire in the mid-1600s and, apart from the two children fathered by
him at Upper Swell near Stow-on-the-Wold, nothing further is currently known
about him at this time
64J1
– RICHARD COLLETT
was born in 1669 at Upper Swell
64J2
– Thomas Collett was
born in 1673 at Upper Swell
RICHARD COLLETT [64J1] was born around 1669 and
was baptised at Upper Swell on 20th March 1670, the son of John
Collett. He later married Mary (Maria)
and they continued to live at Upper Swell where their children were born and
baptised. Sons Benjamin and Samuel may
have been twins as they were baptised on the same day. The widow Mary Collett died at Upper Swell
during 1755, with Richard Collett having passed away prior to that time
64K1
– Richard Collett was born in 1689 and baptised at Upper Swell on 1st
September 1689
64K2
– Martha Collett was born in 1691 and baptised at Upper Swell on 13th
January 1692
64K3
– Rachel Collett was born in 1699 and baptised at Upper Swell on 2nd
August 1699
64K4
– WILLIAM COLLETT
was born in 1701 at Upper Swell
64K5
– Benjamin Collett was born in 1703 and baptised at Upper Swell on 28th
August 1703
64K6
– Samuel Collett was
born in 1703 at Upper Swell, twin brother of Benjamin (above)
64K7
– Ann Collett was born in 1705 and baptised at Upper Swell on 6th
January 1706
Thomas Collett [64J2] was born at Upper Swell during 1673, the
son of John Collett. It was on 3rd
October 1701 that he married Martha Tombs at Bourton-on-the-Water, Martha
having been born at Clapton in Gloucestershire.
Their five known children were at baptised at Upper Swell, when they
were confirmed as the children of Thomas and Martha Collett
64K8
– John Collett was born in 1704 and baptised at Upper Swell on 27th
October 1704
64K9
– Ann Collett was born in 1705 and baptised at Upper Swell on 11th
November 1705
64K10
– Mary Collett was born in 1708 and baptised at Upper Swell on 31st
October 1708
64K11
– Martha Collett was born in 1712 and baptised at Upper Swell on 12th
October 1712
64K12
– John Collett was born in 1716 and baptised at Upper Swell on 4th
June 1717
WILLIAM COLLETT [64K4]
was born at Upper Swell in 1701, where he was baptised at St Mary’s Church on 4th
November 1701, the son of Richard and Mary Collett of Upper Swell. The baptism entry read as follows: “Gulielmus Collet baptised 9 Nov 1701 at
Upper Swell, Gloucester, the son of Ricardi Collet
and Marie”. He was thirty-one years old when he married
Elizabeth Johnson at Tewkesbury on 19th August 1731, following which
they had eight children who were all born and baptised at Upper Swell
64L1
– Ann Collett was born in 1734 and baptised at Upper Swell on 17th
May 1735
64L2
– Richard Collett was born in 1736 and baptised at Upper Swell on 17th
October 1736
64L3
– Thomas Collett was born in 1738 and baptised at Upper Swell on 24th
December 1738
64L4
– William Collett was
born in 1740 at Upper Swell
64L5
– Samuel Collett was
born in 1743 at Upper Swell
64L6
– Elizabeth Collett was born in 1745 and baptised at Upper Swell on 14th
July 1745
64L7
– Samuel Collett was born in 1747 and baptised at Upper Swell on
64L8
– WILLIAM COLLETT
was born in 1750 at Upper Swell
Samuel Collett [64K6] was very likely the twin brother of
Benjamin Collett with whom he was baptised at Upper Swell on 28th
August 1703, the sons of Richard and Mary Collett. Samuel was a yeoman and lived at Upper Swell
where, upon the death of his mother, he applied to the courts to inherit all of
her possessions in the absence of a Will.
In that proposal, he was supported by John Hale of Broadwell, another
yeoman, who had links with the Collett family
William Collett [64L4] was born at Upper Swell in 1740, where
he was baptised on 19th April 1740, the son of William Collett and
Elizabeth Johnson. He was twenty-one
years of age when he married Ann Johnson on 29th March 1761 at
Alderton, midway between Upper Swell and Tewkesbury. It seems highly likely that Ann was in some
way related to William’s mother, so they may have been cousins
Samuel Collett [64L5] was born at Upper Swell in 1743 and was
baptised there on 11th March 1743, the son of William and Elizabeth
Collett. It was just over a year later
that he died on 15th June 1744, and was buried at St Mary’s Church
in Upper Swell
Samuel Collett [64L7] was born at Upper Swell in 1747 and was
baptised at St Mary’s Church in the village on 28th December 1747,
another son of William and Elizabeth Collett.
He was the second son to bear the name Samuel, following the premature
death of his brother three years earlier.
Later on, when he was twenty-one, Samuel Collett and Anne Carter were
married at Adlestrop, near Stow-on-the-Wold, on 9th April 1768
WILLIAM
COLLETT [64L8]
was born around 1749 and was baptised at St Mary’s Church in Upper Swell on 14th
March 1750, the youngest child of William Collett and Elizabeth Johnson. It was on 16th December 1776 at
the Church of St Nicholas in Oddington, near Stow-on-the-Wold, where William Collett
married Mary Day,
where all of the children were born and baptised. Mary Day was born in 1751 and was baptised at
Oddington on 27th February 1752, the daughter of William and Ann
Day. The Collett Family Bible, which
contains details of the family, is held by Paul Woodhead, who kindly provided
scanned and sent in copies of the relevant pages during November 2012. By the time of the census in 1841, Thomas Collett was recorded at Norton-Coleparle in
Wiltshire, where his wife Elizabeth died in 1847, with Thomas being at
Hullavington when he died in 1850. Thomas
and Ann were still living at Oddington in 1851
64M1
- Elizabeth Collett was
born in 1778 at Oddington
64M2
– Thomas Collett was
born in 1780 at Oddington
64M3
– THOMAS COLLETT
was born in 1781 at Oddington
64M4
– Susanna Collett was born
in 1784 at Oddington
64M5
– Joseph Collett was born
in 1785 at Oddington
Elizabeth Collett [64M1] was born at Oddington on 6th
September 1778, where she was baptised nearly two weeks later on 18th
September 1778, the eldest known child of William Collett and Mary Day
Thomas Collett [64M2] was born at Oddington on 1st
March 1780 and it was there that he was baptised on 12th April 1780,
the eldest son of William and Mary Collett.
Sadly, his entry in the Family Bible has been crossed out, with the note
that he “died in the year of Our Lord 1781”, hence the reason why the
next son, born to William and Mary, was given the name of Thomas
THOMAS
COLLETT [64M3]
was born shortly after the death of his brother, after whom he was named. He was born at Oddington on 13th
September 1781 and was baptised there on 9th November 1781, the son
of William Collett of Upper Swell and Mary Day of Oddington. Twenty-two years later, he married Elizabeth
(Betty) Taylor on 17th October 1803 at the Church of St James the
Great in Radley,
near Abingdon-on-Thames, with whom he had at least seven children. From Elizabeth’s burial record it is
established that, like her husband, she was also born around 1780 or 1781. At the time of the birth of Thomas’ only
daughter Lucy, his wife was referred to in the baptism record as Betty Collett,
whereas she had been named as Elizabeth in the baptism records for all of their
sons
The
couple’s first child was born at Radley, the next three after the family had
settled in Abingdon, and the last three after the family had moved to
Norton-Coleparle, near Malmesbury in Wiltshire.
It was there, within the Cirencester, Chippenham, Malmesbury &
Tetbury registration district, that the couple was still living at the time of
the first national census in June 1841. Thomas
Collett had a rounded age of 60, while his wife Elizabeth was said to be 55. Living with them on that day, at Mailford
Farm in Norton, was their son Joseph who was recorded as being 20 years of age,
while listed next on the census form was their daughter Lucy, who was 22. However, the details in the later census
records confirm that their two ages had been transposed in the census of 1841,
when it should have been Joseph who was 22 and Lucy who was 20, perhaps an
error on the part of the enumerator
On
that occasion, Thomas Collett was recorded as having been born within the
county of Wiltshire. Further research
has determined that a certain Thomas Collett, who was also born in 1781, was
baptised at Ogbourne St Andrew on 14th October 1781, and he was the
son of James Collett and Betty Pictor who were married at Ogbourne St Andrew on
19th November 1780
Six
years later, Elizabeth Collett nee Taylor of Norton-Coleparle was buried at
Hullavington on 12th December 1847, when her age was recorded as
being 67. That might mean she was actually
nearer 60 years of age in 1841. The
record of her death confirmed that she was the wife of labourer Thomas Collett,
and that the informant of her passing was her son Joseph, who had also been
present at the time of her death. It was
almost exactly three years after the death of his wife, that Thomas Collett, a labourer,
died on 5th December 1850 at Hill Hayes in Hullavington. Present at his death was his son-in-law Caleb
Salter, husband of Lucy Collett, who had also notified the registrar in Malmesbury,
when he signed the death certificate by making a cross. The cause of death was stated as being “age
and debility”
In addition to the
confirmed members of the Collett family included in this family line, they are
others with the Collett name listed in the Hullavington Parish Register for the
Church of St Mary Magdalene who, so far, have not been directly linked to this
family. They pre-date those included in
this family line, going back to 1740. So,
for completeness the details of those individuals are contained in an appendix
at the end of this file
64N1
– William Day Collett
was born in 1804 at Radley near Abingdon-on-Thames
64N2
– Thomas Collett
was born in 1806 at Abingdon-on-Thames
64N3
– Lawrence Collett was
born in 1809 at Abingdon-on-Thames
64N4
– James Collett was
born in 1811 at Abingdon-on-Thames
64N5
– HENRY COLLETT was
born in 1814 at Norton Coleparle
64N6
– Joseph Collett was
born in 1817 at Norton Coleparle
64N7
– Lucy Collett was born
in 1819 at Norton Coleparle
Susanna Collett [64M4] was born at Oddington in Gloucestershire
on 22nd January 1784 and was baptised there on 15th
February 1784, the daughter of William and Mary Collett. She was very nearly thirty-two when she
married Thomas Lardner at Bledington on 1st January 1816. It may be of interest that John William
Collett (Ref. 79O2) from Dean in Oxfordshire married Anne Lardner at Charlbury
in 1860 and, that in 1851 William Collett (Ref. 79N6), described as William
George Collett, was employed as a servant at the Little Compton home of Henry
Lardner, Little Compton being approximately two and a half miles from Oddington
Joseph Collett [64M5] was born at Oddington on 14th
August 1785 where he was baptised
one month later on 11th September 1785, the last known child of
William Collett and his wife Mary Day.
The baptism record at Oddington named his parents as William and Mary
Collett
William Day Collett [64N1] was born at Radley, near Abingdon in
Berkshire in 1804, where he was also baptised on 15th April 1804,
the eldest child of Thomas Collett and Elizabeth Taylor. He would have been nearly ten years old when
his family left Abingdon and moved to Norton-Coleparle in Wiltshire. Tragically, it was at Norton-Coleparle that
William Collett died on 4th December 1825 when he was only 21 years
of age, following which he was buried there
Thomas Collett
[64N2] was born at Abingdon-on-Thames in 1806
and was baptised at St Helen’s Church in the town, the second son of Thomas and
Betty Collett. When he was around six or
seven years old, he and his family travelled from Berkshire to Wiltshire, where
they settled in the village of Norton-Coleparle near Malmesbury. It was at Foxley, just north of
Norton-Coleparle, during 1838, that Thomas married Esther (Hester) Vizor, the
daughter of tailor Aaron Vizor and his wife Mary. Initially the couple lived at Fosse Cottage
in Norton-Coleparle before moving to St Mary Westport, in Malmesbury where they
remained for the rest of their lives.
Over the following years the ages given by Thomas and Esther on the
various census days conflicted greatly with each other, the earliest placing
Thomas’s year of birth around 1804, the latest being ten years after in
1814. Most curious was the eighteen
years difference between the census in 1871 and 1881
By
the time of the first national census in 1841 the marriage had produced a son
for the couple who was born after they had settled in St Mary Westport, which
no longer exists as a village, but is now part of the enlarged town of
Malmesbury. Thomas was recorded as Thos
Collett, an agricultural labourer with a rounded age of 30, while his wife was
named as Esther Collett who had a rounded age of 25. Living there with them at Clay Huts (Clyatts)
was their son Aaron Collett who was two years old. In many documents the z in the name Vizor was
written with a tail giving it the appearance of a g, hence the name was often
misinterpreted in error as Vigor. In
addition to Esther, who was baptised at Foxley as Hester Vizor on 25th
December 1814, her older brother Joseph was also baptised there on 23rd
August 1812, as was her younger sister Mary Vizor who was baptised there on 13th
July 1817. Before the spring of 1820 her
parents had moved to Easton Grey where her younger brother Arthur Vizor was
baptised on 14th May 1820, where her own son, Aaron Vizor Collett,
and his family were living during the second half of the 1870s. A likely cousin was Daniel Walter Vizor who
was baptised at Foxley on 24th May 1812, the son of Jane Vizor. Three members of the family of John and
Elizabeth Vizor were baptised at Easton Grey around that same time and they
were Jane Vizor on 1st September 1816, Joel Vizor on 18th
January 1818, and Aaron Vizor who was baptised there on 16th April
1820
Esther
may well have been carrying Thomas’ second child on the day of the census,
since later that same year the couple’s second son and last known child was
born. At the time of the next Malmesbury
census in 1851, Thomas’ age was incorrectly recorded as 41, when he was an
agricultural labourer, and his place of birth was confirmed as Abingdon in
Berkshire. His wife Hester from Foxley
was 32, which was also where their eldest son had been born, according to the
census that year. He was Aaron Vizor
Collett who was 12, while his younger brother Joseph Collett was nine years of
age and born at Westport. The village of
Foxley lies two miles west of Westport St Mary in Malmesbury
According
to the Westport census for Malmesbury in 1861, Thomas, Esther and son Aaron
were living at Milk Street in Westport.
Once again agricultural labourer Thomas was not accurately recorded,
since his age was said to be 46, when his wife Esther Collett was 41, and Aaron
Collett was 21. No record of the
couple’s other son has been found in 1861, although it is established that he
later married. Within the next ten years
Aaron left home to be married, leaving Thomas, age 58 and from Abingdon, and
Hester, aged 52 from Foxley, still living at Westport in Malmesbury in 1871,
not far from where their married son had set up home. On both occasions in 1861 and 1871 Thomas
gave his place of birth as Abingdon in Berkshire, perhaps because the town had
more prominence than nearby Faringdon. Abingdon-on-Thames
was once the county town of Berkshire but, following the boundary changes in
1974, it became part of Oxfordshire
In
April 1881, Thomas Collett and was still listed as a labourer, even at the age
of 76. Living with him at Clyatts (Clay
Huts) in Westport St Mary, Malmesbury, was his wife Hester from Foxley who was
66. Thomas’ place of birth was once
again confirmed as Abingdon. Labourer
Thomas Collett died at Clay Huts on 11th December 1885 at the age of
79, when was buried at Foxley parish church.
His widow Esther Collett nee Vizor passed away less than two years later
aged 73, when she died at Clay Huts on 29th October 1887, following
which she was reunited with her husband in the churchyard of the Foxley parish
church. Their son Aaron, of Burton Hill
in Malmesbury, was with them both at the time of their passing and it was he
who informed the registrar of their deaths
64O1
– Aaron Vizor Collett
was born in 1838 at Westport St Mary
64O2
– Joseph Collett was
born in 1842 at Westport St Mary
Lawrence Collett [64N3] was born at Abingdon-on-Thames in 1809
where he was baptised at the Church of St Helen, the son of Thomas and Betty
Collett. Following his family’s move to Norton-Coleparle,
when he was nearly three years old, it was there also that he later married
Sarah Salter on 23rd May 1836.
Sarah was baptised at Norton-Coleparle on 26th February 1815,
the daughter of George and Rebecca Salter.
Just seven months earlier in October 1835 Lawrence Collett and Sarah
Salter had been the witnesses at the marriage in Norton-Coleparle of Lawrence’s
younger brother Henry Collett (below) and Hannah Tanner. Once they were married, Lawrence and Sarah
set up home in the nearby village of Hullavington, just two miles south of
Norton-Coleparle. And it was within the
Newtown area of Hullavington that all of the children of Lawrence, a labourer,
and Sarah were born, and where the family was living in 1841. The census that year listed Lawrence with a
rounded aged of 30, while his wife Sarah was 27 and their two daughters
Elizabeth and Ann were three years and one-year old respectively. During the following year Lawrence’s sister
Lucy Collett (below) married Sarah’s brother Caleb Salter at Norton-Coleparle
in 1842
Over
the following years, the family increased in size with firstly the addition of
two more daughters and then a son who did not survive. The family therefore, still living at
Hullavington in 1851, comprised agricultural labourer Lawrence from Abingdon
aged 41, Sarah from Norton aged 37, and their four Hullavington-born
children. Elizabeth was 12, Ann was 10,
Jane was seven, and Mary was two years age.
The family, with three extra children, was still residing at Hullavington
in 1861 when ‘Lawrence Collett from Headington in Berkshire’ (sic) was 53 and
again working as an agricultural labourer.
Sarah was 45, Mary was 12, Harriet was 10, Margaret was seven and
William was four years old. Also listed
with the family was the couple’s eldest daughter Elizabeth, aged 23, and her
husband William Morse who was 22 and from Horton in Gloucestershire. The last member of the household was Thomas
Hall aged 79 and born at Sherston, who was described as an uncle
On
that same census day in 1861, the couple’s two missing older children were
recorded together, when Jane Collett aged 18 and from Hullavington was a
domestic servant and a visitor at the Oldbury-on-the-Hill, near Didmarton and
Tetbury, home of her married sister Ann Teagle, aged 20, and her husband
William Teagle who was 24. Five years
later, the death of Sarah Collett, the wife of Lawrence Collett, was recorded
at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 25) during the last three months of 1866, when she was
52. After two years as a widower, the name
of Lawrence Collett was recorded as a resident of Newtown in Hullavington in
the United Kingdom Poll and Electoral Registers 1538-1893 for the Cricklade
district of Wiltshire. That situation
was confirmed in the next census in 1871, when Lawrence Collett, a widower and
an agricultural labourer of 60 years, had living with him, at Newtown in
Hullavington, just his youngest daughter Mary who was 22. The following census in 1881, again included
widower Lawrence Collett who was 72 and a pauper who had been born at
Abingdon. He was still living at Newtown
in Hullavington with his unmarried daughter Mary Collett who was 31 and was
also referred to as a pauper, who had been born at Hullavington
It
was a similar situation ten years later, when the Newtown (Hullavington) census
of 1891 recorded father and daughter still living there. Lawrence Collett was 84, with no stated
occupation, and Mary Collett was 42, also with no occupation recorded. The death of Lawrence Collett, aged 86 years,
was recorded just over two years after, at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 29), during the
third quarter of 1893, where he was also said to be living by that time
64O3
– Elizabeth Collett was
born in 1838 at Hullavington
64O4
– Ann Collett was born
in 1840 at Hullavington
64O5
– Jane Collett was born
in 1843 at Hullavington
64O6
– Thomas Collett was
born in 1846 at Hullavington
64O7
– Mary Collett was born
in 1848 at Hullavington
64O8
– Harriet Collett was
born in 1851 at Hullavington
64O9
– Margaret Collett was
born in 1853 at Hullavington
64O10
– William Collett was
born in 1857 at Hullavington
James Collett [64N4] was born at Abingdon-on-Thames around
1811 and was baptised at St Helen’s Church in the town, the fourth child of
Thomas Collett and Elizabeth (Betty) Taylor.
Not long after he was born his family left Berkshire when they moved to
the Wiltshire village of Norton-Coleparle.
It is certainly known that James married Jane Hope on 28th
November 1835 at Bremilham, where Jane had been born, not far from Norton-Coleparle
and Foxley, and all within the Deanery of Malmesbury. Bremilham, also known as Cowage or Cowich, was a small settlement and former civil parish in Wiltshire. The
place-name Bremilham was first mentioned in 1065 as Bremelham, which means
'village where brambles or blackberries
grew'
No
birth or baptism records have so far been found for the couple’s first four
children, with two more daughters being born into the family during the first
half of the 1840s. The baptism records
for the couple’s next four children have been located, by which time Bremilham
was being referred to as Cowage. James’
fifth child, and his first son Arthur Collett, was baptised at Cowage on 4th
April 1847, and he was followed by James Thomas Collett who was baptised there
on 19th August 1849. By the
time of the Bremilham census of 1851 the couple’s eldest daughter Margaret
Collett, aged 13 and born at Cowage, was living and working in Malmesbury
Town. The rest of the family still
residing at Bremilham comprised James Collett, a labourer of 39, his wife Jane
who was 33, Ann Collett who was 10, Harriet Collett who was eight, Mary Collett
who was five, Arthur Collett who was four, and James Collett who was
one-year-old. Jane was halfway through
another pregnancy on the day of the census in 1851, and gave birth to a fifth
daughter less than four month later
In
total, two further children were added to the family, the first of them while
the family was still living in Bremilham but, short thereafter, they moved to
nearby Foxley, where their eighth and last child was baptised. Caroline Collett was baptised at Bremilham on
20th July 1851, while it was on 4th June 1854 that John
Collett was baptised at Foxley. In every
case the baptism records confirmed the names of the children’s parents as James
and Jane Collett. It was almost exactly
two years after the birth of their last child, when the family was still living
at Foxley, that James Collett died and was buried there on 29th May
1856. The death of James Collett was
recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 29) during the second quarter of 1856
Following
the death of her husband, Jane and some members of her family were living at
Milk Street in St Mary Westport in Malmesbury by the time of the next census in
1861. The place of birth for Jane
Collett, aged 43, on that occasion was stated as being Cowage [aka Bremilham], while her Cowage born children were listed as Mary Collett aged
15, Arthur Collett aged 13, James Collett aged 11, Caroline Collett who was
nine, with her youngest child being John Collett of Foxley, who was
six-years-old. Of her three eldest
daughters, only unmarried Ann has been identified in 1861, and she was
described as a visitor at the nearby Crudwell/Chelworth home of William and
Hannah Collett from Bibury (Ref. 2N16), where she was recorded as Ann Collett,
aged 19 and from Cowage. No record of widow
Jane Collett has been found within the census of 1871, by which time she may
have died, although it is equally likely that she may have married for a second
time during the 1860s. So far, the only
members of her family found in the later census records are her three sons,
since it is highly likely that all of her five daughters were eventually
married
64O11
– Margaret Collett was
born in 1837 at Bremilham
64O12
– Ann Collett was born
in 1840 at Bremilham
64O13
– Harriet Collett was
born in 1842 at Bremilham
64O14
– Mary Jane Collett was
born in 1845 at Bremilham
64O15
– Arthur Collett was
born in 1847 at Bremilham
64O16
– James Thomas Collett
was born in 1849 at Bremilham
64O17
– Caroline Collett was
born in 1851 at Bremilham
64O18
– John Collett was born
in 1854 at Foxley
HENRY COLLETT [64N5] was born at Norton-Coleparle where he
was baptised on 27th February 1814, another son of Thomas and
Elizabeth Collett. Today the village is
simply known as Norton. It was also
there that he married Hannah Tanner on 18th October 1835. Hannah was the daughter of William Tanner and
Ellenar Hilliar and was baptised on 2nd March 1817 at Grittenham
near Brinksworth, midway between Chippenham and Swindon. Her father was described as a labourer of
Grittenham at the baptism. The two
witnesses at the wedding ceremony were Henry’s brother Lawrence Collett
(above), and Sarah Salter who seven month later married Lawrence Collett. Within
the appendix at the end of this file there is listed the Hullavington marriage
of Mary Collett to William Tanner of Grittenham and, although no date for the
event has been found, it would seem that it took place around or just after
1809. Mary Tanner nee Collett may have
died within the next few years leaving William to marry (2) Ellenar Hilliar
with whom he had the daughter Hannah who married Henry Collett. Therefore, Henry may have been the nephew of
Mary Collett
By
the time of the 1841 Census, the marriage had been blessed with two
children. The parents on that occasion
were Henry and Hannah, both with rounded ages of 20 when in reality they would
have been 26 and 24 respectively. Their
two children were William who was four and Mary who was one-year old, both of
them having been born at Norton, where the family was living at that time. During the next ten years at least one more
child was added to the family, although there may have been others. So, the census of 1851 recorded the family
living within the Malmesbury Eastern registration district comprising Henry
aged 36, Hannah aged 34, and their children William who was 14, Mary who was
10, and Charles who was six years old
It
would appear that their daughter Mary was married by 1861 since she was missing
from the family and was not listed in the census as Mary Collett anywhere in
the UK that year. The remainder of the
family were recorded at Norton-Coleparle in the Deanery of Malmesbury as Henry
46, Hannah 44, and sons William 25 and Charles 16. Ten years later and both sons had married and
had left the family home leaving Henry Collett from Norton, who was 56, and his
wife Hannah Collett, who was 54 and from Brinkworth, still living at
Norton-Coleparle within the Malmesbury Western registration district
According
to the 1881 Census, Henry was an agricultural labourer who had been born at
Norton. Rather strangely, neither
Henry’s nor his wife’s age corresponded with previous census records in that
they were given as 63 and 62 respectively, although Hannah’s place of birth was
confirmed as Grittenham, instead of Brinkworth as in the previous census. At that time, they were living at an unspecified
address in Norton-Coleparle. Living with
Henry and Hannah was their 20-year-old grandson William Punter who, as an
agricultural labourer, was probably working with his grandfather. William was the oldest of the eight children
of Henry’s daughter Mary and it was very likely the lack of living space that
had prompted Henry to take in his grandson, that and the fact that Mary had
only one month previously given birth to the family’s eighth child
It
should be noted that William Punter’s family was living only three doors along
the road from his grandparent’s house.
In addition to which, the family of Henry’s son eldest William Collett
was also living in the same road just four doors in the opposite
direction. It is also worth noting that
there was a total of only twenty-three dwellings in Norton-Coleparle at that
time in April 1881, including the Royal Oak Inn. In the village were just two farms, Maidford
Farm of 200 acres employing four men and two boys, and the 304-acre Manor Farm
which employed three men, one woman and one boy. It is possibly at one of those farms that
Henry and his grandson were gainfully employed
Hannah
Collett nee Tanner died at Norton-Coleparle aged 70 and it was there that she
was buried on 17th February 1887.
Four years later Henry was 76 and in April 1891 he was living with his
married daughter Mary Ann Punter and her family at Norton-Coleparle. Henry survived for just over four years
beyond that date before he died and was buried at Norton-Coleparle on 19th
November 1895 at the age of 79
64O19
– William Collett was
born in 1836 at Norton-Coleparle
64O20
– Mary Ann Collett was
born in 1840 at Norton-Coleparle
64O21
– CHARLES COLLETT was
born in 1844 at Norton-Coleparle
Joseph Collett [64N6] was born at Norton-Coleparle between
1816 and 1818, the son of Thomas and Elizabeth Collett with whom he was still
living in 1841 when he was given the rounded age of 20, rather than his actual
age. Just over six years later it was
Joseph who was with his mother when she died at the end of 1847, and it was he
also who informed the register office, when signed the death certificate by
making the mark of a cross. Three years
later, in the spring of 1851 Joseph Collett, aged 33 and from Norton, had no
stated occupation or marital status when he was living at Hullavington with his
married sister Lucy Salter nee Collett (below).
It was during the following year, on 3rd May 1952 at
Norton-Coleparle, that Joseph Collett, a labourer, married Anne Brewer, the event
being recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 29) during the second quarter of 1852,
when Ann was already pregnant with their first child. In an earlier edition of this family line,
Anne Brewer had assumed to have been the daughter of Henry and Mary Brewer who
had been born at Hullavington in 1831, Henry Brewer having been an agricultural
labourer and the proprietor of the beer house in Norton-Coleparle. However, on her wedding day, Anne Brewer was
recorded as the daughter of Richard Pike, while the father of Joseph Collett
was confirmed as Thomas Collett
What
is now known is the Anne Brewer was born in 1832 at Somerford, four miles east
of Hullavington, and she and her family were still living there in 1841, within
the parish of Little Somerford. Anne
Brewer was 10 years old, her mother Letitia Brewer, who was expecting the birth
of another child had a rounded age of 40, and Anne’s three sisters were Eliza
Brewer (baptised 13.07.1828), Emma Brewer (baptised 28.12.1834) and Sarah
Brewer (baptised 08.10.1837), all baptised at Little Somerford. No record of a husband for Letitia has been
found and during the third quarter of 1841 she gave birth to a fifth daughter
at Somerford (the birth recorded at Malmesbury) when, nearly two years after,
Elizabeth Brewer was baptised at Little Somerford on 14th April
1844. The fact that all five daughters’
birth were recorded using their mother’s name, perhaps suggests that they were
all base-born. The only members of the
family positively identified in 1851 were Anne Brewer aged 19 from Somerford
who was a servant at the Hullavington home of the elderly Tugwell family, and
Sarah Brewer who was 13 and a pauper and an inmate at the Brokenborough Union
Workhouse on Bristol Road in Brokenborough, just north-west of Malmesbury
Once
Joseph and Anne were married, they initially settled in Hullavington where
their first child was born just fifteen weeks after they were wed. During 1853-54, the family moved the short
distance to neighbouring Norton-Coleparle, where the next three children were
born. Then, around 1860, the larger
family made their final move to Westerleigh, which lies midway between
Mangotsfield and Chipping Sodbury, where their last two children were born. That moved was confirmed in the census of
1861, when the family was in temporary accommodation, being boarders at the
home of the Dands family at Thendalshire, in Westerleigh, while perhaps still
seeking their permanent home. Joseph
Collett may have been too embarrassed to provide his actual age, being a great
many years older than his wife, so was recorded as being 40, born at Norton,
and a farm labourer, while his wife Anne was 30 and born at Somerford. Their children at that time were Thomas
Collett who was eight and from Hullavington, John Collett who was six, Henry
Collett who was four, William Collett who was two, all born at Norton, with the
very latest addition to the family simply referred to as ‘infant Collett’ and
born at Westerleigh
The
family living at Westerleigh in 1871 had increased by one child, the new
arrival having been born there. The
family comprised Joseph Collett from Norton, who was 50 and a farm labourer,
Anne Collett from Somerford who was 40, and their sons Thomas Collett aged 18
and from Hullavington, John Collett who was 16, Henry Collett who was 13, and
William Collett who was 12, who were all from Norton, and their Westerleigh
born daughters Elizabeth aged 10, and Mary Jane who was five years old. Thanks to the information found by Jonathon Collett
of Bristol in a Family Bible, and kindly provided in May 2012, we now know the
dates of birth of all six children of Joseph and Anne, which also gave their
years of birth as 1816 for Joseph and 1830 for Anne. Who completed those family details is not
known and, at the moment, it is not clear where Jonathon’s own Collett family
connects with this family line if, indeed, they do?
According
to the 1881 Census for Westerleigh, Joseph Collett, at the age of 63, was still
employed as a farm labourer, his wife Anne Collett was 50 and, still living
with the couple were just three of the children. They were Thomas Collett who was 27 years old
and coal miner who, by then, was a widower, John Collett who was 26 years old
and a railway fireman, and 15-year-old Mary Collett who was a general domestic
servant. In error, every member of the
household was recorded as having been born at Hullavington. Joseph and Anne’s son William and daughter
Elizabeth, had both left the family home by then and were working in nearby
Bristol, while there appears to be no record of son Henry in 1881, perhaps
indicating a premature death or that fact that he had emigrated. The death of Joseph Collett at Westerleigh
was recorded at Chipping Sodbury (Ref. 6a 145) during the second quarter of
1888, when he was 72. Three years later,
Anne Collett was recorded as a widow who still living at Westerleigh in the
Chipping Sodbury registration district of South Gloucestershire in 1891, where
she working as a domestic charwoman at the age of 60, when her place of birth
was again confirmed as Somerford. After
a further eight years, the death of Anne Collett was recorded at Bristol
register office (Ref. 6a 9) during the fourth quarter of 1899, when she was 69
years old
64O22
– Thomas James Collett
was born in 1852 at Hullavington
64O23
– John Collett was born
in 1854 at Norton-Coleparle
64O24
– Henry Collett was
born in 1856 at Norton-Coleparle
64O25
– William Collett was
born in 1858 at Norton-Coleparle
64O26
– Elizabeth Collett was
born in 1861 at Westerleigh, near Bristol
64O27
– Mary Jane Collett was
born in 1865 at Westerleigh, near Bristol
Lucy Collett [64N7] was born at Norton-Coleparle in 1819
and was baptised there at the parish Church of All Saints on 14th
November 1819, when the parish record confirmed that her parents were Tom and
Betty Collett. However, the IGI for
Wiltshire listed the baptism of Lucy Collett, the daughter of Thomas and Betty
Collett, as taking place at Norton-Coleparle on 4th November
1820. Lucy was still living with her
parents at the time of the June census in 1841 when she was incorrectly given
the age of 22. It was the following year
that Lucy Collett married Caleb Salter at Norton-Coleparle on 21st
November 1842, the event recorded at nearby Malmesbury. Caleb was baptised at Norton-Coleparle on 29th
December 1822, the son of George and Rebecca Salter, and was the younger
brother Sarah Salter who had married Lucy’s brother Lawrence (above) in 1836. After they were married, Lucy and Caleb
continued to live at Norton-Coleparle for a few years, and it was there that
their first two children were born. In
the late 1840s the family moved south, less than two miles, and settled in the
village of Hullavington where their remaining five children were born. Also living in Hullavington at that time were
Lucy’s parents and it was there, during November 1850, that her father died,
with Lucy’s husband Caleb by his bedside.
The informant of the death of her father was also Caleb Salter, who
signed the death certificate by making the mark of a cross
Four
months later that the Hullavington census in 1851 placed the family still living
there, just one dwelling from another Salter family, that of Mary Salter, aged
29, the wife of an agricultural labourer, together with her two children,
Charles Salter who was five, and Harriet Salter who was two, both of them born
at Hullavington. The family of Lucy
Salter comprised her husband Caleb, aged 28 and another agricultural labourer,
Lucy who was 31, Emma Salter who was seven, Caroline Salter who
was five, and Elizabeth Taylor Salter who was one-year old and born at
Hullavington, with all the other members of the household born at Norton. Also living with the family was Lucy’s older
brother Joseph Collett who was 33 and described as brother-in-law to her
husband Caleb Salter
By
1861 the family at Hullavington comprised Caleb aged 37, Lucy aged 41, Emma who
was 17 and Caroline who was 15, all four of them confirmed as having been born
at Norton. The other four children were
all born at Hullavington and they were Henry Salter who was nine, Emily
Salter who was six, William Salter who was three, and Mary Ann
Salter who was not yet one-year-old.
The absence of their daughter Elizabeth Salter, who would have been
eleven years of age, most probably indicates that she did not survive beyond
infancy. After a further ten years,
Caleb Salter from Norton was 48 and an agricultural labourer, Lucy Salter was
51 and also from Norton, when their three children were Henry Salter who was
19, William Salter who was 13, and Mary Ann Salter who was 10 years of age, all
three of them born at Hullavington
Ten
years later the address at which they were living was given as Newtown in
Hullavington, where Caleb Salter was working as a carter aged 60 (sic), his
wife Lucy Salter was 60, and still living with them was their unmarried son
Henry Salter, aged 28, who was employed as an agricultural labourer. Also listed as living with Caleb and Lucy was
their grand-daughter, three-year-old Fanny Jones who had been born at
Malmesbury and the child of their eldest daughter Emma. On that day, daughter Emily Jane Salter, aged
26, was working as a cook for Augustus Strong, the Rector of St Paul’s in
Langley Burrell on the outskirts of Chippenham.
The couple’s youngest daughter, Mary Ann Salter, aged 20, was working as
a cook and domestic servant for 63-year-old spinster Margaret A Goldney at her
home on the High Street in Chippenham, while by then, their son Henry was
married to Caroline who was born at Great Elm near Frome in Somerset in 1857. By 1901 Henry Salter was 49 and was still
living at Hullavington, where he was working as a carter. Caroline was 43 and their five children were
all born at Hullavington. They were
William who was 13, Helen who was 11, Elsie who was nine, Marjorie who was six,
and Winifred who was two years old
It
was in the following year that Lucy Salter nee Collett died at Hullavington at
the age of 73, her death recorded at Malmesbury register office (Ref. 5a 3)
during the last quarter of 1892. Nine years later, Caleb Salter was 78 and a
general labourer who was living with his unmarried dressmaker daughter Mary Ann
Salter who was 39. Just less than six
years later, Caleb Salter died at Hullavington in 1907, with his passing
recorded at Malmesbury register office (Ref. 5a 305) during the first quarter
of that year, when he was 68 years old
Aaron Vizor Collett [64O1]
was born at Norton-Coleparle either near the end of 1838 or early in 1839,
within the parish of St Mary Westport in Malmesbury, where his birth was
recorded (Ref. viii 22) during the first three months of 1839. He was baptised at the parish church in
Foxley near Malmesbury on 7th February 1839, the eldest of the two
sons of Thomas Collett of Abingdon and his wife Hester Vizor of Foxley. He was included in the Westport St Mary,
Malmesbury, census returns for 1841, 1851 and 1861 when, on each occasion, he
was still living with his parents. He
was recorded as Aaron Collett aged two years in 1841, as Aaron Vizor Collett,
aged 12 and born at Foxley, he had already completed his education and was
working as an agricultural labourer in 1851, and again in 1861 when he was 21
and still employed as an agricultural labourer, when his place of birth was
given as Westport, where his brother had been born. It was only the census in 1851 when Aaron’s
younger brother Joseph Collett was recorded with the family, at the age of nine
years, after which he appears to have died
It
was on 24th December 1867 at Westport St Mary, when Aaron Vizor
Collett was twenty-nine, that he married Ellen Curtis who came from Somerford,
near Malmesbury. Bachelor and labourer
Aaron, of full age, was a resident of Westport, the son of labourer Thomas
Collett, while Ellen, also of full age, was a spinster of Westport, the
daughter of labourer George Curtis and his wife Honor. The witnesses at the parish church in
Westport were James Jones and Martha Allsop, while it was at Malmesbury where
their wedding was recorded (Ref. 5a 310).
By the time of the next census in 1871, Ellen had already presented
Aaron with the first of their five children.
At that time the family was living at Cowage Lane, Westport in
Malmesbury, where labourer Aaron Collett from Westport was 32, Ellen Collett
from Somerford Parva was 28, and their daughter Jane Collett was one-year-old
and had been born at Westport. Lodging
with the family was Aaron’s cousin James Collett, aged 21, who was from
Bremilham near Foxley, who was James Thomas Collett (below), the son of James
and Jane Collett (Ref. 64N4)
Over
the next seven years a further four children were added to the family, the
first of them while the family was still living at Westport and the next three
after the family had moved to live at Easton Grey two miles to the west of
Malmesbury. It is interesting to note
that Easton Grey was where Aaron Vizor was born in 1820, the brother of Aaron
Vizor Collett’s mother. Sometime between
the birth of the last child and the census in 1881, the family moved again, on
that occasion south to Hullavington. And
it was at Queen’s Head Inn at Hullavington that they were living at the time of
the census in April that year. Aaron
Collett was 42 and a landlord and inn keeper, his wife Ellen was 38, and their
children were Jane Collett who was 11, Mary Collett who was nine, Hannah
Collett who was six, Aaron Collett who was four, and Walter Collett who was
three. The first two children were
confirmed as born at Westport, while the other three had been born at Easton
Grey. There were two lodgers staying at
the inn and they were James Matthews, aged 33 and a herdsman from Bath, and
Mark Austin, aged 40 and a herdsman from Chippenham
Around
the time of the death of his mother in 1887, it was her son Aaron who was in
attendance when she passed away, and it was he also who informed the registrar,
when his address was Burton Hill in Malmesbury.
However, less than three years later according to the census in 1891,
Aaron and his family were once again living in Hullavington, when they were
residing at 1 Seager’s Lane in the village, the dwelling being adjacent to the
Baptist Chapel. Head of the household
Aaron Collett, aged 51 and from Westport was a farmer, his wife Ellen from
Somerford was 48, and still living with them were four of their six known
children, the youngest having been born just after the previous census in
1881. Mary A Collett from Westport was
19, Aaron Collett from Easton Grey was 14 and was working on the land with his
father, as was Walter Collett, also from Easton Grey, who was 12, plus Albert Collett
who was eight years old and had been born at Hullavington, who was still
attending the village school
The
two missing daughters had already left the family home by then. The couple’s eldest daughter Jane was 21 and
was living and working in the Malmesbury Eastern registration district, while
their youngest daughter Hannah, aged 18 and from Easton Grey, was living and
working within the Edmonton, Middlesex, registration district of London. Sometime after the census day in 1891 the
family left Hullavington and settled in the village of Corston, south of
Malmesbury, at Firs Farm. Tragically, in
the early days of 1896, there was an outbreak of typhoid at Firs Farm which
resulted in the death of both Ellen and Aaron and their son Walter. Ellen Collett nee Curtis, who was born at Little
Somerford where she was baptised on 30th April 1843, died at Firs
Farm on 23rd February 1896 at the age of 52. The informant of her passing on the following
day was her son Aaron who was also present at the death. One-month, later Aaron Vizor Collett aged 57
died there on 20th March 1896, his death recorded at Malmesbury
(Ref. 5a 40). The administration of his
estate was resolved in London on 21st April 1896 in favour of his
son, farmer Aaron Vizor Collett, amounting to Ł255 3 Shillings and 3 Pence. It is believed that the typhoid came from the
polluted water of an indoor well and, after their deaths, the farmhouse
remained unoccupied for many years
The
sickness at Firs Farm resulted in the couple’s eldest son Aaron Vizor Collett
seeking a place of safety at the local inn, the Radnor Arms in Corston, where
he met his future wife, the landlord’s daughter, whom he married three months
later. Thus, it was that Aaron who was
the only member of the family identified in the later census returns, albeit that
he was recorded with an incorrect age on each occasion, most likely out of
embarrassment that his wife was about five years older. For example, having been four and fourteen in
1881 and 1891, he said he was thirty in 1901, initially creating a potential
point of conflict from a family history viewpoint
64P1
– Jane Collett was born
in 1869 at Westport
6421
– Mary A Collett was
born in 1871 at Westport
64P3
– Hannah Collett was
born in 1874 at Easton Grey
64P4
– Aaron Vizor Collett
was born in 1876 at Easton Grey
64P5
– Walter Vizor Collett
was born in 1877 at Easton Grey
64P6
– Albert Thomas was
born in 1882 at Hullavington
Joseph Collett [64O2] was born at Westport St Mary in
Malmesbury during 1841, the youngest of the two sons of Thomas and Hester
Collett, whose birth was recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. viii 341) during the
third quarter of the year. The only time
he was recorded with his parents was in 1851 when he was nine years of age and
already working as an agricultural labourer, when Joseph Collett from Westport
was living there with his family. At the
age of 18, Joseph from Foxley was a servant and a carter working for the
Matthews family at Tything Wick, near Frampton Cotterell, north-east of Bristol. Over the following five years, Joseph Collett
returned to Foxley, near Malmesbury, where he married Elizabeth Boucher. Their marriage was recorded at Malmesbury
(Ref. 5a 73) during the last three months of 1866. By the time of the census in 1871, Elizabeth
had presented Joseph with two sons, both of whom were born at Clifton in
Bristol, where the family of four was living at that time
According
to the census in 1871, the family of four was residing at 21 Morley Street in
the Lawrence Hill (Russell Town) area of Bristol. Joseph Collett from Foxley, east of
Malmesbury, was 28 and a railway porter, his wife Elizabeth Collett was also 28
and born at Foxley, and their two children were Arthur Collett who was three
years of age, and William Collett who was just four months old. Tragically, the two children were orphaned
ten years later. First, the death of
Elizabeth Collett was recorded at Barton Regis, Bristol (Ref. 6a 65) during the
third quarter of 1878, when she was 37.
Then, less than three years later, Joseph Collett died, his death recorded
at Bristol (Ref. 6a 33) during the first quarter of 1881, when he was 39. By that time, his eldest son was attending a
boarding school, while the younger boy appears to have been taken into care by
a non-relative of the family
64P7
– Arthur Francis Vizor Collett
was born in 1867 at Clifton, Bristol
64P8
– William Vizor Collett
was born in 1870 at Clifton, Bristol
Elizabeth Collett [64O3] was born at Hullavington in 1838, the
eldest of the seven known children of Lawrence Collett from Abingdon-on-Thames
and Sarah Salter from Norton Coleparle, her birth recorded at Malmesbury (Ref.
viii 98) during the third quarter of the year.
It was also at Hullavington that Elizabeth was baptised on 5th
August 1838 and where she was recorded with her family in 1841 at the age of
three years. She was still living with
her family in 1851 when she was 12 years old.
Nine years later the marriage of Elizabeth Collett and labourer William
Morse was recorded at Hullavington on 12th August 1860, when the
bride was described as the daughter of Lawrence Collett and the groom’s father
was named as Robert Morse. William was
born at Horton in Gloucestershire during 1839 and was the son of Robert and Ann
Morse. On the day of the census,
conducted during the following year, Elizabeth may have been expecting the
birth of the couple’s first child, since she and William were recorded at the
Hullavington home of Elizabeth’s parents.
Agricultural labourer William Morse from Horton was 22 and his wife
Elizabeth was 23
Not
long after that day Elizabeth gave birth to a daughter at Hullavington, where
her second child was also born. However,
by the time of the birth of the couple’s third child the family had settled in
the village of Kington Langley, two miles north of Chippenham. That situation was confirmed in the next
census of 1871, when agricultural labourer William Morse was 29, Elizabeth
Morse was 32, and their five children were Emily Morse who was nine, John
William Morse who was seven, Martha Morse who was five, Joseph
Morse who was three, and Sarah Morse who was under one-year
old. It was also at Kington Langley
where the family was residing in 1881, although the place of birth of the six
youngest children was recorded as Langley Fitzurse, which lies within Kington Langley. William was 40, Elizabeth was 42, John
William Morse was 17, Joseph Morse was 13, Sarah S Morse was 10, Alfred
E Morse was eight, Annie M Morse was six, Charlie Morse was
four and Kate B Morse who was under one-year-old
The next census
in 1891 gave the family’s home address as Days Lane in Kington Langley, where
labourer William was 51, Elizabeth was 52, and by which time one more child had
been added to their family. Still
unmarried and living with them was their son John who was 27, plus Charles who
was 14, Kate who was 10 and latest arrival Thomas Morse who was eight
years old. William Morse died before the
next census in 1901, when head of the household Elizabeth, aged 62, was living
on her own means in Kington Langley, with just her youngest child Thomas Morse
who was 18. That same day her son
Charlie Morse, aged 24 and a shepherd on a farm, was a married to Louisa K
Morse and was living at Kington St Michael.
Six years later, the death of Elizabeth Morse nee Collett was recorded
at Chippenham register office (Ref. 5a 49) during the second quarter of 1907,
when she was 68
Ann Collett [64O4] was born at Hullavington in 1840, where
she was baptised on 27th September 1840, the second child of
Lawrence and Sarah Collett. She was
one-year old in the June census of 1841 and was 10 years old in the
Hullavington census of 1851. Just prior
to the next census in 1861, Ann Collett married William Teagle who was born at
Oldbury-on-the-Hill in 1837, the son of Lewis and Betty Teagle. Oldbury, close to Didmarton, lies eight miles
north-west of Hullavington, just across the county boundary in
Gloucestershire. In the Oldbury census
of 1851 William Teagle was 14 years old and still living there with his
parents. After he married Ann, the
couple settled in Oldbury where, in 1861, they had living with them Ann’s
younger unmarried sister Jane Collett who was most likely with-child at the age
of eighteen. Head of the household
William Teagle, aged 24, was a mason and his wife Ann Teagle from Hullavington
was 20, and she too may have been expecting the birth of their first child, who
was born at Oldbury, like all of the couple’s subsequent children
During the 1860s
Ann gave birth to four children, all as confirmed in the following census of
1871. Mason William Teagle was 33, Ann
was 29, and their four children were recorded as John William Teagle who
was nine, George I Teagle who was six, Sarah Ellen Teagle who was
four, and Celia Jane Teagle who was two years of age. Four more children were added to the family
during the next decade and by the time the census was conducted in 1881 the
enlarged family was recorded at Creep Hole in Oldbury-on-the-Hill. William
Teagle was 44 and a farm labour, Ann Teagle was 39, George Teagle was 16 and a
farm labourer possibly working with his father, Ellen Teagle was 14 and a
domestic servant, Clara H Teagle was nine, Elizabeth Teagle was
eight, Frederick Charles Teagle was six [born 09.05.1874, died 1970 in Swindon], Kate Mary Teagle
was two years of age and Albert Edward Teagle was just three months old
Curiously no
trace of any member of the Teagle family has been identified amongst the census
returns completed in 1891, by which time Ann had given birth to her last child,
while it was during the following year that the death of William Teagle was
recorded at Tetbury (Ref. 6a 217) during the last quarter of 1892 when he was
55. Nine years later, Ann Teagle, a
widow of 59, had moved the short distance from Oldbury to Didmarton, where she
was working as a domestic charwoman.
Only two of her children were still living with her at that time, and
they were Albert (Edward) who was 20 and Louisa Fanny Teagle who was
16. Ten years later it was only her
youngest child, unmarried Fanny Teagle aged 26 and born at Didmarton, who was
living with, and looking after her elderly mother Ann Teagle, who was 70, in
Didmarton
On that same day
in 1911 Ann’s son Albert Edward Teagle from Didmarton was still a bachelor at
30 and employed as a gate-man on an electric railway, staying at the Tottenham
home in London of one of his married sisters.
Ann’s daughter, Kate Mary Teagle, married John Beames Ralph during the
second quarter of 1899, the marriage recorded at Tetbury (Ref. 6a 805) where
her birth was also recorded (Ref. 6a 373) during the last three months of
1878. Not long after the 1911 census,
Ann Teagle nee Collett passed away at Didmarton, following which her youngest
child, Louisa Fanny Teagle, married Hartley Jones at Tetbury (Ref. 6a 832)
during the last three months of 1914
Jane Collett [64O5] was born at Hullavington in 1843 and
baptised there on 24th November 1843. She was the third daughter of Lawrence and
Sarah Collett with whom she was living in 1851 at the age of seven. On leaving school she entered into domestic
service and, perhaps because of over-crowding in her Hullavington home, and
following the early marriage of her older sister Ann (above), she was recorded
living at Oldbury-on-the-Hill near Didmarton with sister Ann and her husband in
1861. The census that year confirmed
that Jane Collett from Hullavington was a visitor at the Oldbury home of
William and Ann Teagle (nee Collett).
Jane was described as being 18 and unmarried, whose occupation was that
of a house servant. Towards the end of
that year Jane had a relationship with a man, resulting in the birth of a
base-born son during the following year.
Although the birth was recorded at Tetbury, her son was born at
Didmarton
After a short
while living with just her son, Jane Collett married Isaac Sallis Russell whose
birth was recorded at Chippenham (Ref. viii 277) during the second quarter of
1838. Isaac was born at West Kington,
north-west of Chippenham, and it was at West Kington that the couple settled
and where their children were born and where the family was living in
1871. The census return that year listed
the family as Isaac S Russell who was 32 and an assistant overseer, Jane
Russell who was 28, James Collett who was eight, John Sallis Russell who
was four, Isaac Sallis Russell who was two and Thomas Laurence
Russell who was not yet one years of age.
Four more children were added to their family during the 1870s, all of
them born at West Kington, where the much larger family was still living in
1881
The 1881 Census
included the family as Isaac Sallis Russell, a contractor of 42 years, Jane
Russell, a contractor’s wife of 38, John Sallis Russell 14, Isaac Sallis
Russell 12, Thomas Laurence Russell 10, Ann Sallis Russell who was
eight, Mary Minnie Russell who was four, Albert Russell who was
two and Eunice Emily Russell who was under twelve months. Jane’s base-born son James William Collett
was living and working in the Rodbourne Cheyney area of Swindon by that time,
at the home of Jane’s married younger sister Harriet Palmer. One more child was
added to Jane’s family during the following years, although by the time of the
next census in 1891, only three of the couple’s sons was still living with them
at West Kington
Also,
by 1891, Isaac was working as a general haulier when he was 53 and Jane was
49. The three sons with the couple on
that occasion were John aged 24, Albert who was 12, and Herbert Russell
who was only eight years of age. By that
time Jane’s son William was a married man with his own family living in the
Highworth district of Swindon, who had three of Jane and Isaac’s children
staying him. They were Isaac Sallis
Russell who was 22, Thomas Lawrence Russell who was 20 and Mary Minnie Russell
who was 14
It
was a very similar situation at West Kington in 1901 when hauler Isaac S
Russell was 62, his wife Jane was 58, and the three offspring still living with
them were John S Russell who was 33, Mary M Russell who was 24 and Herbert
Russell who was 18. Isaac and Jane were
72 and 68 respectively in the West Kington census of 1911 which stated they had
been married of forty-five years, while the deaths of both of them was recorded
at Chippenham register office just a few years after. First to pass was Isaac S Russell, who death
was recorded (Ref. 5a 71) during the fourth quarter of 1916, when he was
78. The death of Jane Russell nee
Collett was recorded (Ref. 5a 94) during the first three months of 1919, when
she was 75. Isaac Sallis Russell junior
was a married man by 1911, when he was and living with his family in
Swindon. The census return that year
confirmed he had been married for fifteen years, was 42 years old and employed
as a labourer with the Great Western Railway
64P9
– James William Collett
was born in 1862 at Didmarton
Thomas Collett [64O6] was born at Hullavington during 1846,
where he was baptised on 1st June 1846, the son of Lawrence Collett
and Sarah Salter. Prior to that, his
birth had been recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. viii 5) during the second quarter
of the year. Sadly, he was not listed
with his family in the Hullavington census of 1851, his death having already
been recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. viii 67) during the fourth quarter of 1850
Mary Collett [64O7] was born at Hullavington in 1848, her
birth recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. viii 13) during the third quarter of that
year. In the Hullavington census in 1851
Mary was two years old, the youngest of the four children of Lawrence and Sarah
Collett. She was still attending school
at Hullavington in 1861 at the age of 12 years.
By 1871, it was just Mary, aged 22, and her father Lawrence Collett who
were still living at Hullavington, as it was in 1881, by which time unmarried
Mary Collett was 31 and a pauper, again living with her 72-year-old widowed
father Lawrence from Abingdon-on-Thames, who was also a pauper. It was the same situation in 1891, when the
pair of them was again recorded at Hullavington New Town, when Mary Collett was
42, but not described as a pauper.
Mary’s father passed away just over two years later. After a further ten years, unmarried Mary
Collett was 50 and still residing in the New Town area of Hullavington, as head
of the household, but with no occupation.
The next census in 1911 also recorded her living in Hullavington where
she was born, when she was 60, having no occupation
Harriet Collett [64O8] was born at Hullavington after the
census day in 1851, her birth recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. viii 412) during the
second quarter of that year. She was 10
years old in the next census of 1861 when she was still living at Hullavington
with her parents Lawrence and Sarah, and five of her siblings. During the following year Harriet’s older
sister Jane (above) gave birth to a son out of wedlock, while Harriet gave
birth to a base-born daughter in 1868 and had the child while in domestic
service at Avening in Gloucestershire.
Mother and child were recorded together at a residence in Cherington,
just a few miles east of Avening, north of Tetbury. Servant Harriet Collett from Hullavington was
19 and Annie Fowles was two years of age.
The birth of Annie Sarah Fowles was recorded at Stroud (Ref. 6a
332) during the second quarter of 1868.
Whilst Annie’s second forename was very likely a tribute to Harriet’s mother,
Sarah Salter who died later that same year.
Annie’s father may have been master baker William Fowles of Cherington
whose children, by his wife Emma, were all born at Avening, with their births
also recorded at Stroud. It is also
possible that Annie’s father provided the finance for her education, since in
1881 Annie Sarah Fowles from Cherington was a pupil at a boarding school in
Cheltenham, at the age of thirteen
Sometime
between 1871 and 1881, Harriet Collett married William Palmer of Moredon in
Rodbourne Cheney, Swindon, and having lost her daughter who was being educated
in Cheltenham, Harriet had taken into her home the base-born son of her sister
Jane (above). The Rodbourne Cheney
census in 1881 described the three of them as William Palmer, a labourer
employed by the Great Western Railway, who was 37, Harriet Palmer from
Hullavington who was 29, and James Collett from Didmarton who was 18. After a further ten years, the childless
couple had Harriet’s six-year-old niece Edith Bratt staying with them, Emily
being the child of Harriet’s younger sister Margaret (below). On that census day in 1891, William Palmer
was still working at the GWR Works in Swindon at the age of 47, while still
living in Rodbourne Cheney with his wife who was 39. Edith Bratt had been born in Herefordshire,
most likely at Colwall, near Ledbury, where her parents were residing in 1881
and 1891
In
the latter years of the following decade, William and Harriet adopted a baby
girl, as confirmed in the Rodbourne Cheney census of 1901. William was incorrectly recorded as being 50,
Harriet was 49 and Lilian Hibberd was four years old and had been born at
nearby Stratton St Margaret. The birth
of Lilian May Hibberd was recorded at Highworth (Ref. 5a 6) during the
first three months of 1896. Tragically,
she was only five years old when the death of Lilian Hibberd was recorded at
Swindon register office (Ref. 5a 4) during the first quarter of 1902. According to the next census in 1911 William
and Harriet Palmer were still living in Rodbourne Cheney and had been married
for thirty-six years, and it was fourteen years later that the death of Harriet
Palmer nee Collett was recorded at Swindon (Ref. 5a 8) during the first three
months of 1925 when she was 73
Margaret Collett [64O9] was born at Hullavington in 1853,
another child of Lawrence and Sarah Collett, whose birth was recorded at
Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 34) during the last quarter of that year. She was seven years of age in the
Hullavington census of 1861. Unlike her
older siblings, the baptism of Margaret Collett at Hullavington, was delayed
until she was twelve years of age. It
eventually took place on 22nd March 1865, in joint ceremony with her
eight-year-old brother William (below), when their father Lawrence Collett was
described as a labourer of New Town, Hullavington. On leaving school, Margaret worked as a dairy
maid and in 1871 was 17 and a boarder with the Fry family at Newtown in
Hullavington. It was also around that
time when Margaret fell pregnant with her first child, albeit, out of wedlock,
the third Collett daughter to give birth to a base-born child. It was also during the summer of 1878 that
the marriage of Margaret Collett and Thomas William Bratt was recorded at
Worcester (Ref. 6c 82). Thomas was born
in Birmingham during 1859 and was raised by his maternal grandmother Ann Willis
at Colwall in Herefordshire. The record
of the couple’s wedding day on 3rd September 1878, confirmed that
the bride’s father was Lawrence Collett and the groom’s father was Thomas Bratt
senior. Margaret was already with-child
of her wedding day, and was at the home of her parents in Hullavington when her
son William Ernest Bratt was born under six months later, his birth
recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 123) within the first three months of
1879. He then may have been around four
or five months old when he was baptised at Colwall on 1st June 1879
That
situation was confirmed in the census of 1881, when the young family was
residing at Yew Tree Terrace in Colwall, near Ledbury in Herefordshire. Thomas Bratt was 22 and a general labourer,
while his wife Margaret Bratt from Hullavington was 26 and a grocer. The children listed with the couple that day were
Sarah Collett, described at the stepdaughter of Thomas Bratt, who was nine
years old and born at Malmesbury, William Bratt who was two years of age and
born at Hullavington, Francis Bratt who was one-year-old and born at Colwall,
as was Emily Bratt who had only just been born
Three
further children were added to the family over the next five years and in 1891
the enlarged family was recorded at Colwall Green in Colwall, although by then
Thomas’ stepdaughter was no longer living with them. Agricultural labourer Thomas Bratt was 32,
Margaret Bratt was 36, and their four children were William Bratt aged 13,
Francis Bratt aged 10, Emily Bratt who was eight, Lucy Bratt who was five,
Wesley Bratt who was three years old, and Almond J Bratt who was just a few
months old. The family was still
residing at Colwall in 1901, when the couple’s eldest child William E Bratt
from Hullavington was 22 and working as a roadman/labourer while a lodger with
the Brooks family in Malvern. That
turned out to be a temporary situation and by 1911 he was back living with his
family. In 1901, Thomas William Bratt
was 42 and a carter on a farm, Margaret from Hullavington was 46, and their
four children were Wesley Thomas Bratt who was 13, Almond Jack Bratt
who was 10, Percy Bratt who was six, and Harriet May Bratt who
was three. Over the following years, two
of their daughters were married at Colwall in 1903 and at Ledbury in 1908. However, once again, the remnants of the
family were recorded at Colwall in the census of 1911. Thomas Bratt was 52 and a cowman working on a
farm and Margaret Bratt was 56 and had been married to Thomas for 33
years. On that same day, the three children
still with them were William Bratt aged 32 and a market gardener, Jack Bratt
aged 20 a domestic gardener, and Percy Bratt who was 16 – no occupation. Their unmarried son Francis Joseph Bratt, who
was 30 and employed by the Great Western Railway as an engine shunter, was in
lodgings at Newport in South Wales
Other
details relating to the children of Thomas Bratt and Margaret Collett are as
follows. The death of their eldest son
William Ernest Bratt was recorded at Ledbury register office (Ref. 6a 664)
during the first three months of 1943, when he was 64 years old. The birth of Francis Joseph Bratt was
recorded at Ledbury (Ref. 6a 468) during the third quarter of 1880, while Emily
Jane Bratt was baptised at Colwall on 5th February 1881 and
married Thomas Bennett at Colwall in 1903.
Emily was 21 and confirmed as the daughter of Thomas William Bratt, and
Thomas was 24 and the son of James Bennett.
The birth of the last child, Lucy Margaret Bratt, was recorded at
Ledbury (Ref. 6a 429) during the last three months of 1885 and she was married
at Colwall (Ref. 6a 1053) to George Edward Bowers, from Mathon in
Worcestershire, during the second quarter of 1908. George was a sheet mill furnaceman who was 27
and living at Llanvihangel Pontymoile in Monmouthshire with his
wife Lucy who was 25
64P10
– Sarah Ann H Collett
was born in 1872 at Malmesbury
William Collett [64O10] was born at Hullavington on 8th
August 1857, his birth recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 40) during the third
quarter of 1857. He was the youngest
child of Lawrence Collett and Sarah Salter and was four years old in the
Hullavington census of 1861. For some
reason, the baptism of William, coupled with that of his older sister Margaret
(above), was delayed until he was eight and she was twelve years old
respectively. The joint ceremony was
conducted at Hullavington on 22nd March 1865, when they were
confirmed as the children of Lawrence, a labourer of New Town, Hullavington,
and Sarah Collett. Around eighteen
months later his mother Sarah died and was buried at Hullavington, and that sad
event may have resulted in the break-up of the family, since no obvious record
of William Collett has been identified in 1871, and again twenty years later in
1891
However,
on the day of the census in 1881, unmarried William Collett aged 21, was an
ordinary seaman attached to the Royal Navy, but was ‘at sea’ on that day. Rather strangely his place of birth was
incorrectly recorded as Chippenham, and perhaps that is where he went to live
after the premature death of his mother.
New information received from Jennie Cordner in May 2013, revealed that
William Collett had married Harriet Honor Horswell at East Stonehouse [now
Plymouth] in Devon. The event was
recorded at East Stonehouse register office (Ref. 5b 451) during the first
three months of 1899 when the witnesses were named as Mary Maria Bennetto and
Thomas William G Hogg. Harriet had been
born at Sheerness in Kent during the first six months of 1864 (Ref. 2a 686) and
her marriage to William resulted in the birth of two children for the couple
The
first of them was living with the couple at Ormonde Terrace in Devonport
according to the census of 1901. William
Collett from Hullavington was 40 and was employed as a dockyard driller working
for the HM Naval Authority at Devonport.
Living there with him was his wife Harriet Honor Collett aged 36, who
had been born at Sheerness, together with their son Frank Lawrence Collett –
named after his grandfather, who was just one-year-old. It was during the following year that a
daughter was added to their family while they were still living in Devonport,
the birth being recorded there (Ref. 5b 297) during the third quarter of the
year, where she was also baptised
Sometime
after the birth, the family left Devonport, when William swapped his dockyard
work for the job of a caretaker in Swindon.
It was therefore at Swindon that the family of four was residing at
Wesley House in April 1911, when William Collett of Hullavington was 50,
Harriet Honor Collett from Mile Town in Sheerness was 45, Frank Lawrence
Collett was 11, and Doris Margaret Collett was eight, both of them born at
Devonport. The family was residing at
Wesley House on Faringdon Street in Swindon, where William was described as a
caretaker with a pension from the Royal Navy.
Employed by the family at that time was domestic servant Emily Hitchings
who was 17 from South Kensington, London
William
and Harriet were in Sussex early in 1939, when the death of Harriet Honor
Collett aged 74 was recorded at the Sussex register office (Ref. 2b 146). That sad event result in William moving to
Swindon, to live with his married son Frank at 120 Drove Road, where he was
recorded in the 1939 Register as a retired Royal Navy pensioner whose date of
birth was 8th August 1857. It
is possible, although not proved, that William Collett aged 82 died before the
end of that year, with the death of William Collett recorded at Oxford register
office (Ref. 3a 2712) in 1939
64P11
– Frank Lawrence Collett
was born in 1900 at Devonport
64P12
– Doris Margaret Collett
was born in 1902 at Devonport
Margaret Collett [64O11] was born at Bremilham in the parish of
Norton-Coleparle within the Deanery of Malmesbury during 1837, the eldest of
the eight children of James Collett and his wife Jane Hope of Bremilham. It was also in that same village that
Margaret was living with her family in 1841 when she was three years old. Upon leaving school, Margaret left the family
home in Bremilham, very likely to take up work as a domestic servant and, at
the age of 13, she was still living in Bremilham not far from her family. On that occasion in 1851, her employer gave
her place of birth as Cowage [aka
Bremilham]. It was just over six years after that
when Margaret Collett married Francis Peart, the event recorded at the
Malmesbury register office (Ref. 5a 75) during the third quarter of 1857
The
wedding service took place on 11th July 1857 at the Wiltshire
village of Sopworth just west of Malmesbury.
Margaret was 20 and the daughter of James Collett a labourer, while
Francis was 23 and a labourer the son of John Peart, also a labourer. Both the bridge and the groom were recorded
in the Bishop’s Transcript as residing in Sopworth prior to that day, with the
two witnesses named as Joseph Milsom and William Gale. It was at Malmesbury that their wedding day
was recorded (Ref. 5a 75) during the third quarter of 1857
Less than three
years later Margaret and Francis were residing at Oldbury-on-the-Hill in
Gloucestershire where their son had been born.
The census in 1861 listed the family as Francis Peart, who was 25 and an
agricultural labourer from Sopworth, near Sherston to the west of Malmesbury,
his wife Margaret who was 23 while her place of birth was given as Malmesbury,
and their son George Peart who was just one-year-old
Ann Collett [64O12] was born at Bremilham in 1840 as she
was under one-year-old by the time of the Bremilham census in June 1841. She was still living there with her family in
1851 when she was 10 years of age. Five
years later, her father died, and by 1861, Ann Collett from Cowage [aka Bremilham] was 19 and a visitor
in the nearby Chelworth/Crudwell area of Wiltshire at the home of William and
Hannah Collett from Bibury (Ref. 2N16), by which time she was a house servant
like William’s daughter Ruth Collett of the same age. Very shortly after that day she returned to
the family home, where she married John Gulwell, the wedding recorded at
Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 6) during the second quarter of 1861. John was born around 1838 in the Gloucestershire
hamlet of Newington Bagpath within the parish of Lasborough, a son of Samuel
and Hannah Gulwell. The marriage
produced six children for the couple, all of them born at Newington Bagpath
[aka Bagpath], where the family was living in 1871 and 1881.
In
the census for the first of them, John Gulwell from Bagpath – midway between
Tetbury and Wotton-under-Edge, was 33 and an agricultural labourer, and his
wife Ann from Foxley, adjacent to Bremilham, was 30 years old. Their three children by then were Elizabeth
Gulwell who was eight, George Gulwell who was five and Mary Jane
Gulwell who was three years of age.
Ten years later the family was made up of ag lab John 43 and from
Lasborough, Ann 40 and from Foxley, Elizabeth 18, George 15, Mary 13, Anne
Gulwell who was nine and William Gulwell who was four. All children were confirmed as having been
born at Bagpath, the births of all six recorded at Tetbury
Three
years later, daughter Anne Gulwell died at the age of 12, with the couple’s
last child being given the second forename of Anne, having been born without it
some months earlier. However, sadly for
the family, Ann Gulwell nee Collett did not survive the ordeal – see below. Therefore 53-year-old John Gulwell was
described as a widower when he was a farm labourer living with his family at
Kingscote just north of Bagpath and Lasborough.
With him that day were Mary J Gulwell aged 23, William Gulwell aged 14
and Annie Gulwell who was seven years old.
By the time of the census in 1901, it was just John and his youngest
child who was recorded as residing at Horsley, just north of Kingscote, where
cowman John Gulwell from Bagpath was 63 and Caroline Ann Gulwell was 17
John
was still at Horsley in 1911, when he was 73 and still working as a farm
labourer, his place of birth recorded as Lasborough. The eventual death of John Gulwell was
recorded at nearby Stroud register office (Ref. 6a 138) during the first three
months of 1929, when he was 90 years old.
It was forty-five years earlier, during the first quarter of 1884, that
the death of Ann Gulwell was recorded at Tetbury (Ref. 6a 75) at the age of 43,
coinciding with the birth of her last child Caroline Gulwell who, a few months
later was renamed Caroline Anne following the premature death of her older
sister Anne Gulwell aged twelve years, whose death was recorded at Tetbury
during the second quarter of 1884
Harriet Collett [64O13] was born at Bremilham near Malmesbury
during 1842 and was eight years old in the Bremilham census of 1851 when she
was still living there with her family.
No obvious record of Harriet Collett has been found in the next census
of 1861, although it is believed that she died during the following year. The death of Harriet Collett was recorded at
the Malmesbury register office (Ref. 5a 21) during the last three months of
1862
Mary Jane Collett [64O14] was born at Bremilham in 1845, the
fourth daughter of James and Jane Collett.
Her birth was recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. viii 10) during the quarter
of that year. She was five years old and
was living with her family at Bremilham in 1851, but around two years later the
family left Bremilham, when they moved the short distance to Foxley. It was there where Mary’s father died in
1856, following which Mary’s mother then took the family to Milk Street in St
Mary Westport to live, where they were recorded in the Malmesbury census of
1861. At that time Mary Collett was 15,
although no subsequent record of her has been found, suggesting that she was
married by 1871
Arthur Collett [64O15] was born at Bremilham in 1847 and was baptised there on 4th
April 1847, the fifth child and eldest of the three sons of James Collett and
his wife Jane Hope. It was at Bremilham
that he was living with his family in 1851 when he was four years of age. Around 1853 it may have been his father’s
work that took the family to nearby Foxley where, tragically, Arthur’s father
died in 1856. By 1861, when he was 13,
he was living at Milk Street in St Mary Westport in Malmesbury with his widowed
mother and five of his seven siblings
Within
the next ten years Arthur left Wiltshire and moved north to Yorkshire where, in
the census of 1871, he was recorded as a lodger at the home of widow Martha
Patchett in Idle, within the parish of Eccleshill, to the north of
Bradford. On that occasion he was described
as Arthur Collett aged 24 and a gardener from Foxley in Wiltshire. It was while he was working in Yorkshire that
he met and married Margaret Ward who was born at Bradford (Ref. 9b 76) during
the last quarter of 1852, the eldest daughter of John and Martha Ward of King
Charles Street in Bradford. It was also
at Bradford where the marriage of Arthur Collett and Margaret Ward was recorded
(Ref. 9b 33) during the second quarter of 1872.
Just over one year earlier, Margaret Ward was 18 and working as a
domestic servant at the Bradford home of spinster sisters Sarah and Mary Tolson
Over the next
twenty years the couple was blessed with the arrival of seven children and,
although all of them were born at Idle, most of them were baptised at the
nearby Eccleshill parish Church of St Luke.
Sadly however, two of their children suffered premature deaths, with the
loss of their son Edward prior to 1881 and the loss of their daughter Agnes
prior to 1891. It was at 16 Wellington
Street, off Bradford Road, in Idle that the family was living in 1881. Arthur Collett, aged 34 and from Malmesbury,
had the occupation of a domestic coachman.
His wife Margaret Collitt from Bradford was 28 and their four children
were Annie Collitt who was eight, Emily Collitt who was seven, Minnie Collitt
who was five, and John Collitt who was two years of age
According to the
next census in 1891 the family was once again residing at 16 Wellington Street
in Idle, Eccleshill, albeit recorded under the surname of Collet. Arthur Collet from Malmesbury was 42 and was
working as a warehouseman. Margaret was
38 and, still living with the couple were their surviving children. They were Anne, who was 18 and employed as a
worsted spinner, as was her sisters Emily, who was 17, and Minnie, who was 15,
while son John was 11 years of age and still attending school, and baby Maud
was only six months old. By March 1901
the much-reduced family was still living at 16 Wellington Street, following the
departure from the family home of four members of the family. Arthur Collett, aged 53 and from Malmesbury,
was a carpet planner employed at a local draper’s shop, Margaret Collett from
Bradford was 48, and their daughter Maud Collett was 10 years old
During
the next ten years Arthur, Margaret and daughter Maud may have moved out of
their home on Wellington Street in Idle, because the census in 1911 described
them as still residing in the Parish of Eccleshill, within the census
registration district of North Bierley, and sub-district of Idle. Arthur Collett from Foxley in Wiltshire was
63 and described as a wool warehouse apprentice, Margaret Collett from Bradford
was 59, and their daughter Maud Collett was 20 and working as a restaurant
attendant (a waitress?). Also living
with the family on the day of the census was Arthur and Margaret’s grandchild
Maggie Collett from Bradford who was incorrectly recorded as being nine years
old. It was previous thought that Maggie
was the daughter of Arthur’s only surviving son John, but this has now been
disproved, making Maggie the base-born child of Arthur’s only unmarried
daughter Annie. Also staying
with the family in 1911 was three-year-old Gladys Mallaby which is interesting
because Henry Mallaby, aged 21, was a lodger at the nearby Eccleshill home of
Arthur’s married daughter Emily Louisa Moore nee Collett. The death of Gladys Mallaby was recorded at
North Bierley (Ref. 9b 145) during the last three months of 1918 when she was
just 11 years of age
It is also worth noting that Henry Collett (Ref. 64P30) and his family
were living at Shipley, within the North Bierley registration district of the
West Riding of Yorkshire in 1911, Henry previously having been a lodger with
Arthur’s brother James (below) at Grace Church Street, Bradford St James in the
West Riding of Yorkshire in 1891
It was
twenty-two years later that the death of Margaret Collett nee Ward was recorded
at North Bierley register office (Ref. 9b 100) during the first quarter of 1933
at the age of 80. Her husband survived
her by almost exactly three years, when the death of Arthur Collett was also
recorded at North Bierley (Ref. 9b 113) during the first three months of 1936
when he was 89
64P13
– Ann Elizabeth Collett
was born in 1872 at Idle, Eccleshill, Bradford
64P14
– Emily Louisa Collett
was born in 1873 at Idle, Eccleshill, Bradford
64P15
– Minnie Collett was
born in 1875 at Idle, Eccleshill, Bradford
64P16
– John Collett was born
in 1878 at Idle, Eccleshill, Bradford
64P17
– Edward Collett was
born in 1880 at Idle, Eccleshill, Bradford
64P18
– Agnes Collett was
born in 1885 at Idle, Eccleshill, Bradford
64P19
– Maud Collett was born
in 1890 at Idle, Eccleshill, Bradford
James Thomas Collett [64O16] was born at Bremilham near Malmesbury
in 1849, where he was baptised on 18th August 1849, the son of James
and Jane Collett. His second name, not
used in any census until 1911, appears to have come from his paternal
grandfather. His birth, under his full
name, was recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. viii 39) during the third quarter of
1849. James was one-year old in the
Bremilham census of 1851 but, just five years later, his father died at nearby
Foxley, following which his widowed mother took the family to St Mary Westport
in Malmesbury, where they were living in 1861 when James was 11 and born at
Cowage [aka Bremilham]. By 1871 he had left the family home in St
Mary Westport, where he was still living, albeit with a related Collett family,
when James Collett, aged 21 and born at Bremilham, was a lodger and a labourer at
the Westport home of his older cousin Aaron Vizor Collett (above), from Foxley,
and his wife Ellen and their daughter Jane
Four
years later, the marriage of James Thomas Collett and Elizabeth Salter was
recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 171) for their wedding day at Norton-Coleparle
on 21st August 1875. Elizabeth
was born at Norton-Coleparle during the second quarter of 1850, her birth
recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. viii 14), the daughter of Shadrack and Ann Salter. The birth of couple’s only known child,
their daughter Harriet Ann Collett, was recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 39)
during the first three months of 1877.
Not long after she was born, the family of three followed in the
footsteps of James’ brother Arthur, when they travelled north to Bradford in the West Riding of Yorkshire. According to the Bradford census of
1881, the three of them were recorded living at 45 Sedgwick Street in the town,
although there were some oddities about how they were recorded. Firstly, James Collett was described as
Squire Collett from Foxley in Wiltshire who was 31 and a carter and parcel
delivery man. His wife Elizabeth Collett
from Norton [aka Norton Coleparle] in Wiltshire was 30, while their
daughter Harriet Ann Collett was named as Ada A Collett, who was also born at
Norton in Wiltshire, who was four years of age.
No birth record has been found for Ada A Collett, so the entry may have
been an error on the part of the census enumerator
Ten years later,
on the day of the next census in 1891, the family was still living at Bradford
within the parish of Bradford St James, but at Grace Church Street, when James
Collett was 41 and employed as a draper’s parcel delivery man. His wife Elizabeth was 39, while their
daughter Harriet A Collett was 14 and already working as a dressmaker’s
apprentice. Staying with the family as a
boarder at that time was Henry Collett aged 27 who was single and a railway
signalman. All four members of the
household were simply described as having been born in Wiltshire. Henry
Collett (Ref. 64P30) was also from Norton-Coleparle and was the eldest son of
James’ cousin William Collett and his first wife Emma Garland (below)
Sometime
during the following decade, the family of three left Yorkshire and returned to
the south-west, where they settled at Colwall in Herefordshire, midway between
Ledbury and Great Malvern. In 1901,
James Collett of Malmesbury was 51 and was working as a general workman. His wife Elizabeth Collett was 50,
and their daughter Harriet Collett was a dressmaker at the age of 24 – a
comparable age to the previous two census returns. Both ladies were listed as having been born
at Malmesbury, while described as a visitor at their home was Frederick Cotton
from Lichfield who was 53. The three of
them were still living at Colwall in April 1911, their address being Laburnum
Villa Cottage at Colwall Green, Colwall near Malvern within the Ledbury sub-registration
district of Herefordshire. James Collett
of Foxley was a general workman who was 61, who had been married for thirty-six
years to Elizabeth Collett of Norton who was 60. Their unmarried daughter Harriet Collett,
also from Norton, was curiously described as being 30 years of age rather than
34, which would have corresponded with her age in the previous census returns
In addition, the
same census return also recorded that James and Elizabeth had given birth to a
total of five children, with only one of them still alive in 1911. Therefore, the aforementioned Ada A Collett
may have been one of the four missing children, although once again, no death
record has been found for anyone by that name, either in Wiltshire or
Yorkshire. A further mystery with the
family in 1911, is the fact that staying with them on the day of the census
were two children who were simply described as visitors. They were Nellie Palfrey who was 11 and Nora
Palfrey who was 10, born of them born at Ross-on-Wye. Ten years earlier the Ross census of 1901
recorded the pair of them living there with their parents William Palfry, aged
46, a plasterer from Shrewsbury, and his wife Mary Palfry from Gloucester who
was 35, and the girls’ five older siblings.
What connection the two young girls had with the Collett family is not
known at this time. The later death of
James T Collett was recorded at Ledbury register office (Ref. 5a 108) during
the third quarter of 1926, when he was 77
64P20
– Ada A Collett was born in 1877 at Norton-Coleparle – not proved
64P21
– Harriet Ann Collett was born in 1877 at Norton-Coleparle
Caroline Collett [64O17] was born at Bremilham in 1851 with her
birth recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. viii 38) during the third quarter of the
year. Within a short time of his birth,
she was baptised at Bremilham on 20th July 1851, the seventh child
and fifth daughter of James and Jane Collett.
During the couple of years after she was born her parents moved the
family the few short miles to the village of Foxley where her brother John
(below) was born. It was also at Foxley
in 1856 that Caroline’s father died when she was five years old, which resulted
in her mother taking the family from Foxley to live in nearby Malmesbury. By the time of the census in 1861 Caroline
Collett was nine years old when she was living with her widowed mother at Milk
Street in the Westport St Mary area of the Deanery of Malmesbury. Caroline’s place of birth was recorded as
Cowage [aka Bremilham]. Although no record of her has been found in
1871 and 1881, the marriage of Caroline Collett and Frederick Charles Smith was
recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 172) during the second quarter of 1890. Also curious, is the fact that no record of
the couple has been found after that time
John Collett [64O18] was born at Foxley in 1854, the
youngest of the eight children of James Collett and his wife Jane Hope, the
birth recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 25) during the second quarter of the
year. It was also at Foxley where he was
baptised on 4th June 1854.
John was only two years old when his father died at Foxley, after which
the family left Foxley and moved the few miles to Westport in Malmesbury. It was there at Milk Street in St Mary
Westport that John Collett from Foxley was six years old in 1861 when he was
living there with his widowed mother and five of his seven older siblings. With no record of his mother after that time,
it is possible that she was married for a second time. Just as with his sister Caroline (above), no
record of John has been found anywhere within the census conducted in 1871,
when he would have been 16
Around the time
that John was 21, he married Margaret Louisa Goodfield who was a local girl who
had also been born at Foxley. Their
marriage was recorded at Malmesbury register office (Ref. 5a 59) during the
second quarter of 1875, following which the couple moved to Bristol, where
their first three children were born before the family finally settled in the
Worcester area of the country, where they were living when their fourth child
was born. It is interesting to note that
the names given to the children at the time of their birth was sometimes
reversed when they were recorded in the various census returns. The birth of John’s wife was simply recorded
at Malmesbury as Margaret Goodfield, during the first three months of 1853
(Ref. 5a 40), but was baptised at Foxley as Margaret Louisa Goodfield on 20th
February 1853, the daughter of labourer Isaac Goodfield and his wife Caroline,
according to the Bishop’s Transcript. In
1861 and again as just Margaret Goodfield, she was eight years old and the only
child living with her parents at the Royal Oak in Foxley, and it was the same
situation in 1871
According to the
1881 Census, John Collett from Foxley was 26 when he was employed as a carman
with the Midland Railway Company. His
wife was Margaret, aged 27 and also of Foxley, while their Bristol born
children were John H A Collett, who was four, Mary E M Collett, who was three,
and Ernest P W Collett, who was two, while baby Francis C L Collett of
Worcester was just three weeks old on the third of April 1881. At that time the family was living at 21
Bowling Green Terrace in the Blockhouse area of Worcester. Just over six years later the family’s
youngest son in 1881, Francis Lewis George Collett, suffered a childhood death,
resulting in John’s next son being named George Lewis Collett, while son James
was given the additional christian name of Francis
It
is thanks to Jennie Cordner in May 2013, that John and his family were finally
identified within the census details of 1891, where previously no record of
them had been found. That was because
they were recorded in error under the surname Vollett. At that time in their life, the family was
residing at South Claines, two miles north of Worcester, where John Collett was
36 and a railway carman from Foxley. His
wife was listed as Margaret L Collett who was 37 and also from Foxley. Their six surviving children were recorded as
John H A Collett who was 14, Mary E L Collett who was 13, Ernest E Collett who
was 12, Arthur R Collett who was five, James F W Collett who was two, and
George L Collett who was eight months old.
Living with the family was Margaret’s widowed mother Caroline Goodfield
who was 67
Just
before the end of the old century, the family left South Claines when they
moved into the city of Worcester where, on the day of the census in 1901, they
were recorded at Lower Chestnut Street.
John Collett was 46 and was still working as a railway carman. By that time his wife Margaret was 47, and
both of them were confirmed as having been born at Foxley in Wiltshire.
Living with the couple on that day were six of their
eight children. They were John Collett
who was 24, Maud Collett who was 23, Ernest Collett who was 22, all of them
born at Bristol, together with Arthur Collett who was 14, James Collett who was
12, George Collett who was 10, and Stanley Collett who was nine years old, all
of them born after the move to Worcestershire.
Exactly two years later son Arthur Lewis Collett died at the sage of 12
years and was buried in Worcester, when the Collett family’s address was
recorded at 4 Eastnor Villas on Lower Chestnut Street in Worcester
Ten years later
the majority of the family was still living in Worcester. John Collett of Foxley was 57 and a carter
working on the railway and his wife Margaret Collett from Foxley was 58. Of their eight children, six of them have
been identified in the 1911 Census, and all bar two of them were still residing
in Worcester. Their son Arthur was the
exception, in that he had moved to Aston in Birmingham, where he was 25 and
from Worcester. However, no trace has
been found of their son George. Of the
remainder of the family, who were still living with the couple in 1911, their
eldest daughter Maud Collett was 34 and not married, and their unmarried sons,
were James Collett who was 23 and Stanley Collett who was 19. The couple’s other two sons, John H A Collett
and Ernest Percy William Collett, were both married with families of their own
by then. Five years later in October
1916, John and Margaret were informed that their son Arthur had been killed in
action in the Great War, during the Battle of the Somme
The death of
Margaret L Collett was recorded at Worcester register office (Ref. 6c 125)
during the second quarter of 1926 when she was 73, while her husband John
Collett aged 77 died at Worcester on 5th January 1932 where his
death was also recorded (Ref. 6c 160).
His Will was proved in Birmingham just one month later on 5th
February 1832 which confirmed that he was
living at 69 Lansdowne Road in Worcester at the time of death. Administration of his estate of Ł711 3
Shillings and 9 Pence was handled by his eldest son John Henry Albert Collett,
a clothing manufacturer’s foreman
64P22
– John Henry Albert Collett
was born in 1876 at Bristol
64P23
– Mary Elizabeth Maud Collett
was born in 1877 at Bristol
64P24
– Ernest Percy William Collett
was born in 1878 at Bristol
64P25
– Francis Lewis George Collett
was born in 1881 at Worcester
64P26
– Arthur Reginald Collett
was born in 1886 at Worcester
64P27
– James Francis Walter Collett
was born in 1888 at Worcester
64P28
– George Lewis Collett
was born in 1890 at Worcester
64P29
– Victor Stanley Collett
was born in 1892 at Worcester
William Collett [64O19] was born at Norton-Coleparle where he
was baptised on 23rd September 1836, the son of Henry Collett and
Hannah Tanner, who was four years old in the 1841 Census for the village of
Norton. In the next two censuses his age
was recorded as 14 and 25, by which time he was working as an agricultural
labourer. A year later, on 3rd
May 1862, and still at the age of twenty-five, William Collett married (1) Emma
Garland at Norton-Coleparle, the marriage being recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a
22) during the second quarter of that year.
Emma was born during 1834 at Hankerton, to the east of Malmesbury, and
was the daughter of Job and Charlotte Garland of Hankerton. It may be of interest to note that Job
Garland was born at Easton Grey
The
marriage produced a total of six children for William and Emma and, it would
appear, that the couple lived for the majority of their married life together
at Norton, as it was there where their first five were born. Their last child was not born at Norton,
where the family was once again living after the birth, which took place at
Easton Grey, the next village north of Norton-Coleparle and the birth place of
Emma’s father. Rather bizarrely Easton
Grey was also the village where William’s second wife was born – see later
notes
By
the time of the 1871 Census for Norton-Coleparle the family was recorded as
William Collett from Norton who was 34 and working as a shepherd, Emma Collett
from Hankerton who was 35, and their three Norton born children were Henry
Collett who was eight, Elizabeth Collett who was four, and Catherine Collett
who was two years old. Ten years later
in the census for Norton-Coleparle in 1881, the larger family comprised
agricultural labourer William Collett who was 44 and of Norton, his wife Emma
Collett aged 47 and of Hankerton, and five of their six children. They were Henry who was 18, who was also an
agricultural labourer, presumably working with his father, Catherine who was
12, William who was 10, Philip who was six, and Frederick who was one-year-old
and born at Easton Grey, when all of the other children were confirmed as
having been born at Norton. Missing
daughter Elizabeth had left the family home and was living and working in
Tetbury
Five
years later Emma Collett died at Norton-Coleparle in 1886 at the age of 52, her
death recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 218) during the last three months of that
year. That event left William with sole
responsibility for raising his young family, while three years later, during
the third quarter of 1889, the marriage of William Collett and (2) Fanny Beak,
was recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 237).
Fanny was born in 1846 and was just one of the many children of
agricultural labourer Charles Beak, all of whom were born at Easton Grey. As a spinster at the age of 37, while working
on a farm at Easton Grey, Fanny was the only member of the Beak family still
living at Easton Grey in 1881, when everyone else from her family had moved to
Thornbury, near Bristol
In
the census of 1891, William’s wife was confirmed as being Fanny, when living
with the couple at Foxley Road in St Mary Westport, Malmesbury, were William’s
two youngest sons Philip and Frederick.
Rather oddly though, all of the ages they gave did not correspond with
their dates of birth. Only Fanny
Collett, at the age of 45, accurately reflected the year she was born. William Collett was said to be 49 and an
agricultural labourer, instead of 54 years of age, while Philip Collett was 18,
instead of 16, and Frederick was 15, rather than 11 years old, both of them
working with their father as agricultural labourers. What was correct, was that the place of birth
recorded for both William and Philip, as Norton
It
was previously written here that William was widowed again within a few years
of the census of 1891. However, that is
now known not to be true, with a valid reason for her absence from the Collett
family home in 1901. Fanny Collett from
Easton Grey was 54 and a visitor at Hamfallow, within the Thornbury Rural
District Council area of Gloucestershire, in the home of her younger married
cousin, Annie Watts, nee Beak, and her large family. Not far away, just a few miles north-east of
Hamfallow, Fanny’s husband William was recorded at the Woodchester home of his
married daughter Catherine King, nee Collett, and her young family. William Collett from Norton in Wiltshire was
66 years old and still working, but as a carter on a farm. It possible that he was working on the same
farm where his son-in-law Sidney King was employed as a shepherd. Just under six years after that census day,
Fanny appears to have still been living at Hamfallow, since the death of Fanny
Collett was recorded at Thornbury register office (Ref. 6a 131) during the
first three months of 1907, at the age of 60.
Although William has not been located in 1911, it was at Woodchester
that he is believed to have died, even though the record of his passing has not
been found. However, the deaths of two
William Colletts were recorded at Stroud register office in 1902 and 1908, but
neither of them indicated the age that William would have been
64P30
– Henry Collett was
born in 1862 at Norton-Coleparle
64P31
– Elizabeth Collett was
born in 1866 at Norton-Coleparle
64P32
– Catherine Collett was
born in 1868 at Norton-Coleparle
64P33
– William Collett was
born in 1871 at Norton-Coleparle
64P34
– Philip Collett was
born in 1874 at Norton-Coleparle
64P35
– Frederick Collett was
born in 1879 at Easton Grey
Mary Ann Collett [64O20] was born at Norton-Coleparle in 1840
and it was in that village that she lived and died. She married William Punter in 1860 with whom
she had ten children, all of whom were born at Norton-Coleparle. William was born at Westport in Malmesbury in
1837 although in 1901 he gave his place of birth as Corston where his first and
eldest son was born
According
to the 1881 Census for Norton-Coleparle, William was an agricultural labourer
aged 42 and his wife Mary Ann was 40. At
that time the couple’s two oldest children were living and working away from
the family home in Norton-Coleparle.
Also missing was son Thomas who later reappeared in 1891 so he was not
subject to an infant death as first thought, although his actual whereabouts
has not been determined. The seven
remaining children were Richard 14 and Arthur 13, who were both working as
agricultural labourers, Alfred who was nine, Francis who was eight, Harriet who
was five, Rose who was one-year old, and Maud who was just one-month old
Some
of the ages in 1881 varied greatly from those given in 1891 and 1901, which
also differed from the individual’s actual year of birth. In 1891 William was 54 and Mary 50, with
their children Arthur 28 (?), Frederick 25, Thomas 17, Harriet 15, Rose 11, and
Maud who was 10. Also, in 1891, Mary Ann
and William had Mary Ann’s widowed father Henry Collett staying with them,
which he continued to do until he passed away in 1895. The final member of the Punter household at
that time was one-year old grand-daughter Lillian Punter who was born at
Birmingham
Just
after the turn of the century Mary Ann Punter aged 65 was living with her
husband William aged 67. And living with
the couple at Norton-Coleparle were their two bachelor sons Arthur aged 30, and
Frederick aged 26, both of whom were working as ordinary agricultural labourers
like their father. The couple’s youngest
daughter Maud aged 20, was still living with her parents, although her place of
birth was then listed as Birmingham rather than Norton, the same as for their
twelve-year old grand-daughter Lillian who was also still living with the
family at Norton-Coleparle
Ten years later
the census in 1911 recorded increased ages for Mary and William, but only by
five years and seven years respectively which, however, were more accurate than
their ages quoted in the earlier census of 1901 when in fact they had been 60
and 64. Still living at Honey Lane in
Norton-Coleparle with the couple was their unmarried son Arthur Henry Punter
who was 43 years of age, with Mary Ann Punter being 70 and her husband William
Punter being 74. The census return that
year revealed the couple had been married for forty-nine years, during which
time they had given birth to a total of eleven children, of which nine were
still alive. Therefore, one child is
missing from the list below
Staying with the
Punter family on that day in 1911 was Worthy Chappell, 53, with his wife Cetha
Chappell, also 53, and their five children ranging in age from 12 to 20
years. It was around three years later
that Mary Ann Punter nee Collett died aged 73, her death being recorded at
Malmesbury register office (Ref. 5a 76) during the first three months of
1914. Almost exactly one year after her
passing, the death of William Punter was also recorded at Malmesbury register
office (Ref. 5a 74) during the first quarter of 1915 when he was 77. Their children were all born at
Norton-Coleparle and were: William Punter born 1861 who married Matilda Evans; Louisa
Ann Punter born in 1863 who married Albert Baker in 1891; Richard Punter
born in 1866 who married
Dora Kate Neal in 1888; Arthur Henry Punter born 1868; Alfred
Punter baptised on 16th April 1871; Frederick Punter born
1873; Thomas Punter born 1874; Harriet Punter born 1876; Rose
Punter born 1879, died 1899; and Maud Punter born in 1881
CHARLES COLLETT [64O21] was born at Norton-Coleparle in 1844
and it was there that he was baptised on 20th October 1844, the son
of Henry Collett and his wife Hannah Tanner.
Charles was six years old in the Malmesbury Eastern registration
district census of 1851 when he was recorded with his family at
Norton-Coleparle. He was still living
there with his parents in 1861 when he was 16 and an agricultural
labourer. Five years later he became a
married man for the first of three times over a seven-year period. Charles
Collett married (1) Matilda Webb on 2nd April 1866 at the parish
church in Norton-Coleparle, the daughter of John Webb, the event recorded at
Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 69) during the second quarter of 1866, when the groom’s
father was confirmed as Henry Collett.
Matilda likely died in childbirth, leaving widower Charles Collett, the
son of Henry, to marry (2) Mary Shipton, a widow, at Hullavington on 18th
July 1868
Mary
Shipton was the former wife of Thomas Shipton, who had been born as Mary Wicks
on 6th March 1834 at Hullavington, the daughter of Charles Wicks and
Hannah Greenman, who had married Thomas Shipton of Chippenham at the parish
church. They had one child, Mary Ann
Shipton who was born at Chippenham in 1860.
Thomas Shipton died at Chippenham during 1861, after which Mary returned
to Hullavington with her daughter Mary Ann, who tragically died there in 1863,
where she was buried in the parish church yard.
The subsequent marriage of Mary Shipton and Charles Collett lasted just
over a year, when Mary Collett of Norton died when she was 35 years old, and was
buried at the parish church in Hullavington on 5th October
1869. Curiously, her death certificate
at Malmesbury gave the date of her passing as 30th September 1869,
but her age as being 40, the wife of Charles Collett, a farm labourer, the
cause of death being typhoid fever, which she had suffered with for fourteen
days, together with effusion on the brain [aka fluid on the brain]. The informant was named as Mary Collett, who
made her mark to confirm she was present at her passing in Hullavington. The identity of Mary Collett, the informant,
is currently not known, unless it was a recording error for husband Charles
It
can now be revealed from the parish records, that earlier in the year that she
died, Mary Collett, the second wife of Charles Collett, gave birth to a son,
Auldin Collett, whose birth was recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 243) during the
first three months of 1869. His birth
certificate confirmed that he was born at Norton on 30th January
1869, the son of Charles Collett and Mary Collett formerly Wicks. Charles’ occupation was that of a farm
labourer, while the informant of the birth was the child’s mother Mary
Collett. Auldin was subsequently
baptised at Norton-Coleparle on 21st March 1869 and was just two
years old when he died at Norton-Coleparle, but was buried on 23rd
March 1871 at Hullavington, his passing recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a
318). Having lost his wife and then
their only child, it is perhaps not surprising that no record of Charles
Collett has been located anywhere in the census return for 1871. It was just over thirty months after that
census day, when Charles Collett, a widower for the second time at the
relatively young age of 29, and the son of Henry Collett, married (3) Sarah
Deborah Wicks, aged 24, at Hullavington parish church on 8th
November 1873, Sarah already having given birth to a son out of wedlock. However, it was shortly after they were
married that Sarah gave birth to the first of the couple’s twelve children, the
birth being registered at Hullavington during the first quarter of the following
year
Sarah
Deborah Wicks was the second cousin of Mary Shipton nee Wicks, Charles
Collett’s second wife, and the daughter of John Wicks and Elizabeth Goulding
who was baptised at Hullavington on 4th June 1848. In 1871 Sarah was still living with her parents
at the age of 22, when she was referred to as Sarah Debra Wicks. Her base-born son John William Wicks, would
have been three years old at the time of the couple’s wedding. Sarah also had a sister Sylvia Wicks, who was
born at Hullavington in 1839, and she married Henry Charles Smith who was born
at Walcot in 1866, the great grandson of Elizabeth Collett (Ref. 35M19), who
was the daughter of John Collett and Mary White of Broughton Gifford
By
1881 the Collett family was living at Gibbs Lane in Hullavington, where Charles
was 36 and was employed as an agricultural labourer. His wife Sarah was 33 and the children listed
with them were John Wicks aged 12, Helena Collett who was six, Hannah Collett
who was five, Charles Collett who was three, and Jane Collett who was just ten
months old. All of the children had been
born at Hullavington except Hannah, who was born at Foxley, near
Malmesbury. Charles and
Sarah’s daughter, Jane, was one half of a pair of twins, the missing child
being Frances Ellen Collett who had died at Hullavington in June 1880, when she
was only one-month old. Sadly, Jane
followed her twin sister, when she died five days after the census day in
1881. At that same time in April 1881,
Sarah was expecting her sixth child by Charles.
That child was born three months later in July and was named after the
dead twins. However, it would appear
that she too did not survive, since no further record of her has been found
Over
the next couple of years, the family moved closer to Bristol, perhaps to be
reunited with Charles’ uncle Joseph, who had been living at Westerleigh since
1860. It was while Charles and Sarah
were living at Westerleigh that two of their last five children were born and,
in between, one of their sons was born at Downend, near Mangotsfield, less than
three miles from Westerleigh. The
last but one child was born at Stoke Gifford before the family moved again,
that time to Latteridge. The move seems
to have taken place just after the death of uncle Joseph in 1888. The hamlet of Latteridge lies immediately north-west of Iron Acton, where
the family was residing on the day of the census in 1891. Also, during the mid-1880s, the
family suffered the loss of their son Henry, resulting in the same name being
given to a subsequent child born into the family
The
census in 1891 included many errors regarding the ages of some family
members. Charles Collett from Wiltshire
was 42 and working as an agricultural labourer, his wife Sarah D Collett as 40,
while the children with them that day were Elena E Collett who was 18, Charles
Collett who was 13, William Collett who was seven, Henry Collett who was five,
Tom Collett who was three, and Alden Collett who was two years old. Sarah was pregnant with the
couple’s twelfth child on the day of the census, and twenty days later she gave
birth to her ninth son and her last child.
Apart from Jane, who died shortly after the census in 1881, another
daughter was not listed with the family in 1891, that being Hannah who had died
ten months earlier, when she was 14
In
March 1901 Charles Collett was recorded as being 56 and a farm labourer who had
been born at Norton, and his wife was confirmed as Sarah aged 48 and from
Hullavington. At that time the couple
was residing at Westerleigh Hill in Westerleigh with their sons William aged
16, Tom aged 13, Alden, who was 10, and Arthur who was nine years old. Missing son Henry was living and working in
Bristol on that occasion. Nine years
later Charles and Sarah were living was at Winterbourne Road in Hambrook near
Mangotsfield, where Sarah died on 13th January 1910
The
death was registered by her son William Collett of Winterbourne, who was at her
bedside when she passed away. The death
certificate recorded that she was Sarah Deborah Collett, wife of Charles
Collett an agricultural labourer. The
cause of death was given as cerebral haemorrhage. Just over a year later, according to the
census of 1911, widower Charles was 68 and was living with his son Henry
(referred to as Harry) and his new wife Florence at their home on Station
Avenue in the Fishponds district of Bristol
Sometime
later, possible when Henry’s and Florence’s children were born, Charles moved
out of their Bristol home and moved to Chipping Sodbury, where he died on 7th
February 1919. At that time, he was
living in the Chipping Sodbury Union Workhouse in Yate Road. The death certificate recorded that he was
75, a farm labourer of Winterbourne Road.
The informant was A Pethrick, the Master of the Union Workhouse, and the
cause of death was bronchitis and syncope.
There is an interesting footnote regarding the children of Charles
Collett in that, according to the WW1 military record of his son Alden Collett
[64P53], there was an “old brother James Collett” named as a fourth
next-of-kin. Later family members are
also aware that there was a James in the family. However, whilst he must have been alive when
Alden completed his military paperwork, no record of a birth, baptism, or
census return for him has been unearthed.
Looking down the list of Charles’ children, there is just one four-year
gap for another child to drop into, and that would place James as having been
born in 1872 to Charles and his third wife
The following child was born to Charles
Collett by his second wife Mary Shipton:
64P36 – Auldin Collett was born in 1869
at Norton-Coleparle; where died in 1871
The following are the children of
Charles Collett by his third wife Sarah Deborah Wicks:
64P37 – John William Wicks was born in 1870 at Hullavington
64P38 – Elena Elizabeth Collett was born in 1874 at Hullavington
64P39 – Hannah Matilda Collett was born in 1876 at Foxley, near
Malmesbury
64P40 – Charles Eli Collett was born in 1878 at Hullavington
64P41 – Jane Collett was born in 1880 at Hullavington
64P42 – Frances Ellen Collett was born in 1880 at Hullavington
64P43 – Ellen Jane Collett was born in 1881 at Hullavington
64P44 – Henry Collett was born in 1883 at Hullavington
64P45 – William Collett was born in 1884 at Westerleigh, near
Bristol
64P46 – Henry Collett was born in 1886 at Downend, near
Bristol
64P47 – Thomas Collett was born in 1887 at Westerleigh, near
Bristol
64P48 – Alden Collett was born in 1888 at Stoke Gifford, near
Bristol
64P49 – ARTHUR COLLETT was born in 1891 at Latteridge, near Bristol
Thomas James Collett [64O22] was born at Hullavington on 27th
August 1852, the eldest child of Joseph Collett and Anne Brewer, who were
married just over three months earlier.
It was also at Hullavington that he was baptised, as simply Thomas
Collett, on 24th October 1852, when his parents were confirmed as
Joseph and Ann. Shortly after he was
baptised, he and his parents moved to nearby Norton-Coleparle, where three of
his brothers were born before the family moved again in 1860 to Westerleigh in
Gloucestershire. In the 1861 Census for
Westerleigh, Thomas Collett from Hullavington was eight years old, when he and
his large family were staying there with the Dands family in Westerleigh,
north-east of Bristol. After a further
ten years the Collett family had their own home in Westerleigh, where Thomas
was 18 years of age in the Westerleigh census of 1871, when he was working as a
coal miner
It
was four years later, at Norton-Coleparle, that Thomas James Collett marriage
Elizabeth Salter on 21st August 1875, the daughter of Shadrach
Salter of Norton by his second wife Ann from Hullavington. Elizabeth Salter was born at Norton-Coleparle
during the first quarter of 1850, her birth recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. viii
14). By 1871 Elizabeth Salter was 20
years old and working as a farm servant, while she was still living with her
family in Norton. However, her marriage
to Thomas was short-lived, since it would appear that Elizabeth died giving
birth to their first child, who also did not survive. So, by the time of the census in 1881, Thomas
had returned to live with his parents at Westerleigh. Thomas was recorded in the census return as
Thomas Collett aged 27 and from Hullavington, who was a widower who was still
working as a coal miner. Perhaps
it was the aftershock of losing his wife, or possibly even an accident at work,
but it was within the next six months that Thomas Collett died at Westerleigh,
his death recorded at Chipping Sodbury (Ref. 6a 107) during the third quarter
of 1881 when he was only 28 years of age
John Collett [64O23] was born at Norton-Coleparle, to the
north of Hullavington, on 28th November 1854, the son of Joseph and
Anne Collett, his birth recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 25) during the second
quarter of 1854. By the time he was six
years of age, he and his family were all boarders at the Westerleigh home of
the Dands family. On leaving school,
John worked on the land and in 1871, at the age of 16, he was living in the
family home at Westerleigh, from where he was employed as a farm labourer. Over the next decade, John took up employment
with the Great Western Railway, as confirmed in the next census of 1881, when
unmarried John Collett from Hullavington was 26, was still residing in the
family home in Westerleigh, where his occupation was that of a railway fireman. No record of John has been found after 1881
Henry Collett [64O24] was born at Norton-Coleparle on 29th
January 1856, the son of Joseph and Ann Collett. He was four years old at the time of
Westerleigh census of 1861 and was 13 by 1871, although he was actually nearer
fifteen years of age when he was still living with his family at
Westerleigh. Henry, who would have been
25 in 1881, has so far not been located anywhere in the UK at that time
William Collett [64O25] was born at Norton-Coleparle on 2nd
October 1858, another son of Joseph and Ann Collett. In error, his year of birth was recorded as
1857 in the Family Bible. However, the
birth of William Collett was recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 27) during the
last three months of 1858. That also
more closely correlates with William’s stated age in the subsequent census
returns. No long after he was born, his
parents took the family from Norton across the county boundary into South
Gloucestershire where, in 1861 they were lodging at the Westerleigh home of the
Dands family. It was there that William
Collett from Norton, Wiltshire, was two years old. It little while after, the family secured
their own home in Westerleigh, as confirmed in the census of 1871. On the day, William from Norton had already
left school and was a farm labourer at the age of 12, when he was living at
Westerleigh with his family. Those two
census returns had obviously been completed by his parents, whereas it would
have been William who completed the subsequent census forms, when he gave his
place of birth as Westerleigh, where he lived from an early age
Once
he was old enough, William left the family home in Westerleigh and made the
short journey to Bristol to find work with the Great Western Railway. By 1881 William Collett from Westerleigh was
21 (sic) and a railway porter, a lodger at 11 Hemmings Parade within in the
Bristol parish of St Philip & Jacob Without working as a porter. During the next ten years, William left the
Bristol area, when he moved north to Leicestershire, where he became a married
man on 24th May 1887. His
bride Ann Driver was many years older, having been born in Birmingham on 29th
April 1844, where she was baptised at St Peter’s Church, Dale End, on 15th
April 1850, the daughter of Edward and Elizabeth Driver. After her mother died, it was Ann who spent
her years looking after her father, hence why she was still a single lady when,
at the age of 43, she married William at Wigston near Leicester. However, the record of their wedding was not
completely correct, since both the bride and the groom were recorded with
inaccurate ages. William Collett of
Wigston was confirmed as the son of Joseph Collett, although he said he was 27
years of age, instead of 28. Ann Driver,
also residing in Wigston, gave her age as 36, which looks as though it was more
closely based on the year of her baptism.
Or maybe she just reduced her age out of embarrassment that she was
around fifteen years younger than William, something she continued to do in the
following census returns
Because
of Ann’s age, there was no chance of the marriage producing any offspring, with
the childless couple living at Clarkes Road in Oadby, within the parish of
Wigston Magna in 1891, where William Collett aged 31 and from Gloucestershire,
was a railway goods guard, and his wife Ann Collett from Birmingham was 40,
when she was nearly 47. They were still
there in 1901 and 1911, when railway guard William Collett from Westerleigh was
41 and 51 respectively. His wife on
those two occasions was confirmed as Ann Collett from Birmingham who was 50 and
60, instead of 56 and 66 respectively.
Perhaps William never knew when his wife had actually been born because,
when he visited the nearby register office in Blaby, just west of Oadby, to
inform the registrar that his wife had passed away, she said that she was 89
years of age, the death of Ann Collett recorded at Blaby (Ref. 7a 94) during
the third quarter of 1930, when she would have been 86. Her Will was proved at Leicester on 27th
October 1930, when the sole beneficiary was her husband William Collett, the
probate process confirming that Ann died on 14th September
1930. It was seven years after being
widowed, when William Collett of 29 St Albion Street in Oadby, South Wigston,
died on 29th June 1937, and it was at Leicester that his Will was
proved on 22nd July 1937. It
is assumed that his older wife had already passed away by that time since the
executor to his estate of Ł3243 17 Shillings and 11 Penny was named as Edward
Potter, a costing clerk. The death of
William Collett was also recorded at Blaby register office (Ref. 7a 12) when it
was said that he was 76 years old, two years younger than his actual age
Elizabeth Collett [64O26] was born at Westerleigh on 22nd
March 1861 and was baptised at the church of St James the Great in Westerleigh
on 23rd November 1862, the eldest of the two daughters of Joseph and
Ann Collett. She was born just two weeks
immediately prior to the day of the census in 1861, by which time her parents
had not even decided on a name for her, so she was simply registered as ‘infant
Collett. In 1871 she was 10 years old
when she was listed with her family as Elizabeth Collett. By 1881 she too had left the family home in
Westerleigh and, at the age of 20, was working as a domestic servant at the
lodging house run by George Wildbore and his wife at 7 Sion Hill in the Clifton
area of Bristol
The youngest son
of George and Susannah Wildbore was Thomas James Wildbore who in 1881 was a
school teacher who was also 20 years of age like Elizabeth Collett. Two years later Elizabeth married Thomas at
Bristol where their wedding was recorded (Ref. 6a 114) during the first three
months of 1883. The marriage produced
three children for the couple but, by 1891, it was just Elizabeth and her three
younger children who were living at Canton Street within the Barton Regis
district of Bristol, having moved there just before the birth of the third
child. Head of the household, Elizabeth
Wildbore was 30, married but living on her own means, her daughter Frances M
Wildbore was five, and her two sons were George Wildbore who was
three and Albert Wildbore who was one-year-old. The fact that she was living own her own
means, may indicate that she was already widowed, despite her status being
‘married’, which may just mean she and Thomas were simply separated
After a further
ten years, the Bristol census in 1901 included Elizabeth Wildbore from
Westerleigh who was 40 and working as an office cleaner, again with her three
Bristol born children. They were Frances
Wildbore who was 15 and employed as a hand at the local cocoa factory, as was
George Wildbore who was 13, while Albert Wildbore was 11 was still attending
school. Staying with the family was Mary
Peaty from Cerne Abbas in Dorset who was 29 and described as Elizabeth’s
sister-in-law. By 1911 the family was
still residing in Bristol, where married Elizabeth Wildbore was 49 and an
office cleaner at a local bank, daughter Frances Wildbore was 25, George
Wildbore was 23 and Albert Wildbore was 21.
All three children were recorded as having been born in Bristol. Elizabeth was supplementing her pay from the
bank by taking in lodgers, when staying at the house that day was Arthur Turner
who was 15 years old. What happened to
Thomas James Wildbore, who was born in Bristol and baptised at St Andrews
Church in Clifton on 29th July 1860, is not known as no record of
him at all has been found after 1883
Mary Jane Collett [64O27] was born at Westerleigh on 19th
September 1865 and was baptised on 3rd December 1865 at St James the
Great Church in Westerleigh, the last child born to Joseph Collett and Ann
Brewer. It was at Westerleigh that she
was living with her family in 1871 at the age of five. Ten years later Mary, aged 15, was working as
a general domestic servant while still living with her parents at their home in
Westerleigh
Jane Collett [64P1] was born at St Mary Westport in
Malmesbury during 1869, the eldest of the six children of Aaron Vizor Collett
and his wife Ellen. She was one-year old
in the Westport census of 1871, although by 1873 the family had moved to Easton
Grey where three of Jane’s siblings were born.
However, by 1881 the family had moved again, on that occasion her father
was the landlord and inn keeper at the Queens Head Inn at Hullavington. Upon leaving school Jane appears to have
entered into domestic service, like her sister Hannah (below), so by 1891 and
at the age of 21, she was living and working within the Malmesbury Eastern
registration district and not at Hullavington where her family was still living
at 1 Seager’s Lane
Mary A Collett [64P2] was born at St Mary Westport in
Malmesbury during 1871, the second child of Aaron and Ellen Collett. Mary was nine years old in 1881 when she and
her family were living at the Queens Head Inn at Hullavington, where her father
was the landlord and the inn keeper. She
was still living with her family in 1891 when, as Mary A Collet, aged 19, she
had no stated occupation, so was very likely helping her mother manage the
housework at 1 Seager’s Lane in Hullavington, where her father was a farmer and
her two older brothers were working with her father on the land
Hannah Collett [64P3] was born in 1874 at Easton Grey, three
miles west of Malmesbury, the third daughter born to Aaron and Ellen
Collett. It was at Malmesbury where her
birth was recorded (Ref. 5a 236) during the third quarter of 1874. Sometime between 1877 and 1881 the family
left Easton Grey when they moved to Hullavington, where Hannah’s father took
over as the landlord and inn keeper of the Queens Head Inn. That was confirmed in the census of 1881 when
Hannah was six years old and was attending the village school in
Hullavington. The last child was born
into her family at Hullavington, after which her father became a farmer and the
family settled into a new life at 1 Seager’s Lane in Hullavington. By 1891 Hannah from Easton Grey had secured
work in London as a domestic housemaid and was living and working at the Fore
Street, Edmonton home of the Maud family, when Hannah Collett was 18 years of
age
Aaron Vizor Collett
[64P4] was born on 3rd
May 1876 at Easton Grey, near Malmesbury, the eldest son of labourer Aaron
Vizor Collett and his wife Ellen Curtis, and was later baptised at Foxley
Parish Church. In April 1881, Aaron
Collett as four years old when he was living with his parents at the family
home which was the Queens Head Inn in Hullavington. His father later gave up being the landlord
and the inn keeper at the Queens Head Inn, and in 1891 the completed family was
residing at 1 Seager’s Lane in Hullavington where Aaron’s father was a farmer,
assisted by Aaron junior who was 14.
Shortly after that his father took over Firs Farm in Corston near
Malmesbury. It was at Corston on 30th
May 1896, when Aaron was just twenty years old, that he married Rosina Kane,
who was born at Dauntsey in Wiltshire during 1871. The event was recorded at Malmesbury register
office (Ref. 5a 83) during the second quarter of 1896. Rosina was the daughter of Francis Kane, the
landlord of the Radnor Arms in Corston, and his wife Sarah Minchin
It
is understood that Aaron first met Rosina when he was staying at the Radnor
Arms in Corston during February in 1896, when there was an outbreak of typhoid
at his family’s home which took the lives of his parents and younger brother
Walter Vizor Collett (below). It was
therefore after only three months that they were married. The couple’s marriage certificate curiously
stated that Aaron Vizor Collett was a labourer and a bachelor of 24 (sic), the
son of Aaron Vizor Collett a farmer.
Similarly, the same certificate suggested that spinster Rosina of
Corston was 23 and the daughter of Frank Kane a publican. The two witnesses were named as George Kane
and Minnie Kane
The
confusion over their ages continued into the next two census returns and, by
the time of the first of them in 1901, their marriage had produced the couple’s
first two children. At that time the
family of four was living at Badbury within the parish of Chiseldon, to the
south of Swindon, where Aaron was employed as an inn keeper and a
shopkeeper. Although he would have been
around 24 years of age, he then said he was 30 years old. Was the reason for that untruth to cover his
embarrassment that he was up to five years younger than his Rosina, who gave
her age as 29. In addition, Aaron gave
his place of birth as Hullavington, where he was brought up, rather than Easton
Grey where he had only lived for a short while.
The places of birth of the couple’s two children, Albert Collett, who
was three years old, and Clarence Collett, who was one-year old, was Swindon and
Chiseldon respectively. Shortly after
the census day in 1901 a third son was born into the family while they were
still residing at Badbury, after which the family moved to the village of
Longcot, to the south of Faringdon, where they lived at Knutford Lodge Farm
It
was at Knutford Lodge in Longcot that the family was living in April 1911. Aaron Vizor Collett of Hullavington gave his
age as 38, instead of 34, while his wife Rosina Collett stated she was 36,
rather than 39. Their three sons were
confirmed as Albert A V Collett aged 14 and from Swindon, Clarence G Collett
aged 12 and from Chiseldon, and Cecil F K Collett who was 10 and had been born
at Badbury. It seems highly likely from
the information received from the family in August 2012 that a further child,
Edwina, was added to the family after 1911.
Sometime later in their life Aaron and Rosina resided at a farm property
by the name of The Firs at Grove near Wantage.
It was also at that address where Rosina Collett, aged 66 and the wife
of Aaron Collett a retired farmer, died of heart failure on 26th
February 1939. During the probate
process at Oxford on 25th April 1939 it was Lloyds Bank Limited and
Alan Lindsey Fullalove solicitor who were involved in finalising her estate of
Ł1,654 7 Shillings and 6 Pence, which was later re-sworn as Ł2,054 7 Shillings and
6 Pence. Aaron Vizor Collett died not
long after his wife, when he passed away on 19th February 1940 at
the age of 63. He was a retired farmer
still living at The Firs in Grove on that occasion, following which he was
buried in the churchyard of St Mary the Virgin in Longcot, presumably with his
late wife. The Will of Aaron Vizor
Collett of The Firs, Grove near Wantage was proved at Oxford on 13th
April 1940 when the executors of his estate of Ł113 17 Shillings and 3 Pence
were named as Alan Lindsey Fullalove solicitor, and Clarence George Collett, a
farmer
64Q1 – Albert Aaron Vizor Collett was born in 1897 at Swindon
64Q2 – Clarence George Collett was born in 1899 at Chiseldon,
Wiltshire
64Q3 – Cecil Francis Kane Collett was born in 1901 at Badbury, near
Chiseldon
Walter Vizor Collett [64P5]
was born at Easton Grey
during 1877, the son of Aaron and Ellen Collett. By 1881 he and his family were living at the
Queen’s Head Inn in Hullavington, where Walter Collett was three years of
age. During the 1880s the family left
the Queen’s Head and by 1891 were still living in Hullavington, but at 1
Seager’s Lane in the village, when Walter was 12. It was just five years later, after another
family move that Walter Thomas Collett, aged 18, died on 16th
February 1896 at Firs Farm in Corston during an outbreak of typhoid which also
took the lives of his parents
Albert Thomas Collett [64P6]
was born at The Queen’s
Head Inn at Hullavington on 5th December 1882, the youngest of the
five known children of Aaron Vizor Collett and his wife Ellen Curtis. It was also at Hullavington where he was
baptised shortly after on 28th January 1883 when, once again, he was
confirmed as the son of Aaron Vizor and Ellen Collett. In the census of 1891, eight-year-old Albert
Collett from Hullavington was living at 1 Seager’s Lane in the village, but not
long after that he and his family moved to Firs Farm in the village of
Corston. Following the deaths of his
parents and his brother Walter Vizor Collett (above) in 1896, Albert has not
been located within any of the subsequent British Census Returns. It is understood, although not yet confirmed,
that he eventually emigrated to America
Arthur Francis Vizor
Collett [64P7] was born
in Bristol, his birth recorded at Clifton (Ref. 6a 139) during the last quarter
of 1867. He was baptised at Emanuel’s
Church in Bristol on 16th February 1868, the eldest son of Joseph
Collett and Elizabeth Boucher, who was three years old in the census of
1871. At that time in his life, he was
living with his family at 21 Morley Street in the Lawrence Hill, Russell Town,
area of Bristol. It is known that his
father died in early 1881, when Arthur was 13 and a boarder at the Colston
School in Stapleton, an establishment run by headmaster, the Reverend John
Handcock from London, aged 48, who received his Bachelor of Arts Degree at
Trinity College in Dublin. It is worth
noting here that Arthur’s brother William (below) married Annie Estelle
Handcock, who may have been related to the Rev John Handcock. On completing his education, Arthur was
reunited with his brother William in 1891, when the pair of them were residing
in the Barton Regis area of Bristol.
Arthur F Collett from Bristol was 23, and two years later he became a
married man, as did his brother William
Arthur
married Elizabeth Mary Richardson in 1893, the event recorded at Barton Regis
in Bristol, during the third quarter of that year. In the census of 1901, Arthur for some reason
gave his place of birth as being Malmesbury, as he did again ten years
later. The census return in March 1901
included Arthur F V Collett, aged 34 and a merchant clerk, living in Bristol
with his wife Elizabeth Mary, aged 37 and from Bristol, and their two Bristol
born children, Frances Vizor Collett who was six, and Edward R V Collett who
was four. The family’s live-in domestic
servant was Norah Dean from Bath who was 17.
In April 1911 each member of the family was recorded under their full
names. Arthur Francis Vizor Collett was
43, Elizabeth Mary Collett was 40, Frances Mary Vizor Collett was 16, and
Edward Reginald Vizor Collett was 14. On
that occasion they were living at 5 The Quadrant in the Redland area of
Bristol, from where Arthur was working as a cashier for Chocolate & Cocoa
Manufacturer J S Fry & Son, where his brother William was also
employed. The census confirmed that
Arthur and Elizabeth had been married for 18 years and only ever had the two
children listed with them. It was also
noted that their home had ten rooms
Arthur
Francis Vizor Collett died on the 25th June 1918 at the age of 50,
his death being registered in Bristol.
The Will of Arthur Francis Vizor Collett, mercantile cashier, of 5 The
Quadrant, Redland, Bristol, was proved at Bristol on 10th August
1918 when his widow Elizabeth Mary Collett was named as the executor to his
personal effects amounting to Ł1,007 6 Shillings and 7 Pence
64Q4 – Frances Mary Vizor Collett was born in 1894 at Bristol
64Q5 – Edward Reginald Vizor Collett was born in 1896 at Bristol
William Vizor Collett [64P8]
was born at Clifton in
Bristol during the fourth quarter of 1870, most likely in late November or
early December, following which he was baptised at Emanuel’s Church in Bristol
on 19th December 1870, the youngest known son of Joseph and
Elizabeth Collett. It was simply as
William Collett aged just four months, that he was living at 21 Morley Street
in the Lawrence Hill, Russell Town district of Bristol 1871. By the time he was nine years old, he and his
brother (above) had been made orphans by the death of both of their
parents. According to the census in 1881,
William had been separated from his older brother Arthur (above) who was a
resident boarder at Colston School in Stapleton, just north-east of
Bristol. William on the other hand was
10 years old and was described as a lodger at the home of tailoress Julia
Burford, aged 50, who was a spinster from Owlpen, near Uley, in Gloucestershire. There were no other occupants at the house,
the address for which was 2 Frederick Street within the Bristol parish of
Saints Philip and Jacob
Ten
years later, when William was 20, he was living with his brother Arthur at
Ashley Down within the Barton Regis district of Bristol, the census in 1891
recording him as Willie Collett from Bristol.
It was during the summer of 1893 when William Vizor Collett married
Annie Estelle Handcock from Liverpool.
The wedding was recorded at the Barton Regis register office in Bristol
(Ref. 6a 281) during the third quarter of that year when the witnesses were
named as John William Fowke and Mary Morris.
Once married the couple set up home in Bristol where their two known children
were born. That was confirmed by the
census in March 1901 when William V Collett, aged 30 and from Bristol, was a
commercial clerk, his wife Annie E Collett from Liverpool was also 30, and
their two children were Kenneth V Collett who was five and Margaret V V Collett
who was four
At
the end of the next decade the family was residing at the eleven-roomed
property known as Valken at Downs Park West in the Westbury Park
(Westbury-on-Trym) area of Bristol. By
that time in his life William was a clerk employed by the Chocolate & Cocoa
Manufacturer J S Fry & Son. The
household was listed in the census of 1911 as William Collett, aged 40, as was
his wife Annie Estelle Collett, Kenneth Vizor Collett who was 15, and Margaret
Valentine Collett who was 14. The family
was quite affluent since they employed a general domestic servant, Clara Reed,
aged 18 and from Taunton in Somerset
William
Vizor Collett died at Bristol on 12th June 1916 at the age of 45,
following which his death was recorded there under the name of William V
Collett (Ref. 6a 256) during the second quarter of that year. At the proving of his Will in Bristol on 1st
August 1916 the address of William Vizor Collett was confirmed as ‘Valken’ at
52 Downs Park West in Bristol, while his occupation was that of a commercial
clerk. It was his widow Annie Estelle
Collett who was named as the executor of his estate of Ł1,619 19 Shillings. On
the last day of 2015, a gentleman by the name of Robert Orme made contact to
say he has in his possession a signed drawing by William Vizor Collett dated
1902. The picture, catalogued by the
Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington and entitled ‘The Bathers’, is of
the nude figure of a young man sitting in a small rowing boat. For some reason one source on the internet
speculates that the picture was drawn at Capri in Italy or at Taormina in
Sicily
64Q6 – Kenneth Vizor Collett was born in 1895 at Bristol
64Q7 – Margaret Valentine Vizor Collett was born in 1896 at Bristol
James William Collett [64P9]
was born at Didmarton
in 1862, with his birth recorded at Tetbury (Ref. 6a 295) during the third
quarter of that year. He was the
base-born son of Jane Collett by a so far unknown male and, following his
mother’s marriage to Isaac Sallis Russell, eight-year-old James Collett from Didmarton
was living at the home of his stepfather and his mother Jane at West Kington in
1871. With his mother giving birth to at
least seven half-siblings prior to 1881, the census that year showed that James
had left West Kington and was residing with his mother’s married sister Harriet
Palmer from Hullavington and her husband William at Rodbourne Cheney in
Swindon. James Collett from Didmarton
was 18 and a general labourer, as was William Palmer with whom he may have been
working
Two
years later, when James was around twenty-one, the marriage of James William
Collett and Fanny Hulbert, of Chippenham who was 27, was recorded at Chippenham
(Ref. 5a 111) during the first three months of 1883. Fanny was the daughter of Amy Hill, by her
first husband, before she married William Hill, her second husband. Before the end of the century Fanny presented
James with their only known children, their two daughters, who were born
respectively at West Kington and Highworth near Swindon. It was also at Page Street in Highworth that
the four members of the family were recorded in the census of 1891, when James
W Collett from Gloucestershire was 28 and a plumber’s labourer. His wife Fanny Collett was 34, Ella Matilda J
Collett was seven, and Janetta M Collett was three. Staying with the family were three of James’
half-siblings, they being the children of Isaac Sallis Russell and James’
mother: Isaac Sallis
Russell junior was 22; Thomas Lawrence Russell was 20; and Mary Minnie Russell
was 14
During
the following decade the family left Highworth and settled in the village of
Tetbury Upton, to the north of the town of Tetbury. On the day of the next census in 1901 James
and his two daughters were recorded at Tetbury Upton, while his wife was
visiting the home of her mother and stepfather at Yatten Road in Yatten,
Somerset. James William Collett from
Didmarton was 39 and employed as a journeyman tin man living at London Road in
Tetbury Upton. His two daughters were
described as Ella Matilda Jane Collett who was 17 who had been born at West
Kington, and Janetta M Collett who was 13 who had been born in Swindon. That same day Fanny Collett from Chippenham
was 44 and at the Yatton Road, Yatton in Somerset, home of her stepfather William
Hill, aged 77, whose wife (and Fanny’s mother) was Amy Hill, aged 75, who was
also from Chippenham
One
daughter was still residing at the family home with her parents in 1911 which,
by that time, was in Trowbridge. The
census that year recorded the three members of the family as James W Collett
from Didmarton who was 48 and a general labourer at an iron and tinplate
works. His wife of twenty-eight years
Fanny Collett from Nettleton was 53 and their daughter Janetta Margaret Collett
from Swindon was 24 and her occupation was that of a dressmaker working at
home. It was only eighteen months later
that the death of Fanny Collett was recorded at Melksham register office (Ref.
5a 109) during the third quarter of 1912 when she was 56. James William Collett lived a long life and
died nearly thirty years later on 15th July 1941, when his mother
was confirmed as Jane Collett. The death
certificate also confirmed he had been born at Didmarton during 1862
64Q8 – Ella Matilda Jane Collett was born in 1884 at West Kington,
Wiltshire
64Q9 – Janetta Margaret Collett was born in 1887 at Highworth, Swindon
Sarah Ann H Collett [64P10]
was born at Malmesbury
in 1872, with her birth also recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 229) during the
first three months of that year. She was
the base-born daughter of unmarried Margaret Collett of Hullavington. When Sarah was a few years old her mother, a
grocer, married Thomas William Bratt and in the census of 1881, Sarah Collett
from Malmesbury was nine years of age and living with her mother and stepfather
at Yew Tree Terrace in Colwall, near Ledbury in Herefordshire. When old enough, Sarah left Colwall and was
not recorded with her mother’s new family in 1891. Where she was in both 1891 and 1901 has yet
to be discovered, whilst it was at Malmesbury that Sarah Ann Collett was
married during the second quarter of 1907 (Ref. 5a 108) to Charles Ernest
Nicholls, although yet again, no record of the couple has been found in the
census returns completed in 1911. The
death of Sarah A Nicholls nee Collett was recorded at Chippenham register
office (Ref. 7c 56) during the first three months of 1947 when she was 76
Frank Lawrence Collett
[64P11] was born at
Devonport, Plymouth, on 28th February 1900, the first child of
William Collett and Harriet Honor Horswell, the birth being registered there
(Ref. 5b 320). He was one-year old in
the Devonport census of 1901 and, by 1911, he and his family were recorded
living at Wesley House on Faringdon Street in Swindon when Frank was 11 years
of age. The military record for Frank
Lawrence Collett, born at Plymouth in 1900, and a resident of Swindon, was a
member of the 3rd Battalion of the Somerset Light Infantry service
number 18673, and also served with the 4th Reserve Battalion of the
Dorset Regiment with the service number 44361.
Ten years after peace was declared in Europe, the marriage of Frank
Lawrence Collett and Lilian May Griffiths was recorded at Swindon register
office (Ref. 5a 96) during the second quarter of 1928. Lilian was the daughter of John Frederick Griffiths,
a boot riveter, and his wife Alice Phoebe Griffiths. After a further eleven years, Frank L Collett
was residing at 120 Drove Road in Swindon, when his date of birth was confirmed
as 28th February 1900. He was
a locomotive erector with the Great Western Railway, and living there with him
was his wife and his elderly father. Lilian
M Collett was also 39, having been born on 20th January 1900, while
Frank’s father was William Collett aged 82 was a retired Royal Navy pensioner,
who was also a widower. Many years later on, and during the summer of 1984, both
Lilian and Frank passed away in quick succession at the age of 84 and, from the
reference numbers used to record their deaths at Swindon register office,
Lilian appears to have been the first.
The death of Lilian May Collett, nee Griffiths, was recorded as (Ref. 23
1833), with her date recorded in error as January 1900, and was followed by
Frank Lawrence Collett whose death was recorded as (Ref. 23 1982)
Doris
Margaret Collett [64P12]
was born at Devonport in 1902, where her father was in the Royal Navy. Her birth was recorded at Devonport register
office (Ref. 5b 297) during the third quarter of the year, where she was also
baptised. On her father retiring from
the navy, he secured work in Swindon as a caretaker, where the family was
living in 1911 when Doris was eight years of age. She was nearly twenty-seven, when the marriage
of Doris Margaret Collett and William E Colbran was recorded at Swindon
register office (Ref. 5a 65) during the third quarter of 1929. Their only known child, Allen E Colbran,
was born in Sussex, his birth recorded at Eastbourne register office (Ref. 2b
84) during the first quarter of 1937, when the mother’s maiden-name was
confirmed as Collett
Ann Elizabeth Collett [64P13]
was born in 1872 at
Idle, a suburb to the north of Bradford, within the parish of Eccleshill, the
eldest of the seven children of Arthur Collett from Wiltshire and Margaret Ward
from Bradford in Yorkshire. Her birth
was recorded at Bradford (Ref. 9b 238) during the last three months of
1872. On leaving school, and at the age
of 18 in 1892, Annie Collett was employed as a worsted spinner when she was
living with her family at 16 Wellington Street in Idle, where they had been
living ten years earlier when Ann was recorded as Annie Collett. Curiously, no record of her has been found within
the census of 1901, but it does seem highly likely that she gave birth to a
base-born daughter, named after her mother, two years later. That child was then cared for by Annie’s
parents, with whom she was living in the Eccleshill census of 1911. However, six years after the birth of her
daughter Annie Elizabeth Collett married either George Laycock or Joseph Linley
with whom, it would appear, she had no children. That event was recorded at the Bradford North
Bierley register office (Ref. 9b 286) during the first quarter of 1909. No positive identification of Annie and her
husband has been discovered in the census of 1911
64Q10 – Maggie Collett was born in 1903 at Bradford
Emily Louisa Collett [64P14]
was born at Idle in
1873, the second child of Arthur and Margaret Collett, whose birth was recorded
at Bradford (Ref. 9b 236) during the third quarter of that year. As simply Emily Collett she was seven and 17
years of age in the 1881 and 1891 census returns respectively, when she was
living with her family at 16 Wellington Street, Idle/Eccleshill. Like her older sister Annie (above) and
younger sister Minnie (below), Emily was also a worsted spinner in 1891. Just over seven years later, the marriage of
Emily Louisa Collett and Edward Moore was recorded at North Bierley register
office (Ref. 9b 358) during the second quarter of 1898. It seems there was no issue arising from
their marriage and, in 1901, the childless was residing at Peterborough Road in
Eccleshill, where Edward and Emily Moore were both 27 years of age, when Emily
from Eccleshill was still working in the local mill, but as a worsted
weaver. After a further ten years the
couple was still living in Eccleshill, by which time Emily Louisa Moore was
keeping house for her husband, who was taking in lodgers by then. Forty years after that census day the death
of Emily L Moore was recorded at Bradford register office (Ref. 9b 328) during
the first three months of 1951 when she was 77 years old
Minnie Collett [64P15] was born at Idle, within the Bradford
parish of Eccleshill, during the third quarter of 1875 with her birth recorded
at Bradford (Ref. 9b 254). It was at St
Luke’s Church in Eccleshill on 7th February 1876 that she was baptised, the
daughter of Arthur and Margaret Collett.
From around the time she was born, her parents we living at 16
Wellington Street in Idle, where Minnie was five years old in 1881, and was 15
in 1891, by which time she was already working as a worsted spinner with her
two older sisters Annie and Emily (above)
It
was on 11th August 1900 at the Eccleshill parish Church of St Luke
that Minnie Collett married Thomas Starkey, the event recorded at the Bradford
North Bierley register office (Ref. 9b 397).
Six months later Thomas and Minnie Starkey, both 25 years of age, were
living on Peterborough Road in Eccleshill, the same road as Minnie’s married
sister Emily Louisa Moore (above). On
that occasion Minnie was working at the local mill as a weaver of woollen cloth
and was already pregnant with the couple’s first child. By 1911 Minnie had given birth to three
children and all of them born at Eccleshill, as confirmed in the Eccleshill
census that year. It was also nearby in
Eccleshill where Minnie’s parents, together with her youngest sister Maud
Collett (below), and her older married sister Emily Louisa Moore and her
husband, were living at that same time.
Thomas Starkey was 35, as was his wife who was from Eccleshill, and
their three children were Herbert Starkey who was nine, Emily Starkey
who was six, and Thomas Starkey who was four years old
Minnie
was already pregnant with another son, William Starkey, on the day of
the census in April 1911, the child being born on 27th October 1911
who was 81 when he passed away at Bradford during the summer of 1993. Minnie Starkey nee Collett was 74 when she
died during the last three months of 1949, her death recorded at Bradford (Ref.
2b 265) when she was living at 39 Wellington Road in the Undercliffe area of
Bradford. Probate for Minnie Starkey,
the wife of Thomas Starkey, was granted to William and Herbert Starkey. Thomas Starkey served his country during the
Great War but was discharged due to bronchitis at the age of 40. His military record shows they had a total of
five children, Herbert who was born in 1902, Emily who was born in 1905, Thomas
who was born in 1906, William born in 1911 and Minnie Starkey who was
born on 22nd December 1913, all of them born at Eccleshill. However, Minnie was not their last child
since, ten months after she was born, her mother gave birth to twin sons who
most likely did not survive. The births
of Arthur Starkey and John Starkey were recorded on consecutive
entries at North Bierley register office (Refs. 9b 99 and 9b 100) during the
third quarter of 1914, when their mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Collett
John Collett [64P16] was born at Idle – a suburb to the
north of Bradford, possibly towards the end of 1878 or very early in 1879, the
only surviving son of Arthur Collett from Bremilham near Malmesbury in
Wiltshire and his wife Margaret Ellen Ward from Bradford in Yorkshire. His birth was recorded at Bradford (Ref. 9b
254) during the first quarter of 1879 and, by the time of the census in 1881,
John was two years old when he and his family were living at 16 Wellington
Street in Idle. It was at that same address
that he and the family were residing ten years later in 1891, when John Collett
was 11 and still at school. It should be
noted that it was only just over four months prior to the census that year that
John Collett, the son of Arthur and Margaret Collett was baptised at the Church
of St Luke in Eccleshill on 19th November 1890
Just
after the start of the century John Collett married (1) Lucy Eastmead, the
event recorded at Rotherham register office (Ref. 9c 1177) during the second
quarter of 1900. That first marriage
produced a son for John, named after his father, who was born before the end of
the year meaning, it was either a honeymoon child or, that Lucy was already
with-child on their wedding day. A few
months later, on the day the next census was conducted at the end of March
1901, the family of three was living at Tower Street in Eccleshill, where John
Collett of Bradford was 22 and a worsted loom maker, Lucy Collett was 20 and
from Rawmarsh, just north of Rotherham, while their son Arthur Collett was
under six months old and had been born at Eccleshill. Three years later daughter Hilda was added to
their family and after another three years, perhaps during the birth of a third
child who did not survive, Lucy Collett nee Eastmead died, her death recorded
at the Bradford North Bierley register office (Ref. 9b 117) during the final
quarter of 1907
Most
likely supported by his parents Arthur and Margaret living nearby, John
continued to care for his two children and was eventually re-married. The marriage of widower John Collett and (2)
Millicent Amos Morton was recorded at North Bierley (Ref. 9b 483) during the
third quarter of 1909. Between then and
the next census in 1911, John and Millicent moved into the centre of Bradford,
where the family was recorded in April 1911.
John Collett, aged 32 and from Bradford was a furnishing draper, and his
second wife Millicent Amos Collett from Lincolnshire was also 32. John’s son Arthur Collett was aged 10 years
and his daughter Hilda Collett was seven years of age
John
Collett died at Bradford on 23rd April 1947 while he was living at
205 Otley Road in the city, his death recorded at Bradford register office
(Ref. 2b 108) when he was 68. Probate of
his personal effects, valued at Ł956 18 Shillings, was granted jointly at
Wakefield on 16th May 1947 to his son Arthur Collett, a builder’s
labourer, and to Ernest Burgin, a master grocer, who was John’s son-in-law and
the husband of his daughter Hilda
64Q11 – Arthur Collett was born in 1900 at Eccleshill,
Bradford
64Q12 – Hilda Collett was born in 1904 at Bradford, Yorkshire
Edward Collett [64P17] was born in 1880 at 16 Wellington
Street, Idle, within the Bradford parish of Eccleshill. His birth was recorded at Bradford (Ref. 9b
251) during the last quarter of that year.
Upon being baptised at St Luke’s Church in Eccleshill on 17th
November 1880, his parents were named as Arthur and Margaret Ellen Collett, the
only occasion when his mother’s second forename was used. Edward was a poorly child and his baptism was
a hastily arranged event, with the death of baby Edward Collett recorded at
Bradford (Ref. 9b 156) shortly after he was christened
Agnes Collett [64P18] was born at 16 Wellington Street in
Idle, her birth recorded at Bradford (Ref. 9b 219) during the last three months
of 1884. Like most of her siblings, she
was baptised at the Eccleshill Church of St Luke where, over a year later, on
1st January 1886, she was named as the daughter of Arthur and Margaret
Collett. Agnes may have been suffering
with the same condition or illness that caused the death of her brother Edward
(above) since, just after her christening day, the death of Agnes Collett was
recorded at Bradford (Ref. 9b 161) when she was one year old
Maud Collett [64P19] was born at 16 Wellington Street in
Idle, her birth recorded at nearby Bradford (Ref. 9b 234) during the second
quarter of 1890, the last of the seven children of Arthur Collett and Margaret
Ward. It was at the Church of St Luke in
Eccleshill where she was baptised on 12th May 1890. According to the census in 1891, Maud Collett
was inaccurately recorded as being six months old when living with her family
at 16 Wellington Street. Ten years later
Maud Collett was 10 years old when she was the only child still living with her
parents at 16 Wellington Street. By 1911
the census that April still had the three of them living at the same address
which was then in Eccleshill. At that
time in her life, Maud Collett was 20 when she was working as a
restaurant attendant – presumably a waitress.
Maud was 21 when she
married George Boldy just a few months later, the event recorded at the
Bradford register office in North Bierley (Ref. 9b 32) during the third quarter
of 1911. George was born George Freeman
Boldy, the son of Herbert and Ellen Boldy, whose occupation in 1911 was that of
a grease extractor
John Henry Albert Collett
[64P22] was born at
Bristol in 1876, the eldest child of John Collett of Foxley and his wife
Margaret Louisa Goodfield, also from Foxley.
His birth was recorded at Clifton (Ref. 6a 55) during the second quarter
of that year. It was at Barton Hill to
the south of Bristol, near the county boundary with Somerset, where John Henry
Albert Collett was baptised at the Church of St Luke on 4th June
1876. When he was around four years of
age, his parents left Bristol when the family settled in Worcester. It was as John H A Collett, aged four years,
that he was recorded in the census of 1881 when he was living with his family
at 21 Bowling Green Terrace in the Blockhouse area of the city. Sometime during the next decade, the family
moved to South Claines, immediately to the north of Worcester, where they were
living in 1891, when John H A Collett was 14 years of age
Nine
years after that census day, John became a married man, where the marriage of
John Henry A Collett and Edith Purser was recorded at Worcester register office
(Ref. 6c 495) during the third quarter of 1900.
Six months later, the Worcester census conducted in March 1901 placed John
H A Collett from Bristol as living there, where he was working as a tailor’s
cutter at the age of 24. His wife was
also living there with him, and was confirmed as Edith Collett from Twyning in
Gloucestershire, who was 22. During the first decade of their married
life, Edith presented John with four children, who were all still living with
the couple at Worcester in 1911. John H
A Collett from Bristol was 34 and a tailor’s cutter in the manufacture of
clothing, Edith from Twyning was 32, Sidney J Collett was nine, James H Collett
was six, Edith M Collett was four, and Thomas A Collett was one-year-old, all
of them born in Worcester. Three years
later, a further son was added to the family, with the arrival of Victor A
Collett, whose birth was also recorded at Worcester
It
was in 1932, and following the death of his father, that John’s full name was
recorded, when he was named as John Henry Albert Collett, a clothing
manufacturer’s foreman, the sole executor of his late father’s estate. Five years later, the death of Edith Collett,
wife of John H A Collett, was recorded at Worcester register office (Ref. 6c 6)
during the second quarter of 1938, when she was 59 years old. His full name was used again during the
probate process for his Will in 1944. As
John H A Collett his death was recorded at Worcester register office (Ref. 6c
37) during the first quarter of that year, following his death on 5th
March at the age of 67. His Will was
proved at Birmingham on 17th April 1944 when his second son James
Henry Collett, a tailor’s cutter, was named as the sole executor of his estate
of Ł150 19 Shillings and 8 Pence
64Q13 – Sidney John Collett was born in 1901 at Worcester
64Q14 – James Henry Collett was born in 1904 at Worcester
64Q15 – Edith Mary Collett was born in 1906 at Worcester
64Q16 – Thomas Arthur Collett was born in 1909 at Worcester
64Q17 – Victor Albert Collett was born in 1914 at Worcester
Mary
Elizabeth Maud Collett [64P23]
was born at Bristol in 1877 and it was there that she was baptised on 21st
October 1877 the daughter of John and Margaret Collett. She was around three years old when her
parents took the family from Bristol to Worcester where they were living in
1881, when Mary E M Collett was three years old. Their
address on that occasion was 21 Bowling Green Terrace in Blockhouse,
Worcester. It was as Mary E L Collett
that she was living with her family at South Claines near Worcester in 1891
when she was 13. She was recorded simply as Maud Collett
from Bristol, aged 23, who was a dressmaker in the March census of 1901 when
she was still living at Lower Chesnut Street in Worcester with her family. It was the same situation in 1911, when Maud
Collett from Bristol single, 34 and a dressmaker, who was the eldest of the six
children still living with her parents in Worcester
Mary
was into her late forties when she became a married lady. The marriage of Mary E M Collett and George W
Millwater was recorded at Worcester register office (Ref. 6c 297) during the
third quarter of 1925. They were
together for less than seven years when George William Millwater passed away on
17th January 1932. His Will
was proved at Birmingham on 1st July 1932 when during the probate
process his wife was described as Mary Elizabeth Maud Millwater, a widow, who
was jointly charged with looking after his personal effects with Alice Gladys
Millwater, the wife of Walter Millwater, who was most likely his brother or his
son from an earlier marriage. His widow,
Mary Elizabeth Maud Millwater nee Collett died on 28th February 1956
and her Will was proved at Gloucester on 24th April that year, when
the executors of her estate were named as Lena Florence Collett, a married
woman, and Elsie Carpenter, another married woman. Lena Florence Collett was the wife of Mary’s
younger brother James F W Collett (below)
Ernest Percy William
Collett [64P24] was
born at Bristol, possibly at the end of 1878 or early in 1879, since his birth
as simply Ernest Percy Collett was recorded at Barton Regis (Ref. 6a 230)
during the first quarter of 1879. He was
the third child of John and Margaret Collett.
Shortly after he was born his family moved to Worcester where his
further siblings were born. Ernest
P W Collett from Bristol was two years old in the Worcester census of 1881,
when he and his family were living at 21 Bowling Green Terrace in the
Blockhouse area of Worcester. He was
still with his family at South Claines, near Worcester in 1891, when Ernest E
Collett was 12 years old. By the time of
the census in 1901 Ernest Collett, aged 22 and from Bristol, was a telegraph
labourer, indicating that he was employed by the General Post Office. He was still unmarried and was still living
at the family home at Lower
Chesnut Street in Worcester
Just
over two years later, the marriage of Ernest Percy W Collett and Sarah Burgess
Perring was recorded at Worcester register office (Ref. 6c 258) during the last
three months 1903. The birth of Sarah
Burgess Perring was recorded at Worcester (Ref. 6c 210) during the third
quarter 1880, following which she was baptised there at the Church of St Mary
Magdalene on 4th November 1880, the daughter of Walter Tweed Perring
and Susan Perring. It is likely that she
was born at Easy Row in Whistones within the parish of Claines, where her
family was living in 1881. Once married
the couple initially settled in Glamorganshire, where their first child was
born before returning to Worcestershire for the births of their next three
children. It was at 20 Wolverton Road in
Worcester where they and their four children were living in 1911, when Ernest
Percy William Collett from Bristol was 32 and working as a carpenter. His wife Sarah Burgess Collett from Worcester
was 31, and their three children were recorded as Elsie Collett who was six and
born in Glamorganshire South Wales, Walter S Collett who was four, Ernest W
Collett who was two years old, and baby Violet S Collett who was just five
months old, all three of them born in Worcester
The
birth of their eldest child, Elsie, was recorded at Pontypridd register office
(Ref. 11a 239) during the last three months of 1904. Following her birth on 20th
October 1904, the baptism of Elsie Collett took place at Ystradyfodwg in
Glamorganshire on 11th December 1904. It may well have been Ernest’s work as a
carpenter that resulted in a family move to Nuneaton in Warwickshire, where the
births of three more children were recorded of the next three years, the first two
being twins. The later death of Ernest P
W Collett was recorded at Nuneaton register office (Ref. 6d 44) during the
first three months of 1936, when he was 57 years of age
64Q18 – Elsie Collett was born in 1904
at Pontypridd
64Q19 – Walter Stanley Collett was born in 1906 at Worcester
64Q20 – Ernest William Collett was born in 1908 at Worcester
64Q21 – Violet Susan Collett was born in 1910 at Worcester
64Q22 – Edna Collett was born in 1912 at Nuneaton
64Q23 – Percy Collett was born in 1912 at Nuneaton
64Q24 – John Kenneth Collett was born in 1914 at Nuneaton
Francis Lewis George
Collett [64P25] was
born at Worcester during the early days of March 1881, the son of John and
Margaret Collett. His birth was recorded
at Worcester register office (Ref. 6c 311) under the name of Francis Lewis G
Collett during the second quarter of 1881 and he was just three weeks old in
the census that year when he was named as Francis G L Collett. Tragically, he was only six years of age when
he died at Worcester where the death of Francis Collett was recorded during the
third quarter of 1887 (Ref. 6c 147)
Arthur Reginald Collett [64P26] was born at Worcester in 1886, his
birth recorded there during the second quarter of that year (Ref. 6c 16), the
fifth child of John Collett and Margaret Louisa Goodfield. He was five years old in 1891 when Arthur R
Collett was living in South Claines near Worcester. By 1901 he was living at Lower Chesnut Street
in Worcester, when Arthur was working as a general errand boy at the age of 14,
one of six children still living there with his parents. Some years later, Arthur left his family in
Worcester and move to Birmingham to seek work, and it was there at Saltley, to
the east of the city centre that he was listed in 1911 as being Arthur Collett
from Worcester who was 25 and the manager of a seed store. Most likely at the outbreak of the Great War,
he enlisted with the army and eventually became Private Collett 23212 with the
10th Battalion Worcestershire Regiment. Sadly, on 23rd October 1916 at the
age of thirty, he was killed in action during the Battle of the Somme which
lasted from early July to early November that year. His name, simply as Arthur Collett, is just
one of the 72,000 listed on the Thievpal Memorial for men who died with no
known grave. It is not known whether he
was married or not, since no next-of-kin was listed in his military records
James Francis Walter
Collett [64P27] was
born at Worcester on 20th October 1888, one year after the death of
his older brother Francis whose name he was given. He was recorded as James Francis W Collett on
the occasion of the registration of his birth at Worcester (Ref. 6c 209) during
the last three months of 1888. It is
possible that he was born when the family was living in the South Claines
district to the north of Worcester, where they were living at the time of the
census in 1891 where he was recorded as James F W Collett aged two years. He was still attending school in 1901 when he
was 12 years old and still living with his parents at Lower Chesnut Street in
Worcester. On that occasion he was
simply recorded as James Collett, as he was again in 1911 when he was still
living with his parents in Worcester at the age of 23, by which time he was a
leather sorter working for a glove manufacturer
Also
living in Worcester on that same census day, was James’ future wife Lena
Florence Jones, who was a dressmaker still living there with her parents. Lena was born at Worcester on 28th
August 1887, the daughter of Thomas and Henrietta Clara Jones. Her entry into the Collett family was by way
of the marriage of James F W Collett and Lena F Jones which was recorded at
Worcester register office (Ref. 6c 86) during the third quarter of 1914. Upon the death of James’ older married and
widowed sister Mary Elizabeth Maud Millwater nee Collett (above) in 1956, her
Will named Lena Florence Collett, a married woman, as one of the two main
beneficiaries. The death of Lena
Florence Collett was also recorded at Worcester register office (Ref. 9d 39)
during the first few months of 1971.
Seven years after losing his wife, and apparently having lived all of
his life in Worcestershire, the death of James Francis W Collett was recorded
at Worcester register office (Vol. 29 78) during spring of 1978
George Lewis Collett [64P28]
was born at South
Claines, just north of Worcester in July 1890, the seventh of the eight
children of John and Margaret Collett, who was baptised on 17th
September 1890 at the Church of St Mary Magdalene. His birth was recorded at Worcester register
office (Ref. 6c 322) during the third quarter of that year and, according to
the census in 1891, he was eight months old.
On that occasion he was recorded at South Claines with his family as
George L Collett. His family eventually
moved in Worcester and was residing at Lower Chestnut Street in 1901, when
George Collett was 10 years of age.
Tragically, two years later, the death of George Lewis Collett was
recorded at Worcester register office (Ref. 6c 327) during the second quarter
of 1903, when he was only 12 years of age.
He was buried in Worcester of 14th May 1903, his home address
recorded as 4 Eastnor Villas on Lower Chestnut Street
Victor Stanley Collett [64P29]
was born at South
Claines in Worcester during the first half of 1892, with his birth recorded at
Worcester register office (Ref. 6c 177) during the second quarter of that
year. He was baptised on 11th
May 1892 at the Church of St Mary Magdalene, the eighth and last child of John
Collett and Margaret Louisa Goodfield.
Curiously, his name was simply recorded by his parents in both the next
two census returns as Stanley Collett.
On the first of those, Stanley Collett was nine years of age when his
family was living at 4 Eastnor Villas, Lower Chestnut Street in Worcester,
while in 1911 he was 19 years old and employed as a glove cutter, working
alongside his old brother James (above).
It was over eight years later when the marriage of Victor S Collett and
Annie M Walley was recorded at Worcester register office (Ref. 6c 137) during
the last three months of 1919, with whom he had two sons and a daughter and, in
each case, the mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Walley. Annie Mabel Walley was born at Worcester in
summer of 1892 (Ref. 6c 288), the daughter of potter’s printer John Walley from
Ohio City, USA, and his wife Mary from Staffordshire. According to the census in 1911 Annie was
working in the Royal Worcester Pottery as a china printeress
Victor
Stanley Collett was still a resident of Worcester when he died on 18th
May 1966 at 13 Cecilia Avenue in Worcester.
The details included within the probate process for his Will, proved at
Gloucester on 18th August 1966, described him at Stanley Victor
Collett of 268 Wylds Lane in Worcester, while it was his widow Annie Mabel
Collett who was the executor of his estate.
It was also at Worcester register office, fifteen years later, where the
death of widow Annie Mabel Collett was recorded (Vol. 29 48) towards the end of
1981 when she was 88 years of age, her death certificate stating that she had
been born on 16th August 1892.
It is understood that the two youngest children were still alive in 2013
64Q25 – Stanley John Collett was born in 1921 at Worcester
64Q26 – Leonard W Collett was born in 1924 at Worcester
64Q27 – Beryl M Collett was born in 1928 at Worcester
Henry Collett [64P30] was born at Norton-Coleparle, at the
end of 1862 or early in 1863, since his birth was recorded at Malmesbury (Ref.
5a 77) during the first three months of 1863.
He was the first-born child of William Collett and Emma Garland, and was
eight years old in the census of 1871.
He was still living at the family home in Norton-Coleparle ten years
later, when he was 18 and employed as an agricultural labourer, probably
alongside his father. As with other
members of his family, Henry was also drawn to the north of England, probably
through the opportunity of working on the railway since, by 1891, when he was
still single at 27 years of age, he was employed as a railway signalman. At that time in his life, he was lodging at
Grace Church Street in Bradford,
with the family of James Collett from Bremilham in Wiltshire, whose young
family had moved to Bradford in the West Riding of Yorkshire prior to
1881. James Thomas
Collett (Ref. 64O16) from Bremilham near Malmesbury, was the cousin of Henry’s
father William Collett
Seven months
later, the marriage of Henry Collett and Louisa Fuller took place on 18th
October 1891 at Pangbourne in Berkshire, where Louisa was born near the end of
1866. She was also baptised at
Pangbourne on 10th March 1867, the daughter of George and Elizabeth
Fuller, with whom she was still living at Reading Road in Pangbourne in 1891,
from where she was working as a housemaid at the age of 24. After their wedding day, the couple lived for
a time in Bradford, where their daughter was born, before moving to Keighley,
where their son was born. Just after the turn of the century the
family was living at Skipton from where Henry was continuing his occupation as
a railway signalman. He was 36 and from
Norton, Louisa was 34 and from Pangbourne, and their two children were Flossie
Collett who was eight and from Bradford and Clement Collett who was three years
old and born at Keighley
Sometime during
the next decade, the family left Skipton and by the time of the next census in
1911 the family of four was residing at 3 Oswald Street, off Carr Lane, in
Shipley-cum-Heaton, just north of Bradford within the North Bierley district of
the West Riding of Yorkshire. The census
return on that occasion confirmed that Henry and Louisa had been married for
nineteen years and that they had given birth to two children. Henry Collett from Norton in Wiltshire was 48
and still a railway signalman, his wife Louisa Collett from Pangbourne was 44,
and their two children were Flossie Collett who was 18 and working as a laundress,
and Clement Collett who was 13. When her
son died in 1930, it was Louisa Collett and Henry Collett who were named as the
first and second beneficiaries, which was rather strange bearing in mind that
Clement Henry Collett was a married man, with a son of his own, by then. The death of a Henry Collett, of the right
age, was recorded at Blyth in Suffolk (Ref. 4b 47) during the fourth quarter of
1952, when he was 90 years old. Whether
he was the Henry from Wiltshire via Yorkshire remains to be determined
64Q28 – Flossie Esther Collett was born in 1892 at Bradford
64Q29 – Clement Henry Collett was born in 1898 at Keighley
Elizabeth Collett [64P31] was born at Norton-Coleparle with her
birth recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 97) during the second quarter of 1865,
the second child of William and Emma Collett.
For some reason she was recorded as being four years old in the Norton
census of 1871 and again in 1881 when she was 14 and already working as a
general domestic servant. By that time
in her life Elizabeth Collett from Norton in Wiltshire was employed by maltster
and brewer Isaac Witchell in his home at Church Street in Tetbury
Catherine Collett [64P32] was born at Norton-Coleparle in 1868,
when her birth was recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 261) during the second
quarter of that year, another daughter of William and Emma Collett. She was two years old and 12 years of age,
and a scholar, respectively in the 1871 and 1881 censuses for
Norton-Coleparle. She
was twenty-one years old when, as Kate Collett, the marriage of Catherine
Collett and Sidney King was recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 270) during the
second quarter of 1889, which may have taken place at Norton-Coleparle. Sidney had been born at Beverston, near
Tetbury, during 1864 and may have been introduced to Kate by her older sister
Elizabeth (above) who was working in Tetbury in 1881
Immediately
following the wedding, the couple left Wiltshire and settled at Woodchester,
near Stroud in Gloucestershire, where their first child was born around nine
months later. Two years later, Sidney King was 30
years of age and working as a carter and agricultural labourer who was living
at Bospin Lane in Woodchester with his wife Kate King from Wiltshire who was
23, and their first child, son Frederick W King, who was one year old. Over the next ten years, the couple had a
further four children, all of whom were born at Woodchester. It was also at Woodchester that
they were still living in 1901. Sidney
King was 38 and his occupation was that of a shepherd on a farm, and living
with him was Catherine King from Norton in Wiltshire who was 32, and their five
children. They were Frederick William
King aged 12, Florence King aged 10, George King who was
eight, Adeline King who was four, and Sidney Philip King who was
two years old. Completing the household
was Kate’s widowed father William Collett from Norton-Coleparle
Four
more children were added to the family during the first decade of the new
century, with the enlarged family still residing in Woodchester in 1911. By then Sidney was 52, Catherine was 43, Fred
was 21, Florence was 19, George was 17, Adeline was 14, Philip was 12, Herbert
King was 10, Douglas King was seven, Dorothy King was five,
and Clement King was two years old.
Staying with the family that day was Roscoe Collett who was six years of
age and described as the nephew of Sidney and Kate, who had been born at
Mountain Ash in Glamorganshire, South Wales (Rhondda Cynon Taff). He was Roscoe Elrick Collett (Ref. 53R16),
whose birth had been recorded at Pontypridd register office (Ref. 11a 363)
during the second quarter of 1904
William Collett [64P33] was born at Norton-Coleparle in 1871,
his birth recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 261) during the third quarter of that
year. By the time of the census in 1881
he was 10 years old and attending school in Norton, where he was living with
his family. At the age of 29, head of
the household William Collett from Norton was in Hullavington, next door to his
brother Fred Collett (below). On that
occasion, William was working as a general labourer on the construction of a line
of the Great Western Railway. No record
of William has been found after that day
Philip Collett [64P34] was born at Norton-Coleparle, his birth
recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 188) during the last three months of 1874,
another son of William and Emma Collett.
Whilst his age was listed as being six years in the Norton census of
1881, ten years later he was recorded as being 18 years old, but that may have
simply been an error in transcribing, as 16 would have been a more accurate
age. Philip was an agricultural
labourer, the elder of two sons still living at the home of his parents which,
by then was on Foxley Road in St Mary Westport.
However, according to the 1901 Census, bachelor Philip Collett, aged 25
and from Norton, was a lodger at the home of George and Ann Cordy in
Mangotsfield, Gloucestershire, from where he was working as a railway
porter. Around four and a half years
later he married Rhoda Bailey at the Church of St James in Mangotsfield on 2nd
September 1905. Philip was confirmed as
the son of William Collett, while Rhoda was the daughter of George Baily and
had been born on 22nd March 1884 at Frampton Cotterell, near
Mangotsfield. The details of the
marriage were recorded at Keynsham register office (Ref. 5c 147), where the
births of their two children were also recorded, together with the premature
death of their father within the same decade they were born
Tragically,
the couple was only married for just over three years when, Philip Collett died
on 21st February 1909 at the age of 35, following which he was
buried at St James Church in Mangotsfield on 25th February
1909. His passing was recorded at
Keynsham register office (Ref. 5c 80) and by that time in his life, Philip was
still employed as a railway porter who was living with his wife at St James
Place in Mangotsfield. The
administration of his personal effects took place at Bristol on 29th
March 1909, when it was his wife Rhoda Collett, widow, who inherited Ł88 6
Shillings and 2 Pence. Curiously, two
years later. on the day of the census in 1911, the only member of the family of
three who has been positively identified was Philip’s son George Collett of
Mangotsfield, who was five years of age and was staying with Rhoda’s parents in
Mangotsfield. Head of the household
George Bailey was 53, his wife Elizabeth was 50, and their daughter Bessie was
18. No record of his mother or his
sister has been discovered, while it was during the last three months of 1911,
when the second marriage of Rhoda Collett, a widow, and widower Thomas Howard
was recorded at Keynsham register office (Ref. 5c 60). The service was conducted at St James’ Church
in Mangotsfield on 16th December 1911, when Rhoda was confirmed as
the daughter of George Bailey, and the groom’s father was named as Richard
Howard
64Q30 – Philip George Collett was born in 1906 at Mangotsfield
64Q31 – Nora Emily Bessie Collett was born in 1908 at Mangotsfield
Frederick Collett [64P35] was the odd one of the family as he was
born at Easton Grey in 1879, rather than at Norton-Coleparle. Like his brother Philip there were
discrepancies in his age in the 1881 and 1891 census records. The first of them placed him living
with his family at Norton and he was one-year old. Ten years later his age was recorded as 15
when he was still living at Norton-Coleparle.
Just after the turn
of the century Fred was working as a wagon tipper on the construction of a line
of the Great Western railway while living at house number 88 in the main street
in Hullavington. It seems very likely that
he was working with his brother William (above) who also lived next door at
number 89
John William Wicks [64P37] was born at Hullavington in 1870 and
was the base born child of Sarah Deborah Wicks.
In November 1873 John’s mother married widower Charles Collett whose
second wife had died in 1869. There is
therefore some speculation that John’s father may have been Charles
Collett. According to the 1881 Census
John was 12 years old and was listed as ‘son’ and eldest child in the family of
Charles and Sarah Collett. However, that
may have been said for propriety’s sake only, as he may or may not have been
the birth son of Charles Collett. Nine
years later in the first quarter of 1890 John married Minnie Curtis. She was the daughter of Henry and Ruth Curtis
and had been at Stoke Gifford in 1871 where she and her family were living in
1881. Once they were marriage John and
Minnie lived all of their life together in Stoke Gifford where all nine of the
children were born. At the time of the
1901 Census John was confirmed as living with his family at Stoke Gifford where
he was working as a general labourer.
His place of birth was confirmed as Hullavington. According to the census John was 30, Minnie
was 29, and their first three children were sons Jesse A Wicks, aged
ten, and George F Wicks, aged five, and daughter Ruth E Wicks who
was three years old. When John died, he
was living at Westerleigh, not far from Stoke Gifford
Elena Elizabeth Collett [64P38] was at Hullavington on 2nd
February 1874, her birth being rerecorded at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 54) during the
first quarter of 1874, under the name of Elena Elizabeth Collett. In addition, the Bishops transcript of her
baptism, and that of the Hullavington parish register, recorded the event as
follows: Helena Elizabeth Collett baptised at Hullavington on 11th
February 1874, the eldest daughter of labourer Charles Collett and his third
wife Sarah Deborah Wicks. She was also
recorded as Helena Collett in the census of 1881, by which time she was six
years old and living with her family at Gibbs Lane in Hullavington. Various family moves took place during the
1880s but, by 1891, Elena E Collett was 18 when she was described as ‘helping
her mother’ while living with her family at Latteridge, just north-west of Iron
Acton in Gloucestershire. In between
those times she and her family had lived at Mangotsfield, Westerleigh, and
Stoke Gifford, all near Bristol
Around
the time of her twenty-first birthday, but referred to as Bessie Collett, she
married Arthur Stone in Bristol, the event recorded at the Barton Regis
register office (Ref. 6a 304) during the second quarter of 1894. Arthur was born in 1870 at Fishponds where it
appears that the couple lived all of their life and where all of their nine
children were born. By 1901 Elena E
Stone from Hullavington was 28 and her husband Arthur Stone of Fishponds was 30
and a cycle mechanic, who were living in the Fishponds parish of St Mary with
their four children, who were all born at Fishponds. They were Lilian E Stone who was six, Ethel
H Stone who was four, Rosie Stone who was three, and Hilda M
Stone who was one-year-old. And it
was at Fishponds that Elena and Arthur both died. From the day of her wedding, and for the rest
of her life, Elena was known as Bessie and Auntie Bessie. Just prior to the next census in 1911, and
following the birth of a further two children at Fishponds and another at
Winterbourne, the family moved to Mangotsfield
It
was therefore at Mangotsfield where the enlarged family was recorded in 1911,
when Arthur Stone was 40, Bessie Stone was 38, and their six children were Lily
who was 16, Ethel who was 15, Rosie who was 14, Harold Stone who was
seven, Grantly Stone who was five, and Arthur Stone who was two
years of age and born at Winterbourne.
No record of daughter Hilda M Stone has been found in 1911. Apparently, there were two other children for
whom the dates of birth are not known, and they were Cissy Stone and Ronald
Stone. Elena’s son Arthur Stone, married
Vera Sophie England at Downend on 6th April 1939, with whom he had
two daughters. His wife Vera, who was
born in 1914, died in 1999 in South Gloucestershire
Hannah Matilda Collett [64P39] was born at Foxley on 18th
January 1876, the daughter of Charles Collett and his third wife Sarah Deborah
Wicks, with her birth being recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 52) during the
during the first quarter of 1876. She
was five years old and was living with her family at Gibbs Lane in Hullavington
by the time of the census in 1881.
Sadly, she was only 14 years old when she died from typhoid fever, with
her mother Sarah by her bedside when she passed away at Gaunts Earthcott in
Almondsbury on 17th June 1890.
The death was recorded at Thornbury in Gloucestershire and the
certificate noted correctly that she was 16, and at that time in her life she
had already started working as a general domestic servant
Charles Eli Collett [64P40] was born at Hullavington in 1878, although his birth was
recorded at Malmesbury (Ref. 5a 59) during the first quarter of the year as
simply Charles Collett. He was baptised
at Hullavington on 28th April 1878, the son of labourer Charles
Collett and his wife Sarah Deborah Collett.
He was three years old and was living with his family at Gibbs Lane in
Hullavington on the day of the census in 1881.
Ten years later, the next census of 1891 placed the family living at
Latteridge near Iron Acton, when Charles Collett was again living with his
parents and was confirmed as their son, although he was recorded as Eli C
Collett, similar to the name he used on his wedding day. On that occasion he had already left school
and was working as an agricultural labourer at the age of 13. Where Charles was in 1901 is not currently
known, but it was just over five years later that he married Sarah Louisa
Milsom at St Werburgh’s Church in Bristol on 5th August 1906. On the marriage certificate his name was
given as Charles Eli Collett – as it was again at the birth of the couple’s
first child. The witnesses to the
marriage were named as James and Maud White.
Sarah was the daughter of William and Louisa Milsom who was living with
her family at Victoria Street in Bristol in 1901
Sometime
between the birth of their son at Bristol in 1909 and the census inn April
1911, Charles and his family left Bristol, when they moved to South Wales. By the time of the census, the family was
residing at 48 Vaughan Street in Pwllgwaun, Pontypridd. According to the census return Charles and
Sarah had been married for five years and during that time Sarah had presented
Charles with two children, of which son Arthur was the only survivor. Charles Collett from Wiltshire was 33 and
working as an underground horse driver (in the coal mines), while his wife
Sarah, from Easton, Bristol, was 23. Two
other people were listed at the address with them, the first being their son
Arthur Collett who was two years old and born at Fishponds in Bristol, and
Sarah’s brother George Milsom, also from Easton, who was 19
On
the day of the census, Sarah was once again with-child and the couple’s third
issue was born later that same year.
Tragedy was to strike the family again when their third child died
before the end of 1911. Charles’
occupation in 1911 was that of an underground horse driver, indicating that he
was working in a coal mine. Living with
the family at that time was Sarah’s brother George Milsom who was 19. Nothing more is known of Charles and his
family after that time. In the Electoral
Roll for Painswick in, or after, 1956, Charles E Collett and his wife Sarah L
Collett were recorded as residing at 8 Gyde Alms Houses, where also three other
people with the Collett surname were also noted living at New Hall. They were husband and wife Francis J Collett
and Lucy O Collett, and their daughter Elizabeth B Collett who was born at the
end of 1935, thus placing the earliest date for the entry as 1956, when she was
21. That family of three features in
Part 35 – The Melksham to Wisconsin and Ontario Line (Ref. 35P84). The death of Charles Collett was recorded at
Stroud (Ref. 7b 623) during the fourth quarter of 1967 at the age of 90. It was at the start of that same year when
the death of Sarah Collett was recorded at Bristol (Ref. 7b 153) during the
first quarter of 1867 when she was 80 years old
64Q32
– Phyllis Edna May Collett
was born in 1907 at Bristol
64Q33
– Arthur Charles Eli Collett
was born in 1908 at Bristol
64Q34
– George William Collett
was born in 1911 at Pontypool
Jane Collett [64P41] was one half of a set of twins born at
Hullavington in May 1880. As the daughter of Charles Collett, a
labourer, and his wife Sarah Deborah, she was privately baptised at
Hullavington on 25th May 1880 in a joint ceremony with her twin
sister Frances (below). Privately
baptised means that the two sisters were baptised at home due to their poor
health. Jane was ten months old by the
time of the census of 1881 and was living with her family at Gibbs Lane in
Hullavington. Her twin sister Frances
had died within three weeks of their private baptism and Jane passed away five
days after the census day, aged eleven months.
She died at Hullavington on 8th April 1881 and was ‘received
into the church’ on 17th April 1881
Frances Ellen Collett [64P42] was one half of a set of twins born at
Hullavington in May 1880. She was privately baptised at Hullavington on
25th May 1880 in a joint ceremony with her twin sister Jane (above),
but tragically passed away three weeks later and was buried at Hullavington on
14th June 1880
Ellen Jane Collett [64P43] was born at Hullavington in July 1881
and was named in honour of her late twin sisters Jane and Ellen (above). She was baptised at Hullavington on 5th
June 1881, when her parents were confirmed as Charles, a labourer, and Sarah
Deborah Collett. Unlike her twin
sisters, Ellen did survive long enough to celebrate her fourth birthday but
then, tragically, she died during the fourth quarter of 1885, together with her
baby brother Henry (below), both deaths being recorded at Keynsham (Ref. 5c
429) in Gloucestershire on the same day
Henry Collett [64P44] may have been born at Hullavington,
before the family moved to Westerleigh.
Alternatively, he might have been born after the move to Westerleigh,
where the family was certainly living when Henry Collett, the son of labourer
Charles Collett of Westerleigh and Sarah Deborah Wicks, was baptised on 3rd
June 1884. Henry was two years old when
he died during the last quarter of 1885, his death recorded at Keynsham (Ref.
5c 429) immediately after his sister Ellen Jane Collett (above), both of them
recorded under the same death reference
William Collett [64P45] was born at Westerleigh on 7th October 1884, where
he was baptised on 19th April 1885, a son of Charles Collett by his
third wife Sarah Deborah Wicks. He was
seven years old in the census of 1891 when living with his family at Latteridge. Ten years later, at the age of sixteen,
William was working as a general labourer while still living with his family at
Westerleigh Hill in Westerleigh. Just
over five years later William married Dorothy Pullin on 22nd
December 1906 at the White Hill Chapel in Winterbourne in South
Gloucestershire. Dorothy was born in
1883 at Winterbourne and was the daughter of Arthur and Nellie Pullin who were
witnesses at her wedding. It was William
who was the informant of the death of his mother Sarah Collett in January 1910
at Hambrook. Her death certificate
confirmed that William was present at her passing and that he lived at nearby
Winterbourne. Fifteen months later
William and Dorothy were still living at Winterbourne with their first two children
who were born there. The census in 1911 recorded William Collett at the age of
27, his wife Dorothy as 28, and their two children as Alden Collett, who was
three, and Leslie Collett who was two years old. It would appear that William and Dorothy remained
living at Winterbourne for the rest of their life together, since it was there
that all of their remaining children were born, and where they both died, with
William Collett passing away on 23rd March 1962. In addition to the ten children listed below,
it is understood that Dorothy gave birth to a stillborn child between 1913 and
1919
64Q35
– Alden George Charles Collett
was born in 1907 at Winterbourne
64Q36
– Leslie Collett was
born in 1909 at Winterbourne
64Q37
– Wilfred Graham Collett
was born in 1911 at Winterbourne
64Q38
– Nora Millicent Collett
was born in 1913 at Winterbourne
64Q39
– Wilfred Collett was
born in 1919 at Winterbourne
64Q40
– Jesse Collett was
born in 1920 at Winterbourne
64Q41
– Henry John Collett
was born in 1922 at Winterbourne
64Q42
– Ellen Edna Collett
was born in 1923 at Winterbourne
64Q43
– Reginald Collett was
born in 1925 at Winterbourne
64Q44
– Thomas William Collett
was born in 1927 at Winterbourne
Henry Edward Collett [64P46], who was known by the family as Harry,
was born at Downend near Mangotsfield in Bristol on 7th April 1886,
where he was baptised on 25th August 1886, another son of Charles
and Sarah Deborah Collett. It was as
Henry that he was listed in the 1891 Census living with his family at
Latteridge within the Iron Acton & Chipping Sodbury registration
district. He was five years old at that
time and additional information in the census record referred to the fact that
he was a cripple. That coincides with
the family story that he was either born with only half a leg, or that he had
suffer the loss due to an accident and used a wooden stump to get around. In the census return for 1901 he was referred
to as Harry Collett who was born at Downend in Bristol. His age was given as being fourteen and his
occupation was that of a shoemaker. By
that time, he had left the family home in Westerleigh Hill and was living with
a family in Bristol
At
some later time, during the third quarter of 1910, the marriage of Henry
Collett and Florence E Tovey was recorded at Bristol register office (Ref. 6a
88). She was a child of George and
Elizabeth Tovey of Arthur Street in Bristol, where Florence Ethel Tovey was
born in 1885. It was at Station Avenue
in the Fishponds area of Bristol that the couple was living in April 1911, when
Florence was most likely pregnant with the couple’s first child. Henry was 25 and Florence was 24, and with
them was Harry’s father Charles Collett who had gone to live with them following
the death of his wife at the start of 1910.
The marriage of Harry and Florence was previously thought to have
produced two children for the couple, although it now appears that there were
at least three, the third child born after Henry’s likely absence because of
the First World War and the dreadful flu pandemic that followed it
64Q45
– Christine Collett was
born in 1911 at Bristol
64Q46
– Gilbert Henry Collett
was born in 1914 at Bristol
64Q47
– Gladys M Collett was
born in 1925 at Bristol
Thomas
Collett [64P47] was
born at Westerleigh on 16th April 1887, his birth recorded at
Chipping Sodbury (Ref. 6a 322) during the second quarter of that year. He was then baptised there at the Church of
St James the Great on 9th July 1887, another son of Charles and
Deborah Collett and their tenth child.
Rather curiously, a year later, as Tom Collett, he was baptised at St
Michael’s Church in Stoke Gifford in a joint ceremony with his younger brother
Alden (below) on 5th August 1888), when the family was living at
Walls Court, his father a labourer. He
was three years old in the Latteridge census of 1891 by which time he was again
referred to as Tom Collett. By 1901 his
family was living at Westerleigh Hill in Westerleigh where Thomas was recorded
as Tom Collett of Westerleigh, aged 13, who was still attending school. According to the next census in April 1911,
Thomas was 23 and had moved to Brentford in Middlesex where it is known that he
was married six years later
It
was either at the end of 1915 or early in 1916, when the marriage of Thomas
Collett and Mary Emma French was recorded at Brentford register office (Ref. 3a
122) during the first three months of the latter. The church service took place at St Faith’s
Church on Windmill Road in Brentford.
One year prior to the couple’s wedding day, Emma gave birth to a son,
whose birth was recorded at Ealing, when the mother’s maiden-name was confirmed
as French, as with all eight children.
It would also appear that the family lived all of their life together in
Middlesex, with the later weddings of their children recorded either at
Brentford or Ealing. The death of Thomas
Collett was recorded at Ealing register office (Ref. 5b 145) during the second
quarter of 1965, age the age of 78. Two
years later, the death of Emma M Collett was recorded at Hounslow register
office (Ref. 5c 94) during the second quarter of 1967, when she was also 78
years old. It was as Emma Mary French that she was born in 1888 and baptised at
St James’ Church in Hatcham, Surrey on 24th May 1888, the daughter
of Albert Thomas and Ellen Maria French
64Q48
– Thomas Charles Collett
was born in 1915 at Ealing, Middlesex
64Q49 – Bessie M Collett was born in 1917 at Brentford,
Middlesex
64Q50 – Doris May Collett was born in 1919 at Brentford,
Middlesex
64Q51 – Ronald William Collett was born in 1921 at Brentford,
Middlesex
64Q52 – Stanley Clifford Collett was born in 1923 at Brentford,
Middlesex
64Q53 – Peggy Collett was born in 1927 at Brentford,
Middlesex
64Q54 – Lawrence F Collett was born in 1931 at Brentford,
Middlesex
64Q55 – Sheila B Collett was born in 1933 at Brentford,
Middlesex
Alden
Collett [64P48] was
born at Stoke Gifford on 1st July 1888, his birth recorded during
the third quarter of that year at Barton Regis (Ref. 6a 289) in Bristol. It was also at Stoke Gifford, in the Church
of St Michael, that he was baptised with his older brother Tom (above) on 5th
August 1888, when Alden Bertie Collett was confirmed as the son of Charles and
Sarah Collett. According to the 1891
Census, Alden was two years old and was living with his family within the Iron
Acton and Chipping Sodbury census registration district. Curiously in the census of 1901 his age was
recorded as being ten years, although his place of birth was confirmed simply
as Stoke. At that time, he was living
with his parents at Westerleigh Hill in Westerleigh. It was four years later, on 8th
November 1905 at Bristol, that Alden enlisted with the British Army when he
said his age was eighteen years and no months, residing at 250 Stapleton Road
in Bristol, the home of Mr G Iles, from where he was working as a labourer with
a market gardener. His next-of-kin were
named as his father Charles Collett of Stoke Gifford, his mother Sarah Collett
of Stoke Gifford, and his sister Mrs Stone of Fishponds (Bristol) - the former
Elena Elizabeth Collett (above). A
fourth next-of-kin was listed as “brother (older) James Collett at Fishpond Asylum”. Who he was, has still to be determined. Alden initially signed up for six years and
was assigned to the Gloucestershire Regiment
By
April 1911 Alden would have been around twenty-two years old, but was not
recorded as living anywhere in Great Britain.
That was because he was serving with the 2nd Battalion, The
Gloucestershire Regiment, in Malta. A
later record stated that he transferred to the 7th Battalion of the
Gloucestershire Regiment on 13th August 1914 with whom he reached
the rank of Corporal. And it was as
bachelor Lance Sergeant Alden Collett 8103 that he was killed in action in Iraq
on 11th April 1917 a, the age of twenty-nine. He was buried in
ARTHUR
COLLETT [64P49] was
born at Latteridge, in the parish of Iron Acton, on 25th April 1891,
where he was privately baptised at the Iron Acton parish church on 21st
May 1891, the last child of Charles Collett, a carter, and his third wife Sarah
Deborah Wicks. Ten years later in March
1901, Arthur Collett of Latteridge was nine years old and was living at
Westerleigh Hill in Westerleigh with his parents and three older brothers. By the time of the next census in April 1911
Arthur had joined the army and was living in the Maindy Barracks at Whitchurch
Road in Cardiff. It was during that
period in his life when he became friendly with another soldier, his future
brother-in-law Benjamin Osborne, and it was through Benjamin that he met and
married Benjamin’s sister Dorothy Osborne
And
so it was, that Arthur Collett subsequently married Dorothy Osborne at St
Mary’s Church in Whitchurch, where the couple lived for the rest of their lives
and where all of their five children were born.
Dorothy was the daughter of Francis Osborne and Sarah Thomas and was
born on 24th March 1895 at Broad Street in Merriott near Crewkerne
in Somerset. Arthur saw active service
with the British Army in the Great War and sustained a non-fatal injury during
the First Battle of Ypres in late 1914.
It was that event which prompted the special naming of his eldest
child. And it was at Whitchurch that
Arthur Collett died on 6th May 1942 and was buried there three days
later. The death certificate recorded
that the cause of death was cardiac failure, coronary thrombosis and pulmonary
tuberculosis. His wife Dorothy Collett
nee Osborne survived for a further forty-two years before she passed away at
Whitchurch on 24th June 1984
64Q56
– Hyacinth Ypres Sarah Collett
was born in 1915 at Cardiff
64Q57
– Arthur Collett was
born in 1918 at Cardiff
64Q58
– THOMAS COLLETT was
born in 1920 at Cardiff
64Q59
– Benjamin Cyril Collett
was born in 1922 at Cardiff
64Q60
– Alexander Collett was
born in 1927 at Cardiff
Albert Aaron Vizor Collett
[64Q1] was born at
Swindon during August 1897, the eldest son of Aaron Vizor Collett and his wife
Rosina Kane. By the time of the census
in March 1901 Albert Collett, aged three years from Swindon, was living with
his family at Chiseldon, just south of Swindon.
Another family move found the family living at Knutford Lodge Farm in
Longcot, near Faringdon in 1911, where Albert A V Collett was 14. Tragically Albert was only 20 years of age
when he died at Longcot on 27th March 1918 and was buried in the
churchyard of St Mary the Virgin where his parents were buried just over twenty
years later. The death certificate
confirmed that he had no occupation and that the cause of death was lateral
sclerosis and bronco-pneumonia
Clarence George Collett
[64Q2] was born at
Chiseldon in Wiltshire on 14th September 1899, the second of three
sons of Aaron Vizor Collett and Rosina Kane.
In 1901 the family was living at Chiseldon where Clarence’s father was
an inn keeper and a shopkeeper. Shortly
after the census day the family moved to Longcot, where he and his family were
living in April 1911, when Clarence G Collett from Chiseldon was 12 years
old. It was at Uffington on 30th
December 1919 that Clarence George Collett married Evelyn May Jenkins who was
born on 11th November 1897, the daughter of Uffington haulier John
Jenkins and his wife Sarah Jane Chivers.
Clarence and Evelyn initially lived at Grove near Wantage, where their
three children were born. The family
then moved to Wootton Bassett near Swindon, and eventually to Uffington near
the famous White Horse Hill which, at that time was in Berkshire but is now in
Oxfordshire, after the county boundaries in England were changed in 1974. Following the death of his father in 1940 his
son Clarence was named as one of the executors of his personal effects, when he
was described as a farmer. Clarence
George Collett was just four months short of his eightieth birthday when he
died on 21st May 1979. Five
years later Evelyn May Collett nee Jenkins died on 19th September
1984, following which she was buried with her husband at St Mary’s Church in
Uffington
64R1
– Clarence John Collett
was born in 1920 at Grove, near Wantage
64R2
– Bryan George Collett
was born in 1924 at Grove, near Wantage
64R3
– Michael Alan Collett
was born in 1927 at Grove, near Wantage
Cecil Francis Kane Collett
[64Q3] was born at
Badbury near Chiseldon in 1901 but after 2nd April that year, the
third child of Aaron Vizor Collett and Rosina Kane. Not long after he was born his parents took
the family to live in the village of Longcot near Faringdon and to Knutford
Lodge Farm, where Cecil F K Collett was 10 years old in April 1911. Just over fourteen years later Cecil Francis
Kane Collett, a bachelor and farmer aged 23, married Annie Florence Burson, a
spinster aged 19, at the Swindon register office by licence on 12th
October 1925. It was not a church
wedding as Annie was already with-child.
Cecil’s address was 28 Prospect Place in Swindon and his father, farmer
Aaron Vizor Collett, was the first witness.
Annie’s address was Monks Farm at Grove near Wantage and her father,
farmer Albert Mortimer Burson, was the second witness. The marriage produced four children, the
first of which was born shortly after the wedding day. At the time of the birth of their third child
in 1933, the family was living at Coppice Leaze Farm in West Challow, just west
of Wantage
Cecil’s
parents later resided at a property called The Firs at Grove near Wantage where
they both died prior to the spring of 1940.
Upon their deaths, it would appear that Cecil took over The Firs Farm at
Grove, where he was a managed the dairy.
He was still living at The Firs when he was taken into The Churchill
Hospital in Headington, Oxford where he died on 21st December
1951. His death certificate stated that
he was 49 and that the cause of death was renal failure. Following his death, he was buried in the
churchyard of the parish church in Grove.
The same solicitor who had represented his mother in 1939, Alan Lindsey
Fullalove, also handled the probate for Cecil.
The Will was proved at Oxford on 7th March 1952, the sum of
his estate being Ł1,775
In addition to all
of that, the death certificate of Cecil Francis Kane Collett has provided the
highly significant information that it was his son F M V Collett of 5 Dixons
Row in Grove, Wantage who was present in the hospital at the time of his
passing. The same Francis Mortimer Vizor
Collett, an agricultural worker, was the only member of the family named during
the proving of his father’s Will. The
widow of Cecil Francis Kane Collett was more than twice his age when she passed
away on 13th August 2008 at the age of 102 when she was still
residing in Grove. The death of Anne
Collett nee Burson was reported in the Oxford Mail newspaper on 20th
August that year, as follows:
“Anne Collett, Grove's
oldest resident, has died, aged 102.
Anne, also known as Nancy, was the daughter of local farmer Albert
Burson and was born at Steptoe Farm, Grove, where she lived briefly before
moving with her family to neighbouring Monk's Farm. She met her husband, Cecil Collett, a
farmer's son from Grove Bridge Farm, in the village, and together they had four
children - Cecilia, Francis, Douglas and Edwina. The pair lived first at Coppice Leaze Farm in
West Challow and, after the war, moved to The Firs in Main Street, Grove -
which was to become their family home, and where they kept a smallholding. Cecil died after a long illness in 1951, aged
49, leaving Mrs Collett to bring up their children alone. A compulsory purchase order meant she was
forced to sell nearly all the land for the Millbrook Square development. Before she was married, she worked on the
family farm and also behind the counter at Penney's Menswear in Market Place,
Wantage. A regular churchgoer, she had
her own Women's Institute stall at Wantage Market, which she ran until she was
80, selling her own vegetables and cakes.”
64R4
– Cecilia Ellen R Collett
was born in 1925 at West Challow, near Wantage
64R5
– Francis Mortimer Vizor Collett
was born in 1928 at Oxford
64R6
– Douglas Albert Aaron Collett
was born in 1933 at West Challow, near Wantage
64R7
– Edwina F A Collett
was born in 1936 at West Challow, near Wantage
Frances Mary Vizor Collett
[64Q4] was born at
Bristol on 2nd June 1894, the eldest of the two children of Arthur
Francis Vizor Collett and his wife Elizabeth Mary Richardson. Frances V Collett, aged six years, was living
in Bristol with her family in 1901 and was listed in the next census in 1911
under her full name when she was 16 and still living with her family at 5 The
Quadrant in the Redland area of Bristol.
Four years later she married Harry Stanley in Bristol during 1915. It seems highly likely that their son Peter
T V Stanley was born at Bristol in 1920, when the mother’s maiden-name was
given as Collett. Frances Mary Vizor Stanley
nee Collett died towards the end of 1972, when her death was recorded at the
Surrey South-Eastern register office during the final quarter of that year
Edward Reginald Vizor
Collett [64Q5] was born
at Bristol on 24th June 1896, the only son of Arthur and Elizabeth
Collett, the birth being recorded at Barton Regis register office (Ref. 6a 61)
during the third quarter of the year. It
was at St Bartholomew’s Church in Bristol where he was baptised on 22nd
November 1896, the son of Arthur Francis Vizor Collett and his wife Elizabeth
Mary. He was Edward R V Collett aged
four years in the Bristol census of 1901 and was listed under his full name in
1911 when he was 14 and still living with his family at 5 The Quadrant in the
Redland area of Bristol. He later
married Hilda Audrey Empson-Ridler at Hendon in Middlesex (Ref. 3a 1368) during
the third quarter of 1929. It was as
Hilda Audrey Ridler that her birth on 2nd December 1905 was recorded
at Brighton register office in Sussex, the daughter of Annie Sarah Ridler of
London who, in 1911, was living at Romford in Essex with her daughter Hilda
Audrey Ridler, aged five years, and her son Herbert Leonard Empson-Ridler who
was five months old. Annie’s status was
that of a married woman, although her husband was not included in the census
return with her and her two children
The
marriage of Edward and Hilda produced four children who were all born in
Middlesex during the couple’s first ten years together. Apart from their eldest son, who was born at Hendon, all the subsequent children were
born at 'Oakend', Arkley, Barnet, in a house built for them and where they
lived from 1930 to 1957. Following
retirement from the Imperial Tobacco Company in 1956, Edward and Audrey moved
into a bungalow built to their design at Selsey near Chichester in West Sussex,
together with their youngest son Martin.
At the time of the premature death of the couple’s youngest child Robin
in a road traffic accident in 1959, the three older children were residing at 1
South Cottages, Windmill Lane (off the A411) in Arkley, within the London
Borough of Barnet. The death of Edward
Reginald Vizor Collett was recorded at the Chichester register office in Sussex
(Ref. 5h 1561) during the third quarter of 1971, when he was 74. Twenty-three years later Audrey Hilda (the names reversed) Collett nee
Empson-Ridler passed away at a nursing home in
Headley, Hampshire, her death recorded at Alton register office (Vol. 4891)
during the summer of 1994, aged 88. And
it was their son Martin who generously provided new family details in 2020
64R8
– Raife F Vizor Collett
was born in 1930 at Hendon
64R9
– Ann P Vizor Collett
was born in 1932 at Barnet
64R10
– Edward Robin Vizor Collett
was born in 1939 at Barnet
64R11
– Reginald Martin Vizor Collett
was born in 1950 at Barnet
Kenneth Vizor Collett [64Q6]
was born at Bristol on
27th November 1895, the eldest child of William Vizor Collett and
his wife Annie Estelle Handcock, who was baptised at St James’ Church in
Bristol on 21st September 1898.
As Kenneth V Collett aged five years he was living in Bristol with his
family in 1901, while in 1911 he and his family were residing at Valken, a
dwelling at Downs Park West in Westbury-on-Trym, Bristol when Kenneth Vizor
Collett was 15. It was eleven years
later that he married Joyce Eileen Dunsford at Long Ashton in Somerset where it
was recorded during the third quarter of 1922 (Ref. 5c 1333). Joyce was born on 6th March
1896. Thanks to Ben N Collett of Yan
Yean in Victoria it is now established that Joyce presented Kenneth with at
least one child, their son Neil Francis Vizor Collett who was born in 1929. Two years later, on 24th September
1931, Kenneth Vizor Collett, aged 35 and a manager, sailed into the Port of
Southampton as a passenger on the vessel Indrapoera of the Royal Rotterdam
Lloyd Line, having sailed from Surabaya in Indonesia. In addition, the Kelly’s Directory published
in 1931 for the county of Buckinghamshire listed Kenneth Vizor Collett as a
forester. The death of widower Kenneth
Vizor Collett at the age of 74 was recorded at the Poole register office (Ref.
7c 79) during the final three months of 1969, where around six months earlier
his wife Joyce Eileen Collett nee Dunsford passed away, her death also recorded
at Poole (Ref. 7c 54) during the second quarter of 1969 at the age of 73
64R12
– Neil Francis Vizor Collett
was born in 1929 at Amersham, Buckinghamshire
Margaret Valentine Vizor
Collett [64Q7] was born
at Bristol during 1896, the daughter of William and Annie Collett. It was as Margaret V V Collett that she was
recorded in the Bristol census of 1901, while ten years later she and her
family were residing in a property named Valken at Downs Park West in the
Westbury Park (Westbury-on-Trym) area of Bristol when Margaret Valentine
Collett was 14. She later married
Richard Douglas Gerald Pearce with whom she had two children. Later in their lives, perhaps upon
retirement, Margaret and Richard were living in Cornwall and it was at St
Austell register office (Ref. 7a 181) that the death of Margaret V V Pearce was
recorded during the first three months of 1967, the same year that her husband
also passed away
Ella Matilda Jane Collett
[64Q8] was born at West
Kington in 1884 and her birth was recorded at Chippenham (Ref. 5a 61) during
the first quarter of that year. Shortly
after she was born the family settled in Highworth, where Ella’s sister (below)
was born. And it was at Page Street in Highworth
that the completed family was living in 1891, when Ella was seven and her place
of birth was simply recorded as Wiltshire.
During the next few years, the family left Highworth and, on the day of
the census in 1901, three members of the family were recorded at London Road in
Tetbury Upton. Ella was 17 with no
occupation stated, while it was her mother who was the absent member of the
family that day. After a further ten
years unmarried Ella M J Collett from West Kington was 27 and had entered into
domestic service at a dwelling in Trowbridge, where she was employed as a
servant and a sewing maid. The other
three members of her family were also living nearby in Trowbridge at day. Ella Matilda Jane Collett never married and
her death was recorded at Devizes register office (Ref. 7c 343) during the
third quarter of 1955 when she was 71
Janetta Margaret Collett [64Q9]
was born at Highworth,
Swindon, perhaps at the end of 1887 or early in 1888, the younger of the two
daughters of James William Collett and his wife Fanny. However, her birth was also recorded at
Highworth (Ref. 5a 41), but during the first three months of 1888. Janetta was three years of age in 1891 when
living with her family at Page Street in Highworth. A move to London Road in Tetbury Upton took
place during the following decade, where Janetta Margaret was 13 in 1901. She was still living with her parents in
1911, but at Trowbridge, where unmarried Janetta was a dressmaker working at
home at the age of 23. Like her sister
Ella (above), Janetta never married, and her death was recorded at Chippenham
register office (Ref. 7c 560) during the first quarter of 1962 when she was 74
Maggie Collett [64Q10] was born at Bradford in Yorkshire on 3rd
October 1903, with her birth recorded as Maggie Collett at nearby North Bierley
(Ref. 9b 194) during the last three months of that year. She was named after her grandmother Margaret
Collett nee Ward with whom she was raised at Eccleshill and with whom she was
living in 1911 at the age of nine years (sic). Through a process of
elimination, it has been determined that must have been the base-born child of
Ann (Annie) Elizabeth Collett, the eldest child of Arthur Collett and Margaret
Ward. On the day that Maggie was born,
Annie’s two younger sisters Emily and Minnie were already married, as was
Annie’s brother John who also had a daughter of his own born close to the same
time
It
was as Margaret Collett that she married Thomas Egglestone at Bradford in 1932,
their wedding day recorded at North Bierley register office (Ref. 9b 28) during
the second quarter of that year. Within
the first two years of their life together, Margaret presented Thomas with two
children. The birth of Colin
Egglestone was recorded at North Bierley (Ref. 9b 78) during the second
quarter of 1933 and the birth of Margaret Egglestone also recorded there
(Ref. 9b 77) during the second quarter of 1934.
In both cases, the mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Collett. One year after celebrating the couple’s
sixtieth wedding anniversary, the death of Margaret Egglestone nee Collett was
recorded at Bradford (Ref. 0811b b49a) towards the end of 1993
Arthur Collett [64Q11] was born at Eccleshill near Bradford on
17th November 1900, the first child of John Collett by his first
wife Lucy, whose birth was recorded at the Bradford North Bierley register
office (Ref. 9b 193) during the final quarter of that year. Arthur was under one-year old by the end of March
in 1901 when he was living with his parents at Idle in Eccleshill. Three years after the birth of his sister
Hilda (below), Arthur’s mother died and within the next two years his father
was re-married to Millicent Amos Morton.
That change for the family was reflected in the census of 1911, when
Arthur Collett was 10 years old and living in Bradford with his sister, his
father and his stepmother Millicent.
Thirteen years after that census day the marriage of Arthur Collett and
Florence Jackson was recorded at Bradford (Ref. 9b 400) during the last three
months of 1924
During
the short time they were married, Florence presented Arthur with four children
who were all born at Bradford, as listed below.
At the time of the death of his father in April 1947, Arthur Collett was
working as a builder’s labourer when he was named as one of the joint executors
of his estate with his brother-in-law Ernest Burgin (below). Although no death of Florence Collett has
been found, following the birth of the couple’s last child, there is a record
at Bradford (Ref. 2b 313) of the marriage of Arthur Collett and Dorothy Myers
which took place during the fourth quarter of 1955. However, it has still to be determined
whether or not that was the second marriage of this particular Arthur
Collett. The death of Arthur Collett,
who was born on 17th November 1900, was recorded at Bradford (Vol. 4
0306) during the spring of 1978
64R13
– Bernard Arthur Collett
was born in 1926 at Bradford, Yorkshire
64R14
– Margaret R Collett
was born in 1930 at Bradford, Yorkshire
64R15
– John Collett was born
in 1938 at Bradford, Yorkshire
64R16
– Derek Collett was
born in 1943 at Bradford, Yorkshire
Hilda Collett [64Q12] was born at Eccleshill on 4th
March 1904 and was the second child and only daughter of John Collett and Lucy
Eastmead. Her birth was recorded at the
Bradford North Bierley register office (Ref. 9b 206). Following her mother’s premature death in
1907, her father remarried in 1909 and in the Bradford census of 1911 Hilda
Collett was seven years of age, when living with her father John, her older
brother Arthur (above) and stepmother Millicent Amos Collett. Over twelve years later Hilda Collett married
Ernest Burgin in the parish of Bowling St John on 12th December
1923, when her father was named as John Collett, a co-operative sub-manager,
and his father was named as William Irwin Burgin. The wedding was recorded at Bradford register
office (Ref. 9b 199) during the last two weeks of 1923
During
the following years Hilda presented Ernest with three children whose births
were all recorded t Bradford, when the mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as
Collett. Marjorie Burgin was born
there (Ref. 9b 267) during the first quarter of 1925, Irene Burgin was
born there (Ref. 9b 115) during the first quarter of 1927, and Glenna Burgin
was born there (Ref. 9b 152) during the second quarter of 1936. Ernest Burgin was a master grocer just after
the Second World War and was described as such during the probate process for
the Will of his father-in-law John Collett in the spring of 1947. Hilda Burgin nee Collett died at Bradford in
1978 where her death was recorded (Vol. 4 0739) at the age of 74 during the
first three months of that year
Sidney John Collett [64Q13]
was born at Worcester
during the summer of 1901, the first-born child of John Henry Albert Collett
and his wife Edith Purser, who were married there nine months earlier. The birth of Sidney John Collett was recorded
at Worcester register office (Ref. 6c 284) during the third quarter of 1901. In
the 1911 Worcester census he was nine years of age. As Sydney J Collett her married Gertrude Mary
Lampitt in 1929, the wedding recorded at Worcester register office (Ref. 6c
287) during the third quarter of that year.
Again, as Sydney J Collett, when he was 63, he died at Worcester, where
his passing was recorded (Ref. 9d 335) during the first three months of
1965. Administration of his personal
effects valued at Ł25,888 was granted to his widow Gertrude Mary Collett. Sidney and Gertrude are not credited with any
issue
James
Henry Collett [64Q14] was
born at Worcester on 8th December 1904, another son of John and
Edith Collett. His birth was recorded at
Worcester register office (6c 274) using his full name, during the first few
months of 1905, and he was six years old in the Worcester census of 1911. It was early in 1937 that James H Collett
married Dorothy Tomkins, the event recorded at Worcester register office (Ref.
6a 341) during the first quarter of that year.
Their daughter was born at Upton-on-Severn four years later, where her
birth was recorded (Ref. 6c 400) during the third quarter of 1941, when her
mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Tomkins.
James Henry Collett was 95 years old when he died in Worcester, where
his passing was recorded early in 2000 (Ref. 5271a a54c)
64R17
– Jean Collett was born in 1941 at Upton-on-Severn
Thomas
Arthur Collett [64Q16]
was born at Worcester in 1909 and was the fourth child of John and Edith
Collett. Under his full name, his birth
was recorded at Worcester register office (Ref. 6c 247) during the third
quarter of the year. It was as Thomas A
Collett aged one year, that he was with his family at Worcester in 1911. He was twenty-four when his marriage to Elsie
Brown was recorded at Worcester (Ref. 6c 391) during the third quarter of
1933. During the following year, their
daughter was born at Worcester on 30th October 1934, who also died
there at the age of 50, during the summer of 1985 (29 764). The birth of their son was also recorded at
Worcester register office (Ref. 6c 236) during the first three months of 1939,
when the mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Brown, as it had been in 1934
for his sister Janet (Ref. 6c 175)
64R18
– Janet Collett was born in 1934 at Worcester
64R18
– John A Collett was born in 1938 at Worcester
Victor
A Collett [64Q17] was
born at Worcester in 1914 his birth, as the last child of John Henry Albert
Collett and Edith Purser, was recorded at Worcester register office (Ref. 6c
252) during the final quarter of 1914, when his mother’s maiden-name was
confirmed as Purser. Victor was almost
twenty-five when he married Elsie P Harris, their wedding recorded at Worcester
(Ref. 6c 601) during the last three months of 1940. Towards the end of the next year their
daughter was born, with her birth recorded at Worcester (Ref. 6c 301) in the
fourth quarter of 1941. She was followed
by their son, whose birth was also recorded at Worcester (Ref. 9d 398) during
the fourth quarter of 1946. In both
cases, the births were recorded under the mother’s maiden-name of Harris
64R20
– Margaret Collett was born in 1941 at Worcester
64R21
– Geoffrey A Collett was born in 1946 at Worcester
Walter
Stanley Collett [64Q19]
was born on 9th September 1906 at Worcester, the eldest son and
second child of Ernest Percy William Collett and Sarah Burgess Perring, his
birth recorded at Worcester register office (Ref. 9c 220) during the last
quarter of the year. As Walter S
Collett, aged four years, he was living with his family at 20 Wolverton Road in
Worcester in 1911. He was
twenty-one-years old when the marriage of Walter S Collett and Hilda J Gardner
was recorded at the Coventry Foleshill register office (Ref. 6d 97) during the
first three months of 1928. Hilda Janet
Gardner was born at Bedworth, near Foleshill, on 16th January 1907,
the daughter of George and Mary Gardner.
Their marriage appears to have produced just the one child, who was born
at Hartshill near Nuneaton within a few months of the couple’s wedding
day. It would also appear that William
and Hilda lived all their life in the Nuneaton area of Warwickshire, with the
death of William Stanley Collett recorded at Nuneaton register office (Ref. 9c
2) near the end of 1970, when he was 64 years old. After eighteen years as a widow, the death of
Hilda Janet Collett was recorded at Nuneaton (Vol. 31) in the first months of
1986, at the age of 79
64R22
– Violet Elsie Collett
was born in 1928 at Nuneaton
Ernest
William Collett [64Q20]
was born in 1908 at Worcester, where his birth recorded (Ref. 6c 260) during
the first quarter of the year, another son of Ernest and Sarah Collett. Two-year-old Ernest W Collett was living in
the family home at 20 Wolverton Road in Worcester in 1911
Violet
Susan Collett [64Q21] was born at 20 Wolverton Road in
Worcester on 22nd October 1910, and was five months old in the
Worcester census of 1911. Her birth was
recorded at Worcester register office (Ref. 6c 62) as Violet S Collett. It was also at 20 Wolverton Road that she was
living with her family in 1911 but then, after that day, the family moved to
Hartshill, near Nuneaton in Warwickshire, where her three younger siblings were
born. Upon being married, she was again
recorded as Violet S Collett, the wedding recorded at Nuneaton register office
(Ref. 6d 63) during the third quarter of 1937, when the groom was named as
William J Martin. It is likely that the
wedding service was conducted at Holy Trinity Church in Hartshill. Their marriage produced six children for
Violet and William, and they were: Ronald William Martin (1937); Christine
J Martin (1938); Bernard P Martin (1940); Stanley K Martin
(1941); Carol A Martin (1942); Peter J Martin (1943), the birth
of each of them recorded at Nuneaton, when their mother’s maiden-name was
confirmed as Collett. For the first
time, as far as the public records are concerned, the informant for the death
of their mother provided the registrar at Nuneaton register office with her
full name as Violet Susan Martin, nee Collett, which was recorded there during
the spring of 1977, when she was 66 years old
Edna
Collett [64Q22] was a twin born at Hartshill near
Nuneaton towards the end of 1912, having arrived there from Worcester just
before she and her twin brother Percy (below) were born. Her birth was recorded at Nuneaton register
office (Ref. 9d 57) at the start of 1913, when her mother’s maiden-name was
confirmed as Perring. She and Percy were
another two children of Ernest P W Collett and Sarah Burgess Perring whose
birth name was curiously changed to Vera when she was baptised in Holy Trinity
Church at Hartshill, three miles north-west of Nuneaton, in a joint ceremony
with her twin brother on 18th February 1913. She never married and was living in the Coventry
area when Ms Vera Collett died there on 20th December 2010, at the
age of 98
Percy
Collett [64Q23] was born near the end of 1912 at
Hartshill in Warwickshire, his birth like that of his twin sister Edna (above)
was recorded at Nuneaton register office (Ref. 6d 58) during the first quarter
of 1913, when his mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Perring. He was old a few months old when Percy and
his twin sister were baptised together at Holy Trinity Church in Hartshill on
18th February 1913, the children of Ernest Percy William Collett and
his wife Sarah Burgess Collett. Percy
may have been just three months old when he died at Hartshill, his death
recorded at Nuneaton register office (Ref. 6d 46) during the same first quarter
of 1913, and just after he was baptised
John
Kenneth Collett [64Q24] was born at Hartshill in 1914, the last
child of Ernest P W Collett and Sarah B Perring, whose birth was recorded at
nearby Nuneaton register office (Ref. 6d 126) during the first three months of
1914 and just twelve months after the death of his brother Percy (above). He was baptised at Holy Trinity Church in
Hartshill on 2nd March 1914 and was married much later in his
life. The marriage of John K Collett and
Eileen M Garratt was recorded at Atherstone register office (Ref. 9c 81) during
the first quarter of 1955. Eileen was
much younger than John, having been born at Atherstone during 1930. The couple’s only known child was a honeymoon
baby, born during the last quarter of 1955 at Nuneaton. It was also within the Whittleford area just
west of Nuneaton where John Kenneth Collett died on 1st October
1997, at the age of 83. Eleven years
later, and also at Whittleford, Eileen Mary Collett passed away on 14th
May 2009
64R23
– David John Collett
was born in 1955 at Nuneaton
Stanley John Collett [64Q25]
was born at Worcester
on 8th May 1921, the first of the three children of Victor Stanley
Collett and Annie Mabel Walley. His
birth was recorded at Worcester register office (Ref. 6c 265) during the second
quarter of that year, when his mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as
Walley. Twenty-eight years later the
marriage of Stanley J Collett and Doreen H Stiff was recorded at Worcester
(Ref. 9d 873) during the third quarter of 1949.
Their marriage was blessed with the birth of a son five years later in
Worcester. Stanley John Collett was
still residing in Worcester when he passed away during the early months of
2005, his death recorded there (Ref. 5271c) at the age of 83
6R24
– Ivor C Collett was
born in 1954 at Worcester
Leonard W Collett [64Q26] was born at Worcester in 1924 where his
birth was recorded (Ref. 6c 215) during the first quarter of that year. He was the second child of Victor and Annie
Collett, whose maiden-name was confirmed as Walley but written as Whalley. Leonard W Collett married Doreen Waldron at
Worcester where it was recorded during the first three months of 1951 (Ref. 9d
817). Over the next ten years Doreen
presented Leonard with three children, all born at Worcester
64R25
– Anne Collett was born
in 1952 at Worcester
64R26
– Susan Collett was
born in 1954 at Worcester
64R27
– James Leonard Collett
was born in 1961 at Worcester
Beryl M Collett [64Q27] was born in 1928 at Worcester during the
third quarter of the year, the daughter of Victor and Annie Collett. It was at Worcester register officer where
her birth was recorded (Ref. 6c 218) when her mother’s maiden-name was
confirmed as Walley. It was there also
that the marriage of Beryl M Collett and Anthony K Joyce was recorded (Ref. 9d
643) during the second quarter of 1955.
No record of any children for the couple has been found so far
Flossie
Esther Collett [64Q28]
was born on 1st October 1892 at Bradford, where her birth was
recorded (Ref. 9b 298), the first of the two children of Henry Collett and
Louisa Fuller, and was baptised at the Church of St Paul Manningham in Bradford
on 13th November 1892. After
a brief few years living in Manningham, and then Keighley where her brother was
born, the family was residing in Skipton by 1901, where Flossie Collett was
eight years of age. After a further ten
years, the family was living at Shipley-cum-Heaton in the West Riding of
Yorkshire when Flossie Collett from Bradford was 18 and working as a laundress. Nearly ten years later Flossie was still
located in the West Riding of Yorkshire when the marriage of Flossie E Collett
and William T Rose was recorded at North Bierley register office (Ref. 9b 127)
during the last quarter of 1920. William
had been born at Croydon, in Surrey, during 1893, the son of Charles and Annie
Rose. At some time in their married
life, the couple travel south to Surrey where the death of William T Rose was
recorded at Croydon register office (Ref. 5g 129) during the third quarter of
1956, at the age of 63. Eighteen years
after being widowed, Flossie was still living in Surrey, and it was also at
Croydon register office (Vol. 11 43) that the death of Flossie Esther Rose was
recorded during the early months of 1975 when she was 82 years old
Clement Henry Collett [64Q29] was born at Keighley on 10th
March 1898, the second of the two known children of Henry and Louisa Collett,
who was baptised at St Mary’s Church in Keighley on 26th June
1898. The birth of Clement Henry Collett
was recorded at Keighley register office (Ref. 9a 219) during the second
quarter of 1898. Shortly after he was born his family settled in Skipton where
Clement was three years old in 1901. A
further move took place sometime during the next decade since the family was
residing at 3 Oswald Street, off Carr Lane, in Shipley just north
of Bradford in Yorkshire in 1911.
Clement Collett from Keighley was still attending school at the age of
13, but who was also described as a barber’s boy. Twelve years after that census day, when he
was twenty-five years old, the marriage of Clement H Collett and Agnes M
Mortimer was recorded at North Bierley register office (Ref. 9b 19) during the
third quarter of 1923, when Agnes was already halfway towards giving birth to
their son. It was as Mary Agnes Mortimer
that she was born in 1898 at Bramley, her birth recorded at Wharfedale, the
sixth child of Walter and Mary Mortimer of Bramley
It was during
the following quarter of 1923, when the birth of their son was recorded at
Wharfedale, perhaps indicating they had moved away from North Bierley to hide
their embarrassment at giving birth so soon after their wedding day. Their son was nearly seven years old when
Clement H Collett died on 23rd September 1930 at the age of 32, his
premature death recorded at Bradford register office (Ref. 9b 95). He may have known that his time on earth was
limited, because he made a Will, the contents of which may raise a few concerns
about his life, particularly with regard to his wife and child. The Will of Clement Henry Collett was proved
at Wakefield on 10th October 1930 in which the first beneficiary was
named as Louisa Collett, the second being Henry Collett, his parents. His personal effects were valued at Ł793 14
Shillings and 5 Pence, while his address at the time of his death was 311 Kings Road in Bradford. Three years after being widowed, the second
married of Agnes Mary Collett was recorded at Bradford register office (Ref. 9b
30) during the quarter of 1933 when she married John W Fearnsides
64R28 – Raymond Henry Collett was born in 1923 at Wharfedale,
Yorkshire
Philip George Collett [64Q30]
was born at
Mangotsfield in 1906, following the wedding of his parents Philip Collett and
Rhoda Bailey during the previous autumn, his birth recorded at Keynsham
register office (Ref. 5c 245) during the first quarter of that year. He was baptised at Mangotsfield on 4th
March 1906, the record confirmed he was the son of Philip and Rhoda
Collett. Tragically, his father died
when Philip was only three years old. At
the age of five years George Collett, grandson and school boy was staying with
George and Elizabeth Bailey at their home in Mangotsfield, while it was
previously speculated that his widowed mother had already remarried by
then. In fact, it was towards the end of
1911 when his mother married Thomas Howard, with whom he may have subsequently
reunited afterwards. The marriage of
Philip G Collett and Kate Davis was recorded at the Somerset Axbridge register
office (Ref. 5c 105) during the second quarter of 1928
It
seems their marriage produced no issue and, during the Second World War Philip
and Kate were living at 74 Badminton Road in Downend, just north of
Mangotsfield. Philip G Collett was a
sapper with the Royal Engineers, service number 2145232, and appears to have
been badly wounded in action, with the result that he was shipped back to
England and, following his death on 19th July 1944 at the age of 38,
he was buried at the Downend Mangotsfield Cemetery – Grave 1486, Sector D. The Will of Philip George Collett of 74
Badminton Road was proved at Bristol on 15th November 1944, the
three main beneficiaries of his personal effects valued at Ł1,034 10 Shillings
being named as Kate Collett, his widow, and Kate Moore, another widow, and
George Henry Young, a surveyor
Nora Emily Bessie Collett
[64Q31] was born at
Mangotsfield on 29th December 1907, the second child of Philip
Collett and Rhoda Bailey. Her birth was
recorded at Keynsham register office (Ref. 5c 23) during the first months of
1908. She was just fourteen months old
when her father died in February 1909, following which no positive record of
Nora or her mother has been located in the census of 1911. It was on 24th September 1932 at
St Katherine’s Church in the Redland district of Bristol that Nora married
Richard Harold Taylor, the event recorded at Bristol register office (Ref. 6a
136). Richard had been born at Bristol
on 31st March 1907. Nora
Taylor nee Collett died in Bristol on 25th September 2003, and was
followed two years later by her husband, who also passed away while he was
still living in Bristol
Phyllis Edna May Collett [64Q32] was
born at Bristol, where her birth was recorded (Ref. 6a 189) during the first
three months of 1907. It was at the
Church of St Thomas in Eastville, to the north-east of Bristol that she was
baptised on 31st March 1907, the eldest of the three children of
Charles Eli Collett and Sarah Louisa Milsom.
After the birth of her brother Arthur (below), the young family moved to
Pontypridd in South Wales where, sadly, the premature death of Phyllis Edna May
Collett was recorded (Ref. 11a 333) during the first quarter of 1910 and just
before her third birthday
Arthur Charles Eli Collett 64Q33 was
born at Fishponds in Bristol on 12th December 1908, where his birth
was recorded (Ref. 6a 180) during the first three months of the following
year. Not long after he was born, his
parents Charles Eli Collett and Sarah Louisa Milsom, together with his sister
Phyllis (above), travelled to South Wales and Pontypridd, where his father
secured work in the coal mining industry there.
That move was confirmed by the census in 1911 when Arthur Collett was
two years old and his place of birth was recorded as Fishponds in Bristol. He was the only child living with his
parents, when his mother was carrying her third child
Thanks
to Maureen Iliffe nee Collett (Ref. 64R46) we now know a little more about
Arthur, whose life was ended prematurely.
Although too young to have taken part in the First World War, Arthur
enlisted with the British Army Office in Bristol on 4th January
1926, when he was recorded in error as being 19 years and 24 days old, and his
occupation was that of a packer. He was
first assigned to the Royal Berkshire Regiment but, shortly after, transferred
to the Oxfordshire & Buckinghamshire Light Infantry, service number
5378596. He was posted to India on 15th
February 1927 where, seven months later, the death of Private Arthur Charles
Eli Collett of the 2nd Battalion Oxfordshire was recorded on 30th
September 1927. His death certificate
stated that he died while in the Rest Camp at Kalsi (Uttarakhand Province), his
passing recorded at Chakrata (U P) on 4th October 1927, the cause of
death accidental drowning. It was on the
previous day when he was buried at Chakrata on 3rd October when his
age was incorrectly recorded as 20 years and 292 days, instead being nearer
eighteen years of age. That error arose
from the day he joined the army, when he was said to be 19 years and 24 days,
placing his date of birth as 12.12.1906.
The same military record also listed Arthur’s father as Arthur Collett,
rather than Charles Eli Collett and, later on, in the same record, his father
was said to be Arthur Charles Collett of 10 Gloucester Street in Clifton,
Bristol
George William Collett [64Q34] was
born at Pontypridd in 1911, his birth recorded there (Ref. 11a 1238) during the
last quarter of that year. It was also
during that same quarter of 1911 that the death of George W Collett was
recorded at Pontypridd (Ref. 11a 578)
Alden George Charles Collett [64Q35] was
born at Winterbourne on 12th October 1907 ten years before the uncle
he was named after was killed during the Great war. He was the eldest child of William Collett
and Dorothy Pullin and was recorded in the census of 1911 as being three years old. He
later married Elsie Close with whom he had one son who was born at
Winterbourne, where Alden George Charles Collett died during May 1995
64R29
– Raymond George Collett
was born in 1930 at Bristol
Leslie Collett [64Q36] was born at
Winterbourne on 10th February 1909 and was two years old in the
census of 1911. He later married Rosina
Margaret Tremlin who was born on 26th July 1915. The couple had two children, a daughter who
was still living in 2008 and a son Anthony whose death was recorded at South
Gloucestershire register office during the second quarter of 2001. The birth of their daughter was recorded at
Sodbury register office (Ref. 6a 7) during the second quarter of 1942, when the
mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Tremlin.
No further details
of the two children have been revealed at this time, but it is known that
Leslie died on 17th October 1985, followed by Rosina Margaret
Collett whose death was recorded at South Gloucestershire during the spring of
1998
64R30
– Rita J Collett was born in 1942 at Sodbury, Gloucestershire
64R31
– Anthony William Collett was born on 12th May 1947 at Sodbury; and
died in April 2001
Wilfred Graham Collett [64Q37] was
born at Winterbourne on 2nd December 1911, the son of William
Collett and his wife Dorothy Pullin.
Tragically, he died eleven months later on 9th November 1912,
following which the next son born to the couple was given his name
Nora Millicent Collett [64Q38] was born at
Winterbourne on 13th February 1913, the daughter of William Collett
and Dorothy Pullin. She married
Frederick Brown and the marriage produced three children for Nora and Fred, a
daughter and two sons. One of the sons
was Alan Brown who was born in 1936 and he married Marion Lambert
Wilfred Collett [64Q39] was born at
Winterbourne on 5th July 1919 and he later married Alice Evelyn
Jones. Wilfred never liked either of his
wife’s Christian names so always called her Betty. During the Second World War he was Royal
Marine Wilfred Collett PLY/X120162 serving on board HMS Nile. On 30th April 1945 Adolf Hitler
killed himself and two days later on 2nd May the German forces in
Italy surrendered, signally the end of the war.
On that same day the news was greeted by the British forces, which began
celebrating a momentous victory. Part of the celebration for Wilfred and
his comrades involved diving into a swimming pool. In doing so he accidentally hit his head on
the diving board and was knocked unconscious, as a result of which he was
tragically drowned. His death was
recorded as taking place on 2nd May 1945 at the age of 25
years. Having survived
through the war years, Wilfred would have been feeling elated that he would
soon be returning home to his wife Betty who he knew was with child. Sadly, his death preceded the birth of his
son by eleven days
Wilfred’s
name is listed on the Chatby Military War Memorial at
64R32
– Wilfred G W Collett
was born in 1945 at Monmouth, South Wales
Jesse Collett [64Q40] was born at
Winterbourne on 25th October 1920, his birth recorded at Chipping
Sodbury register office (Ref. 6a 8), when his mother’s maiden-name was
confirmed as Pullin. He was the sixth
child of William Collett
and Dorothy Pullin, and he later married June Gifford but the
marriage did not produce any children for the couple. Jesse Collett died at Winterbourne in 1996,
with his passing recorded at the South Gloucestershire register office (Ref.
3041b) near the end of that year
Henry John Collett [64Q41] was born at
Winterbourne on 6th February 1922, his birth recorded at Chipping
Sodbury register office (Ref. 6a 138), when his mother’s maiden-name was
confirmed as Pullin. He married Jean
McCutcheon and the marriage produced one daughter for the couple. It would appear that Henry lived all his life
at Winterbourne since it was there that he died in 1996. His
wife Jean was still alive in the summer of 2008 and was a great great
grandmother to three children
64R33 – a Collett daughter was born at a time and place not known
Ellen Edna Collett [64Q42] was
born at Winterbourne on 27th April 1923, and she later married
Clifford Jones. Clifford was the brother
of Betty Jones who married Ellen’s brother Wilfred (above). As with other members of her family, it would
appear that she lived all her life at Winterbourne, where she was living in the
spring of 2013 at the age of 90.
However, two years later, and just three days short of her ninety-second
birthday, Ellen Edna Jones nee Collett passed away in Bristol Southmead
Hospital on 24th April 2015
Reginald Collett [64Q43] was
born at Winterbourne on 25th February 1925, his birth recorded at
Chipping Sodbury register office (Ref. 6a 383) where his mother’s maiden-name
was confirmed as Pullin. Sadly, he
suffered with a kidney disease and died in 1937 aged just twelve years. The cause of his kidney disease was diagnosed
as tuberculosis
Thomas William Collett [64Q44] was born at
Winterbourne on 13th August 1927, the last of the children born to
William Collett and Dorothy Pullin. He
later married Patricia May Stephens who was also born at Winterbourne on 6th
February 1928, their wedding recorded at Chipping Sodbury register office (Ref.
7b 1283) during the first quarter of 1952.
Their marriage produced three children for Thomas and Patricia, two sons
and a daughter. The death of Thomas William
Collett was recorded at Bristol register office in 2006, following his passing
at Winterbourne on 13th October 2006. His wife had died many years earlier in
November 1987, her death also recorded at Bristol register office under the
name of Patricia Mary Collett
64R34 – Michael William Collett was born in 1953 at Kingswood, Bristol
64R35 – a Collett son was born between
1954 and 1959
64R36 – Amanda Collett was born in 1960 at Winterbourne
Christine Collett [64Q45] was born at Bristol during the latter
half of 1911, the eldest child of Henry (Harry) Collett and his wife Florence E
Tovey. Her birth was recorded at Bristol
register office (Ref. 6a 317) during the final three months of that year under
the name of Chrissie Collett, when her mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as
Tovey
Gilbert Henry Collett [64Q46] was born at Bristol on 6th
June 1915, the son of Harry and Florence Collett, following which his birth was
recorded at Bristol register office (Ref. 6a 337) during the second quarter of
that year. The entry gave his name as
Gilbert H Collett and his mother’s maiden-name as Tovey. It was also as Gilbert H Collett that he
married Winifred Dowler at Bristol in 1948, the event being recorded there
(Ref. 7b 398) during the fourth quarter of that year. It is not known whether the marriage produced
any children, but it is known that Gilbert Henry Collett died at Bristol in
1969 when his death was recorded at the Bristol register office (Ref. 7b 522)
during the last three months of that year
Gladys
M Collett [64Q47] was
born at Bristol in 1925, her birth recorded at Bristol register office (Ref. 6a
43) during the last quarter of that year, when her mother’s maiden-name was
confirmed as Tovey. She was the third
children of Henry Collett and Florence Ethel Tovey
Thomas Charles Collett [64Q48] was born at Ealing in Middlesex on 6th
January 1915, where his birth was recorded (Ref. 3a 35) one year prior to the
marriage of his parents Thomas Collett and Emma Mary French, although the birth
record did confirm the mother’s name as French.
However, it was at Brentford register office that all of his seven
siblings’ births were recorded. It was
during the fourth quarter of 1938 that the marriage of Thomas Collett and (1)
Hilda Plumridge was recorded at Brentford register office (Ref. 3a 61). Later on, Thomas and Hilda were divorced, but
not before they had given birth to three children in Middlesex, although only
two survived. Sometime after their legal
separation Thomas C Collett married (2) Mabel F Hibbert, that second marriage
recorded at Hounslow register office (Ref. 5c 14) towards the end of 1972. No other details are currently available
except that it is known that Thomas Charles Collett died at Hounslow Heath on 5th
January 1989, with his death recorded at Hounslow register office during the
first three months of 1989. Having lost
her husband, it would appear that his widow moved to Dorset, since it was at
Ferndown in Dorset where Mabel Frances Collett died on 7th July
2006, her death recorded at Dorset register office (Ref. 4291f)
The
birth of Raymond S Collett was recorded at Brentford register office (Ref. 3a
137) during the first three months of 1945 where also, sadly, his death was
recorded during that same quarter of the same year (Ref. 3a 130). His mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as
Plumridge. The birth of the couple’s
last child, Sylvia C Collett, was recorded at Ealing register office (Ref. 5e
80) during the last three months of 1949 when again, the mother’s maiden-name
was confirmed as Plumridge. Sylvia was
only nineteen years of age when the marriage of Sylvia C Collett and Philip T
Harman was recorded at Ealing register office (Ref. 5b 54) during the third
quarter of 1969
64R37
– Brian M T Collett was
born in 1941 at Willesden
64R38
– Raymond S Collett was born in 1945 at Brentford
64R39
– Sylvia C Collett was born in 1941 at Ealing
Bessie M Collett [64Q49] was born at Brentford in Middlesex, with
her birth recorded there (Ref. 3a 134) during the month of December in
1917. She was the second of the eight
children of Thomas and Emma Collett and her birth register confirmed that her
mother’s maiden-name as French.
Tragically, she did not survive beyond a few days, with the death of
Bessie M Collett also recorded at Brentford register office (Ref. 3a 128) at
the end of 1917
Doris May Collett [64Q50] was born at Brentford on 17th
December 1919, her birth recorded there (Ref. 3a 8), when her mother’s maiden-name
was confirmed as French. Just five days
after her twentieth birthday she married Timothy Paget Russell on 22nd
December 1939 at St Mary’s Church in South Ealing, the event recorded at
Brentford register office (Ref. 3a 107).
Timothy was born at Sunderland on 2nd August 1903 and he and
Doris had two daughters, one of which was Pauline Russell who died when
she was only five years old. It may be
that the couple lived most of their married life at Ealing, where Timothy died
on 15th May 1986. Shortly
after that, his widow seems to have left London and moved to Lichfield in
Staffordshire where Doris May Russell nee Collett died three years later on 8th
June 1989
Ronald William Collett [64Q51] was born at Brentford on 21st
October 1921, with his birth recorded there (Ref. 3a 77), when his mother’s maiden-name
was confirmed as French. He was twenty-three
years old when the marriage of Ronald W Collett and Daphne B Holtom was
recorded at Brentford register office (Ref. 3a 149) during the second quarter
of 1945. The couple’s only known child
was born just over six years later. It
was at Fulham register office in London, that the death of Ronald William
Collett was recorded (Vol. 12) during the summer of 1990
64R40
– Terence William Collett was
born in 1951 at Ealing
Stanley Clifford Collett [64Q52] was born at Brentford on 16th
June 1923, his birth recorded at Brentford register office (Ref. 3a 23), when
his mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as French. He married Elsie Downey on 28th
September 1946 at St Silas’ Church in Toxteth Park in Liverpool, the event
recorded at Liverpool South register office (Ref. 10d 37). Elsie had been born at Toxteth Park on 1st
April 1922. Once married the couple
stayed in Liverpool, where their son and daughter were born, although the exact
details have not been revealed by the family.
And it was later, at Liverpool, that Stanley Clifford Collett died on 13th
June 1987, followed eight years later by Elsie Collett who died there on 27th
June 1995
64R41
– June Collett was born
in 1948 at Liverpool
64R42
– Allan Collett was
born in 1949 at Liverpool
Peggy Collett [64Q53] was born at Brentford on 1st
July 1927, where her birth was recorded (Ref. 3a 105) when her mother’s maiden-name
was confirmed as French, another daughter of Thomas and Emma Collett. It was during the last quarter of 1954 that
the marriage of Peggy and Albert E Tottman was recorded at Ealing register
office (Ref. 5e 120). The later death of
Peggy Tottman was recorded at Hillingdon register office in Middlesex during
the summer of 1989
Lawrence
F Collett [64Q54] was
born at Brentford in 1931, his birth recorded there (Ref. 3a 112) during the
second quarter of 1931, when his mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as French. Like his sister Sheila (below) his marriage
to Ivy A Harding was recorded at Ealing register office (Ref. 5e 131) during
the first quarter of 1953, when Lawrence was twenty-one years old. Although not proved, two children from a
Collett-Harding marriage were born at Portsmouth in 1956 and 1957, and they
were Christine D Collett who married David C Eve at Portsmouth in 1976,
and Gary V Collett who married Julie A Robertson at Portsmouth in
1983. Further work therefore needs to be
done to confirm or deny that they were the children of Lawrence and Ivy Collett
Sheila
B Collett [64Q55] was
born at Brentford in Middlesex in 1933, where her birth was recorded (Ref. 3a
120) during the third quarter of the year, when her mother’s maiden-name was
confirmed at French, Sheila being the last of the eight children of Thomas
Collett and Emma Mary French. She was
twenty-one years of age when the marriage of Sheila B Collett and George R Ball
was recorded at Ealing register office (Ref. 5e 86) during the first three
months of 1955
Hyacinth Ypres Sarah
Collett [64Q56] was
born at Whitchurch in Cardiff on 27th March 1915. Her second Christian name was given to her in
honour of her father who was injured during the First Battle of Ypres, but who
thankfully survived the ordeal. She
married Clifford Sidney James at Whitchurch on 25th April 1939 less
than six months before the outbreak of war.
Clifford was born at Cardiff on 31st May 1916. And it was there that they both died within
five months of each other. Hyacinth was
a patient at St Fagans Nursing Home in Cardiff when she passed away at 0110
hours on the morning of Friday 1st June 2007, while her husband
followed those few months after on 25th October 2007. The marriage produced two daughters
for Hyacinth and Clifford, the youngest being Lynne James
who was born 17th November 1946.
She married Vernon George Joyce in the parish Church of St Mary in
Whitchurch, Cardiff in 1972. Vernon was
born on 3rd February 1931 at Swansea and they had no children. Lynne Joyce passed away on the morning of 14th
November 2020 in the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff, just three days
before her seventy-fifth birthday, leaving Vernon who would be ninety in 2021
Arthur Collett [64Q57] was born at Whitchurch in Cardiff on 2nd
October 1918, but sadly he died less than two months later on 29th
November 1918 and was buried at Whitchurch that same day. The cause of death was noted as ‘debility
from birth’, that being a failure of the infant to thrive
THOMAS COLLETT [64Q58] was born at Whitchurch on 9th
March 1920 and was baptised at St Mary’s Church in Whitchurch during April
1920. He later married Elizabeth Louisa
Perry, their marriage recorded at the East Glamorgan register office (Ref. 8b
680) during the first three months of 1948.
The birth of three of their six children was also recorded at that same
register office, with the other three recorded at Cardiff. Thomas died at the University of Wales
Hospital in Cardiff on 18th August 1995, while it was twenty-three
years later when his widow Elizabeth Louisa Collett passed away on Thursday 29th
March 2018 at the age of 91. Elizabeth,
who was known as Betty, was born at Whitchurch in Cardiff on 11th
March 1927, seven years after her late husband was born there and, like him,
she too died in the Cardiff University Hospital. Betty had fourteen grandchildren and
twenty-one great grandchildren, with the birth of number twenty-two due late on
in 2018
64R43
– Patricia Collett was
born in 1948 at Cardiff
64R44
– Peter Collett was
born in 1950 at Cardiff
64R45
– Allen Collett was
born in 1953 at Cardiff
64R46
– MAUREEN COLLETT was
born in 1955 at Cardiff
64R47
– Pauline A Collett was
born in 1958 at Cardiff
64R48
– Jayne Alison Collett
was born in 1966 at Cardiff
Benjamin Cyril Collett [64Q59] was born at Cardiff on 15th
February 1922, the son of Arthur Collett and Dorothy Osborne. In fact, his birth was recorded at Cardiff
register office (Ref. 11a 144) during the second quarter of 1922 when his name
was said to be Cyril B Collett and his mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as
Osborne. He was known within the family
as Benny and was later married but was subsequently divorced. However, the marriage did produce a son for
Benjamin and his wife. It was Benny’s
niece Maureen Iliffe nee Collett who reported that he had passed away on 10th
March 2015 at the grand age of 93. That
happened only a few weeks after he had become a resident at a nursing home near
Sidmouth in East Devon
64R49
– a Collett son was
born at a place and date not yet known
Alexander Collett [64Q60] was born at Cardiff on 25th
June 1927, the youngest child of Arthur Collett and his wife Dorothy
Osborne. It is known that he married
Violet Sainty in 1952, the marriage recorded at Cardiff (Ref. 8b 347) during
the third quarter of that year. The
wedding service was conducted at Llandaff Cathedral in Cardiff and their
marriage produced a daughter for the couple, who was born at Cardiff during the
following year. It is also established
that Alexander Collett died while he was still living in Cardiff on 2nd
November 2010. Nine years later, on 12th
December 2019 Violet Collett nee Bowen (Sainty) passed away at the age of 87 at
Ty Hafod Nursing Home in Cardiff, after which her funeral took place at
Thornhill Crematorium Cardiff on 8th January 2020. Violet left a daughter Christine, five
grandchildren and six great grandchildren
Violet
was born Violet Bowen in Newport, Gwent, Wales, on 16th October 1932, her
mother being Ada Gwendoline Bowen. At a
few months old, Violet was given by her mother into the care of Doctor Barnados
Children Home because she was unable to care for her due to illness, and
maternal grandparents were said to be too old to care for her. On the same day Violet was taken there, she
was fostered out to Archibald Sainty and his wife Cassie Vickery. When Violet was approaching the end of
primary school, a girl told her, Cassie was not her real mother and that they
had adopted her. When Violet married
Alexander Collett, she married under the name of Sainty. It wasn't until she was in her late sixties,
that she discovered she had not been adopted, but had only ever been
fostered. Violet then had to go and
swear on-oath that she was indeed Violet Collett, nee Bowen, and not Sainty as
her marriage certificate stated
64R50
– Christine Collett was
born in 1953 at Cardiff
Clarence John Collett
[64R1], who was known
within the family as Peter, was born at Grove near Wantage during October
1920. He was the eldest of the three
sons of Clarence George Collett and his wife Evelyn May Jenkins, and some years
after he was born the family settled in Wootton Bassett. Peter married Jean Withey and they had two
children. Widow Jean Collett, nee Withy,
died during August 2012, while both of her two children are still alive. It was their daughter Gillian who has carried
out extensive research into the Collett family, much of which has been received
via Ben Collett (Ref. 64T1) to enable a revised version to be produced
64S1
– Jeremy J Collett was
born in 1949 at Swindon
64S2
– Gillian M Collett was
born in 1951 at Swindon
Bryan George Collett
[64R2] was born at
Grove, near Wantage, on 19th November 1924, the son of Clarence and
Evelyn Collett, who later moved to Wootton Bassett. He married Dorothy Elizabeth Hicks, who was
known as Betty, at Swindon (Ref. 7c 1323) during the second quarter of
1948. Their marriage produced three
children whose births were all recorded at Swindon register, when the mother’s maiden-name
was confirmed as Hicks in each case, all three of them still alive in
2012. Eight years earlier, Bryan George
Collett died at Wootton Bassett on 7th November 2004, his death
recorded at Swindon register office (Ref. 796/1 a68b) at the age of 80
64S3
– Rosemary Elizabeth Collett
was born in 1950 at Swindon
64S3
– Roger Bryan Collett
was born in 1952 at Swindon
64S3
– Russell George Collett
was born in 1961 at Swindon
Michael Alan Collett [64R3]
was born at either Grove near Wantage on 25th January 1927, the
youngest of the three sons of Clarence George Collett and his wife Evelyn May
Jenkins. It was at Chippenham in
Wiltshire that Michael married (1) Josephine Webb on 18th November
1950. Josephine was born at Swindon on
27th April 1930 and she and Michael had six children, the first
three while the family was living in Swindon, before moving to Wokingham in
Berkshire, all six of whom were living in August 2012. In 1964 the family left Wokingham when
Michael, Josephine and all of their children emigrated to Australia, where they
eventually settled in Victoria.
Josephine Collett nee Webb died at Rye in Victoria on 15th
February 1990 and was buried at Rye Cemetery.
After six years as a widower Michael married (2) to Jennifer Ross in
1996. All of the information regarding
Clarence George Collett and his children and grandchild has been kindly
supplied by Ben N Collett (Ref. 64T1) from Yan Yean in Victoria, the grandson
of Michael Alan Collett who was still alive and living in Australia in August
2012
The
births of the couple’s first three children were recorded at Swindon register
office, with Sara’s during the third quarter of 1951 (Ref. 7c 147), Timothy’s
during the first quarter of 1953 (Ref. 7c 87), and Lucy during the second
quarter of 1955 (Ref. 7c 8). It was at
Wokingham that the remaining children’s births were recorded, for Joanna (Ref.
6a 102) during the first quarter of 1958, for Nicholas (Ref. 6a 82) during the
fourth quarter of 1960, and Catherine (Ref. 6a 62) during the second quarter of
1963. In all six cases, the mother’s maiden-name
was confirmed as Webb
64S6
– Sara Jane Collett was born in 1951 at Swindon
64S7
– Timothy Michael Collett was born in 1953 at Swindon
64S8
– Lucy Ann Collett was born in 1955 at Swindon
64S9
– Joanna Susan Collett was born in 1958 at Wokingham
64S10
– Nicholas James
Collett was born in 1960 at Wokingham
64S11
– Catherine Alison Collett was born in 1963 at Wokingham
Cecilia Ellen R Collett
[64R4] was born at
Coppice Lease Farm in West Challow on 31st October 1925, the first
of the four children of Cecil Collett and Anne Burson. It was at nearby Wantage that her birth was
recorded (Ref. 2c 35) during the last three months of 1925, when her mother’s maiden-name
was confirmed as Burson. It was during
the Second World War, when Cecilia was living and working in Coventry, that she
met and married John M Russell. At that
time her family was still living and working on the farm at West Challow. The marriage of Cecilia E R Collett and John
M Russell was recorded at Coventry register office (Ref. 6d 21) during the
fourth quarter of 1944 and it was during the second quarter of the following
year that the birth of their son John M Russell junior, their only known
child, was recorded at Meriden Warwickshire register office (Ref. 6d 19), when
the mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Collett. Cecilia Ellen R Russel was 77 years died when
she passed away, her death recorded in Oxfordshire during August 2003
Francis Mortimer Vizor
Collett [64R5] was born
at Oxford in 1928, where his birth was recorded (Ref. 3a 91) during the second
quarter of 1928, and when his mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as
Burson. The family home was Coppice
Leaze Farm in West Challow, so it is possible Francis was born in hospital in
Oxford. He was just over twenty years of
age when he married Violet M Langford at Wantage, where the wedding was
recorded (Ref. 6a 71) during the final quarter of 1948, by which time his
family had only just left West Challow and settled in nearby Grove. Exactly three years after that, the birth of
their son Alan was also recorded at Wantage register office (Ref. 6a 185) during
the last three months of 1951, as was the birth of their daughter Teresa during
the second quarter of 1954 (Ref. 6a 82).
The mother’s maiden-name in each case was confirmed as Langford. It was also in 1951 that Francis’ father died
at The Firs, Main Street in Grove. And
it was at Grove Cemetery in 2019 that Francis Mortimer Vizor Collett was laid
to rest at the age of 91
64S12
– Alan F Collett was
born in 1951 at Grove, near Wantage
64S13
– Teresa A Collett was
born in 1954 at Grove, near Wantage
Douglas
Albert Aaron Collett [64R6] was
born at Coppice Leaze Farm in West Challow on 15th November 1933,
the third child of Cecil and Anne Collett.
The birth of Douglas A A Collett was recorded at Wantage register office
(Ref. 2c 78) during the last quarter of 1933, when his mother’s maiden-name was
confirmed as Burson. It was simply as
Douglas A Collett that he was recorded at Wantage register office (Ref. 6a 62)
when he married Margaret E Talmage during the first three months of 1956. The first of their two children was born
around nine months later, a honeymoon baby no doubt, with the second child born
around the time of the couple’s second wedding anniversary. Although both births were recorded at
Wantage, it is possible they were born in nearby Grove, where Douglas’ widowed
mother was living and had a smallholding
64S14
– Angela M Collett was
born in 1956 at Grove, near Wantage
64S15
– Michael D Collett was
born in 1958 at Grove, near Wantage
Edwina F A Collett [64R7] was born at Coppice Leaze Farm in West
Challow, the fourth and last child of Cecil Collett and Anne Burson. Her birth was recorded at Wantage register
office (Ref. 2c 95) during the third quarter of 1936, when her mother’s maiden-name
confirmed as Burson. She was nineteen years
of age when the marriage of Edwina F A Collett and (1) Peter C Frusher was
recorded at Wantage (Ref. 6a 124) during the final three months of 1955. The marriage produced two children when
Edwina presented Peter with a son, Stuart Charles Frusher born on 7th
May 1956 who died 24th November 1983, and a daughter Nicola C
Frusher who was born during the second quarter of 1960. Both births were recorded at Newbury register
office (Refs. 6a 32 & 6a 79) respectively, and on each occasion the
mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Collett.
Edwina F A Frusher later married (2) Arthur C Loftus, the event recorded
at Andover register office in July 1988, four years after the premature death
of her son
Raife F Vizor Collett [64R8]
was born in 1930 at
Hendon, where his parents had been married during the previous year. The record of his birth was recorded there
(Ref. 3a 726) during the second quarter of that year when his mother’s maiden-name
was confirmed as Empson-Ridler. Raife
was the eldest of the four children of Edward Reginald Vizor Collett and his
wife Hilda Audrey Empson-Ridler. He was
thirty-four years old when he married Ines P M Wadey who was only twenty-one,
having been born at Midhurst in Sussex in 1943.
It was also at Midhurst register office (Ref. 5h 993) that their wedding
was recorded during the last three months of 1964. Just over one year later the first of their
two children was born at Worthing and ten years after that the couple’s second
child was added to the family which, by then, was residing in the Chichester
area of Sussex
64S16
– Naomi Leona Vizor Collett
was born in 1966 at Worthing, Sussex
64S17
– Adam Leonard Vizor Collett
was born in 1976 at Chichester, Sussex
Ann P Vizor Collett [64R9]
was born in 1932, her
birth recorded at Barnet (Ref. 3a 753) during the first three months of 1932,
when her mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Empson-Ridler
Edward Robin Vizor Collett
[64R10] was born in
1939, his birth recorded at Barnet register office (Ref. 3a 1551) during the
quarter of that year, when his mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as
Empson-Ridler. Tragically, Edward Robin
Vizor Collett of 1 South Cottages, Windmill Lane in Arkley, within the London
Borough of Barnet, died at Highgate in London on 29th January
1959. His death was recorded at
Islington register office (Ref. 5c 1309) when he was only nineteen years of
age. Administration of his personal
effects, amounting to Ł255, was granted in London on 2nd September
1959 to his father Edward Reginald Vizor Collett, a retired advertising
inspector. It is assumed that, while
Edward may have been working in London, he was still living with his parents
whose home was at 1 South Cottages in Arkley
Reginald Martin Vizor
Collett [64R11] was born
on 15th February 1950 in the family home at 'Oakend' in Arkley, his
birth recorded at Barnet register office (Ref. 5a 8), the last child of Edward
Reginald Vizor Collett and Hilda Audrey Empson-Ridler. The record of his birth confirmed that his
mother’s maiden-name was Ridler. In
2020, it was Martin who kindly provided the new details regarding himself being
the fourth son of Edward R V Collett, where only three had been identified
previously. At that time in his life
Martin was Assistant Curate in the Benefice of
Dulverton, Brushford, Brompton Regis with Withiel Florey, Skilgate and Upton,
in Somerset
Neil Francis Vizor Collett
[64R12] was born on 17th
July 1929, the only known child of Kenneth Vizor Collett and Joyce Eileen
Dunsford, his birth recorded at Amersham in Buckinghamshire (Ref. 3a 1510)
during the third quarter of that year, when his mother’s maiden-name confirmed
as Dunsford and his name was written as Neil F V Collett. His marriage to Shelagh Kathryn Farrell in
British Columbia, Canada, produced four sons, all of whom were born in
Canada. Shelagh was born at Edmonton in
Alberta on 23rd November 1937, the daughter of Conway MacAllister
Farrell and Clare Cenia Ward. Tragically
she suffered a premature death at the age of 33, when she died on 14th
December 1970 at North Vancouver, either during or just after the birth of her
fourth child. She was then buried at
Capilano View Cemetery in West Vancouver.
What happened to Neil and his son after losing Shelagh is not yet known
64S18
– Tim Collett was born in 1963 in Canada
64S19
– Hugh Collett was born in 1965 in Canada
64S20
– Anthony Collett was born in 1968 in Canada
64S21
– Max Collett was born in 1970 in Canada
Bernard Arthur Collett [64R13]
was born at Bradford in
1926 and was the first of the four children of Arthur Collett and Florence
Jackson. His birth was recorded at
Bradford register office (Ref. 9b 128) during the second quarter of 1926 when
his mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Jackson. Bernard A Collett married Ellen P Wardall at
Bradford (Ref. 2b 236) during the third quarter of 1949. The marriage produced two children whose
births were recorded at Bradford
64S22
– Susan J Collett was
born in 1954 at Bradford, Yorkshire
64S23
– Steven J Collett was
born in 1960 at Bradford, Yorkshire
Margaret R Collett [64R14]
was born at Bradford in
1930, where her birth was recorded (Ref. 9b 236) during the last three months
of 1930, when her mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Jackson. Just around the time she was twenty-one, the
marriage of Margaret R Collett and Leslie E Wells was recorded at Leeds
register office (Ref. 2c 405) during the final quarter of 1951
John Collett [64R15] was born at Bradford in 1938, the third
child of Arthur and Florence Collett, whose birth was recorded at Bradford
(Ref. 9b 147) during the first three months of the year, when his mother’s maiden-name
was confirmed as Jackson. It was during
the last quarter of 1962 that the marriage of John Collett and Ann McLean was
recorded at Bradford (Ref. 2b 139), where the couple’s first child was born one
year later
64S24
– Paul D Collett was
born in 1963 at Bradford, Yorkshire
64S25
– Jonathan David Collett
was born in 1967 at Bradford, Yorkshire
64S26
– Mark Andrew Collett
was born in 1969 at Bradford, Yorkshire
Derek Collett [64R16] was born at Bradford in 1943 and was the
last child born to Arthur Collett and Florence Jackson. Derek’s birth was recorded at Bradford (Ref.
9b 174) during the second quarter of 1943, when once again the mother’s maiden-name
was confirmed as Jackson. It was also at
Bradford, during the fourth quarter of 1966, that the marriage of Derek Collett
and Valerie Unwin was recorded (Ref. 2b 268).
The births of the couple’s two sons were also recorded at Bradford
register office, with Martin’s during the first months of 1976 (Vol. 4 32),
when his mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Unwin
64S27
– Dale Collett was born
in 1971 at Bradford, Yorkshire
64S28
– Martin Collett was born in 1976 at Bradford, Yorkshire
Violet Elsie Collett [64R22] was born at Hartshill, near Nuneaton,
her birth recorded at Nuneaton register office (Ref. 6d 113) during the second
quarter of 1928, when her mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Gardner. It was only during the first three months of
that same year, when her parents were married, and it was at Holy Trinity
Church in Hartshill where Violet was baptised on 13th July 1928, the
only child of William Stanley Collett and Hilda Janet Gardner. Tragically, she was nearly four years old
when she died at Hartshill, her death recorded at Nuneaton register office
(Ref. 6d 89) during the first three months of 1932
David John Collett [64R23] was born in 1955 at Nuneaton, where his
birth was recorded (Ref. 9c 75) during the fourth quarter of that year, the
only known child of John Kenneth Collett and Eileen Mary Garratt. It has not been discovered, whether or not he
was married once or twice in his life, while he would have been forty-nine
years old when the marriage of David J Collett and Karen L Dudfield was
recorded at the South Warwickshire register office early in 2005
Ivor C Collett [64R24] was born at Worcester in 1954, the only
child of Stanley J Collett and Doreen H Stiff.
His birth was recorded at Worcester register office (Ref. 9d 281) during
the third quarter of 1954, when his mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as
Stiff. Just under twenty-two years later
the marriage of Ivor C Collett and Valerie J Fisher was recorded at Droitwich
register office (Vol. 29 0185) during the second quarter of 1976. The births of their two known children were
recorded at Worcester during the summer of 1981 and early in 1983 when, on both
occasions, the mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Fisher
64S29
– Adam Richard Collett was born in 1981 at Worcester
64S30
– Aimi Leanne Collett was born in 1983 at Worcester
Anne Collett [64R25] was born at Worcester in 1952, the
eldest of the three children of Leonard W Collett and Doreen Waldron, whose
birth was recorded at Worcester (Ref. 9d 339) during the second quarter of that
year. The record also confirmed that her
mother’s maiden-name was Waldron
Susan Collett [64R26] was born at Worcester in 1954 and was
the second child of Leonard and Doreen Collett.
It was also at Worcester that her birth was recorded (Ref. 9d 304)
during the last three months of 1954, when her mother’s maiden-name was
confirmed as Waldron
James Leonard Collett [64R27]
was born at Worcester
in 1961, the youngest of the three children of Leonard and Doreen Collett. His birth was recorded there during the
second quarter of 1961 (Ref. 9d 353) when his mother’s maiden-name was
confirmed as Waldron. Although not
proved, it seems highly likely that James was the James L Collett who married
Alison L Bond during the spring of 1985, when the event was recorded at the
Chiltern & Beaconsfield register office in Buckinghamshire (Vol. 12
1221). If validated, then the couple
ended up with twin daughters, the births of which were recorded at Aylesbury
Vale register office (Ref. 3241c c27c) towards the end of 1994. The mother’s maiden-name was Bond
64S31
– Jessica Mary Collett was born in 1994 at Aylesbury
64S32
– Hannah Alice Collett was born in 1994 at Aylesbury
Raymond Henry Collett
[64R28] was born in
1923, possibly at Bramley, with his birth recorded at Wharfedale register
office (Ref. 9a 91) during the fourth quarter of the year, when his mother’s maiden-name
was confirmed as Mortimer, Raymond being the only child of Clement Henry
Collett and Mary Agnes Mortimer [aka Agnes Mary Mortimer]. He was twenty-two when his marriage to Emily
G Stonebridge was recorded at the London Shoreditch register office (Ref. 5d
32) during the third quarter of 1946, most likely after he had taken some part
in the Second World War. Over the
following years, Emily presented Raymond with two daughters, the births of both
of whom were recorded Bradford register office, with their mother’s maiden-name
confirmed as Stonebridge. It was during
the summer of 1947 that daughter Linda was born (Ref. 2b 53) and she married
Derek Welch during the spring of 1971, the event recorded at Sheffield register
office. The birth of daughter Jill was
recorded (Ref. 2b 1) during the third quarter of 1953, for whom no marriage has
been found. The later death of Raymond
Henry Collett was recorded at Bradford (Ref. 08 11c) during the third quarter
of 1997, when he was 76
64S33
– Linda A Collett was born in 1947 at Bradford, Yorkshire
64S34
– Jill E Collett was born in 1953 at Bradford, Yorkshire
Raymond George Collett
[64R29] was the only
child of Alden George Charles Collett and Elsie Close. He was
born at Winterbourne with his birth recorded at Bristol register office (Ref.
6a 306) during the first three months of 1930, his mother’s maiden-name
confirmed as Close. He was twenty-two
years of age, when the marriage of Raymond G Collett and Ina R Hale was
recorded at Chipping Sodbury register office (Ref. 7b 11) during the third
quarter of 1952. Although it is known
that they had a son and a daughter, the only birth so far found is that of
their son, which was recorded at Bristol (Ref. 7b 124) during the first three
months of 1960, when the mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Hale
64S35
– Christopher Collett was born in 1960 at Bristol
Wilfred G W Collett
[64R32] the only son of
Wilfred Collett and Betty Jones was born around 13th May 1945,
approximately eleven days after his father drowned during a swimming incident
on the same day that the German forces surrendered in Italy. His birth was recorded at Monmouth register
office (Ref. 11a 316) during the second quarter of 1945. During the first two decades of the 21st
Century, Wilfred was living in Australia, where he is married with a son and
daughter of his own. No further details
have been revealed at this time
The only daughter [64R33] of Henry Collett and Jean McCutcheon
was married and had one son and one daughter
Michael William Collett
[64R34] was born in
1953, his birth recorded at the Kingswood register office in Bristol (Ref. 7b
704) during the third quarter of the year.
His mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Stephens, Patricia Stephens
being the wife of Thomas William Collett.
Michael was twenty-nine when he married Colleen M Dalton at Bristol,
where their wedding was recorded (Vol. 22 0954) during the spring months of
1982. Their marriage resulted in the
birth of two children, the births of whom were recorded at Bristol, when the
mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Dalton
64S36
– Tomas Michael Collett was born in 1984 at Bristol
64S37
– Meg Elizabeth Collett was born in 1987 at Bristol
Amanda Collett [64R36] was born at Winterbourne in 1960, her
birth recorded at Sodbury register office (Ref. 7b 817) during the third
quarter of 1960. Her mother’s maiden-name
was confirmed as Stephens, Amanda being the daughter of Thomas Collett and
Patricia Stephens. Amanda was nearly
twenty-one when she married Gary D Jenkins, the event recorded at Bristol (Vol.
22 0502) during the second quarter of 1981
Brian
M T Collett [64R37] was the eldest of the two children of
Thomas Charles Collett and his first wife Hilda Plumridge, who later
divorced. His birth was recorded at
Willesden in Middlesex (Ref. 3a 110) during the fourth quarter of 1941, when
his mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Plumridge. The later marriage of Brian M T Collett and
Evelyn D Pratt was recorded at Ealing register office (Ref. 5e 151) during the
third quarter of 1963. Four children
were born into a Collett-Pratt family, two at Cleethorpes in Lincolnshire – Debra
J Collett in 1963 during the same quarter Brian marriage Evelyn, the other Darren
Richard Collett in 1970. Another, Phillipa
L Collett at Swindon in 1965 and the last, Graham Barry Collett born
at Northampton in 1967. Whether any of
these were the children of Brian and Evelyn has still to be confirmed
Terence
William Collett [64R40] was born in 1951, the son of Ronald W
Collett and Daphne B Holtom, whose birth was recorded at Ealing register office
(Ref. 5e 6) during the third quarter to the year, when his mother’s maiden-name
was confirmed as Holtom. He married
later in his life, when the wedding of Terence W Collett and Kay Smith was
recorded at Hounslow register office (Vol. 13) towards the end of 1985. No record of any children has been found
June Collett [64R41] was the daughter and the eldest child of
Stanley Clifford Collett and Elsie Downey.
She was born at Liverpool and
her birth was recorded at the Liverpool South register office (Ref. 10d 20)
during the second quarter of 1948, when her mother’s maiden-name was confirmed
as Downey. The marriage of June Collett
and Raymond Aspinall was recorded at Prescot register office in Lancashire
(Ref. 10f 340) during the fourth quarter of 1969. Over the following years June and Raymond had
two sons. Philip Lee Aspinall was
born in 1971 and Andrew Simon Aspinall was born in 1975, their births
recorded at Liverpool during the second and third quarter of each year
respectively. On both occasions, the
mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Collett
Allan Collett [64R42] was the son and last child born to
Stanley Collett and Elsie Downey. He was
born in Liverpool and his birth recorded at Liverpool South register office
(Ref. 10d 52) during the last three months of 1949. His birth record confirmed that his mother’s maiden-name
was Downey. He later married and the
marriage produced three sons for the couple of which no details have been
revealed. It was in the town of Prescot,
to the east of Liverpool, that Allan’s sister June (above) was married in
1969. Therefore, it is possible that the
marriage of Allan Collett and Georgina Wiseman, also recorded at Prescot
register office (Ref. 10f 77) during the first three months of 1973, relates to
the son of Stanley and Elsie Collett.
However, so far though, only two of the three children credited to Allan
Collett had been positively identified.
They are Stephen Allan Collett and Michael Paul Collett, whose births
were recorded at Liverpool during the spring of 1978 and 1980 respectively, the
mother’s maiden-name in each case being Wiseman. It is the unusual spelling of the name Allan
that perhaps indicates the connection is correct
An
earlier birth of Sharon Marie Collett was recorded at the Somerset Taunton
register office (Ref. 7c 18) during the third quarter of 1969, when the
mother’s maiden-name was Wiseman. As far
as can be determined, hers is the only other birth of a Collett-Wiseman
partnership, but does not match the male gender listed below
64S38
– a Collett son whose date of birth has not been revealed
64S39
– Stephen Allan Collett was born in 1978 at Liverpool
64S40
– Michael Paul Collett was born in 1980 at Liverpool
Patricia Collett [64R43] was the eldest of the six children of
Thomas Collett and Elizabeth Louisa Perry, whose birth was recorded at the
Cardiff register office (Ref. 8b 265) during the third quarter of 1948, the
same year her parents were married. Her
birth record also confirmed that her mother’s maiden-name was Perry. Today, in 2020, Patricia was living abroad,
where she was married, and gave birth to a son.
Her son is now also married and has one daughter and three sons, all of them
living abroad too
Peter Collett [64R44] was the second child and eldest son of
Thomas Collett and Elizabeth Louisa Perry, his birth recorded at the East
Glamorgan register office (Ref. 8b 399) during the third quarter of 1950, when
his mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Perry. Peter Collett married Carole A Galozzi, the
event recorded at Pontypridd (Vol. 27 0532) during the third quarter of 1976,
with whom he had three sons. For all of
them, the births were recorded at the South Glamorgan register office and in
each case the mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Galozzi. In 2020, Peter and Carole are divorced, with
the marriages of the two older sons having taken place abroad, from which Paul
has no children and James has a son and daughter, all of them still residing in
Wales
64S41
– Paul Collett was born in 1978 at South Glamorgan, Wales
64S42
– James Collett was born in 1982 at South Glamorgan, Wales
64S43
– Symon Peter Collett was born in 1986 at South Glamorgan, Wales
Allen Collett [64R45] was born at Cardiff in 1953, the third
child of Thomas and Betty Collett, whose birth was recorded at East Glamorgan
register office (Ref. 8b 411) during the first quarter of 1953, his mother’s maiden-name
confirmed as Perry. Eighteen years later
the marriage of Allen Collett and (1) Janet Yorath was recorded at Cardiff
(Ref. 8b 436) during the first three months of 1971, while six years later
Allen Collett married (2) Shirley D Morris.
That marriage was recorded at South Glamorgan register office (Ref. 28
0685) during the first quarter of 1977.
It is known that Allen and Janet had a daughter, while Allen and Shirley
had two daughters and a son. As regards
the three daughters, the first of them is Tracey Ann Collett, born in 1972,
whose birth was recorded at Cardiff when the mother’s maiden-name was confirmed
as Yorath, next is Nicola Jayne Collett, born in 1979, her mother’s maiden-name
confirmed as Morris, the youngest being Abigail Jessica Collett whose birth
details have not been discovered. The birth of his son, Michael David Collett,
was recorded at Pontypridd (Vol. 27 1500) during the third quarter of 1977, the
mother’s maiden-name again stated as being Morris
The
following is the only child of Allen Collett by his first wife Janet Yorath:
64S44
– Tracey Ann Collett
was born in 1972 at Cardiff
The
following are the three children of Allen Collett by his second wife Sheila
Morris:
64S45
– Michael David Collett
was born in 1977 at Pontypridd, Wales
64S46
– Nicola Jayne Collett
was born in 1979 at South Glamorgan
64S47
– Abigail Jessica Collett whose date of birth is not known
MAUREEN COLLETT [64R46] was born in Wales the fourth child of
Thomas and Betty Collett, whose birth was recorded at East Glamorgan register
office (Ref. 8b 409) during the second quarter of 1955, when her mother’s maiden-name
was confirmed as Perry. It was Maureen
who kindly provided much of the basic detail that has enabled this family line
to be constructed. The May 2009 update
of the file was also thanks to Maureen who provided all of the additional
information now contained in the appendix, together with more precise details
of the children of her great grandfather Charles Collett and his wife
Sarah. In addition to this, very special
thanks must go to Maureen who, during the autumn of 2009, provided the vital
information that confirmed the common start point for Part 35 – The Melksham to
Wisconsin Line and Part 44 – The New Malmesbury Line. That new information also affected Part 31 –
The Third Wiltshire Line which now also has the same origin at Broughton
Gifford in 1595. Maureen, who is Maureen
Iliffe, having married Mark during the spring of 1976, lives in Cardiff with
their two children, a son and a daughter.
Then later, during 2019 and 2020, she very generously provided even more
details about her branch of the Collett family back to her great grandparents,
Charles Collett and Sarah Deborah Wicks (Vol. 64O21)
Pauline A Collett [64R47] was born in Cardiff, her birth recorded
there (Ref. 8b 392) during the last quarter of 1958, when her mother’s maiden-name
was confirmed as Perry. The marriage of
Pauline A Collett and Nigel R Hallam was recorded at South Glamorgan register
office (Vol. 28 0832) during the second quarter of 1980. Their marriage produced a son and daughter
for the couple, their son married twice abroad, with no children arising from
the first marriage. From his second
marriage, he has a stepson and three sons, who all live abroad
Jayne Alison Collett
[64R48] was
the sixth and last child of Thomas Collett and Elizabeth (Betty) Louisa
Perry. Her birth was recorded at Cardiff
register office (Ref. 8b 392) during the first three months of 1966, where her
mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Perry.
The marriage of Jayne A Collett and Michael W Parramore was recorded at
South Glamorgan register office (Vol. 28 850) during the spring of 1989. They have one son and one daughter
The only son [64R49] of Benjamin Cyril Collett (or Cyril
Benjamin Collett) is married and he has two sons of his own. No details are available at this time
64S48
– a Collett son whose date of birth has not been revealed
64S49
– a Collett son whose date of birth has not been revealed
Christine Collett [64R50] was born at Cardiff in 1953, the only
known child of Alexander Collett and Violet Sainty, her birth recorded at
Cardiff (Ref. 8b 359) during the first three months of that year, when her
mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Sainty.
Christine was eighteen when she gave birth to a son, whose birth was
recorded at Cardiff register office during the summer of 1971, with the
mother’s surname confirmed as Collett.
Three years later, the marriage of Christine Collett and Paul Harris was
recorded at Merthyr Tydfil (Vol. 27 0040) during the last three months of 1974
when she was twenty-one. It might be
that Christine was already carrying her husband’s baby on their wedding day,
since it was during the second quarter of the following year that the birth of
their son Simon Harris was recorded at Merthyr Tydfil (Vol. 27 0274),
although he may have been a honeymoon baby.
Afterwards, two daughters were born into the family, Sheree Harris
in 1981 and Holly Ann Harris in 1986, their births also recorded at
Merthyr Tydfil register office, when their mother’s maiden-name was confirmed
as Collett. Paul Harris passed away
during the month of July in 2017 when he was only 64
64S50
– Neil Tarot Collett was born in 1971 at Cardiff
Jeremy J Collett [64S1] was born at Swindon in 1949, the first
of the two children of Clarence John Collett (known as Peter) and Jean
Withey. His birth was recorded at
Swindon register office (Ref. 7c 683) during the third quarter of 1949, when
his mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Withey. The marriage of Jeremy J Collett and Gloria D
Winder was recorded at Swindon (Vol. 23 2200) during the spring months of 1980
Gillian M Collett [64S2] was born at Swindon in 1951, whose
birth, like that of her older brother (above) was recorded at Swindon (Ref. 7c
653) during the second quarter of that year.
Her mother’s maiden-name was also confirmed as Withey
Rosemary Elizabeth Collett
[64S3] was born at
Swindon in 1950, the eldest of the three children of Bryan George Collett and
Dorothy Elizabeth Hicks, who was known as Betty. The birth of Rosemary E Collett was recorded
at Swindon register office (Ref. 7c 124) during the second quarter of 1950,
when her mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Hicks. She was around twenty-one when Rosemary E
Collett married Robin W Bishop, their wedding day recorded at Swindon (Ref. 7c
2175) during the second quarter of 1971.
It seems highly likely that Robin was the brother of Joan Bishop who, four
years later married Rosemary’s brother Roger (below)
Roger Bryan Collett [64S4]
was born at Swindon
where his birth was recorded (Ref. 7c 113) during the second quarter of 1952
and his mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Hicks. He was eldest son and second of the three
children of Bryan and Betty Collett.
Perhaps it was through his brother-in-law Robin Bishop, the husband of
his sister Rosemary (above), that he met his future wife, since it was at
Chippenham (Vol. 23 1767) during the summer of 1975 that the marriage of Roger
B Collett and Joan K Bishop was recorded
Russell
George Collett [64S5] was born in 1961 with his birth recorded at Swindon
register office (Ref. 7c 122) during the second quarter of the year, when his
mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Hicks.
The was the third and last child of Bryan George Collett and Dorothy
Elizabeth Hicks. He was around
thirty-two years of age when the marriage of Russell G Collett and Jacqueline A
Highman was recorded at Chippenham register office (Vol. 23) during the spring
of 1993. Nine years later, Jacqueline
presented Russell with a son, whose birth was recorded at the Bath & North
East Somerset register office (Ref. 3001c) during the spring of 2002
64T1
- William George Collett was born in
2002 at Bath, Somerset
Nicholas James Collett [64S10]
was born in Wokingham during in 1960 and was the youngest son and fifth of
the six children of Michael Alan Collett and his wife Josephine Webb. When Nicholas was four years old his family
emigrated to Australia where, around 1990, he partnered with Shelley Dianne Doherty
who was born in 1973. Their partnership
resulted in the birth of three children
64T2
- Ben Nicholas Collett was born in 1992 in Australia
64T3
– Tom Michael Collett was born in 1993 in Australia
64T4
– Grace Rose Collett was born in 1997
in Australia
Alan F Collett [64S12] was born at Grove in 1951, with his
birth recorded at Wantage register office (Ref. 6a 185) during the last three
months of that year, when his mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as
Langford. Twenty-six years later the
marriage of Alan F Collett and Julia C Smith was recorded at Wantage register
office (Vol. 20 19) during the spring of 1978
Teresa
A Collett [64S13] was born in 1954 at Grove, near
Wantage, and twenty years later she married Martin M Bulpitt at Grove in the
spring of 1974, as recorded at Wantage register office (Vol. 20 68)
Angela M Collett [64S14] was born in 1956, possibly at Grove,
although her birth was recorded at Wantage register office (Ref. 6a 125) during
the third quarter of 1956. She was the
daughter of Douglas A Collett and Margaret E Talmage. It was at the West Oxfordshire register
office (Vol. 20 3724) that the marriage of Angela M Collett and Mark R Booty was
recorded during August 1984. That followed the county
boundary changes in 1974, when it would have been Wantage in Berkshire
Michael D Collett [64S15] was born in 1958 at Wantage (Grove), the
son of Douglas and Margaret Collett. His
birth was recorded at Wantage (Ref. 6a 114) during the first quarter of that
year. It was towards the end of 1983
that the marriage of Michael D Collett and Deborah J Athawes was recorded at
Newbury (Vol. 19 66). Deborah was born
in Newbury during 1959
Naomi Leona Vizor Collett
[64S16] was born in
1966 at Worthing, where her birth was recorded (Ref. 5h 747) during the first
three months of 1966, and when her mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as
Wadey. She married Timothy J Chatwood
with whom she had three children, with their marriage recorded at Chichester
register office (Vol. 18 990) during the spring of 1988. It was also at Chichester that the birth of
their children was recorded. Charlie
Jack Chatwood was born in 1993, Samuel Harvey Chatwood was born in
1995, and Matilda Alice Chatwood was born in 1998
Adam Leonard Vizor Collett
[64S17] was born in
1976 and it was at Chichester that his birth was recorded (Vol. 18 584) during
the last quarter of the year, when his mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as
Wadey. So far, no record of any marriage
for Adam has been found
Susan J Collett [64S22] was born at Bradford in 1954 where her
birth was recorded (Ref. 2b 161) during the third quarter of that year, when
her mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as Wardall
Steven J Collett [64S23] was born at Bradford in 1960, the second
of the two children of Bernard A Collett and Ellen P Wardall. Steven’s birth was recorded at Bradford
register office (Ref. 2b 183) during the second quarter of the year, which
confirmed his mother’s maiden-name was Wardall.
He was twenty-five years old when he married Pamela L Elliott, the event
recorded at Bradford (Vol. 4 30) during the third quarter of 1985. Their
marriage resulted in the birth of two sons, the birth of which were recorded at
Keighley register office when their mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as
Elliott. The birth of the first child
(Ref. 4 859) took place towards the end of 1990, the second during the spring
of 1993 (Ref. 0821b b36c)
64T5
– Elliott John Collett was born in 1990 at Keighley, Yorkshire
64T6
– Oliver George Collett was born in 1993 at Keighley, Yorkshire
Paul D Collett [64S24] was born at Bradford in 1963, the eldest
of the three sons of John Collett by his wife Ann McLean. His birth was recorded at Bradford (Ref. 2b
208) during the last three months of that year, when his mother’s maiden-name
was confirmed as McLean. During the
spring of 1997 he married Angela Law, the event recorded at Bradford (Vol. 081
0610)
Jonathan David Collett
[64S25] was born at
Bradford in 1967, his birth recovered there (Ref. 2b 223) during the first
three months of the year, confirming his mother’s maiden-name was McLean
Mark Andrew Collett
[64S26] was born at
Bradford, the last of the three children of John and Ann Collett. It was at Bradford register office, during
the second quarter of 1969, that his birth was recorded (Ref. 2b 411), when his
mother’s maiden-name was confirmed as McLean.
It was as Mark A Collett, that his marriage to Tracey L Coates was
recorded at Bradford (Vol. 081 0320) during the spring of 1996
Dale
Collett [64S27] was the eldest of the two children of
Derek Collett and Valerie Unwin, whose birth was recorded at Bradford register
office (Ref. 2b 104), during the last months of 1971, with his mother’s maiden-name
confirmed as Unwin. It was during the
summer of 2001, that the marriage of Dale Collett and Sarah E Hamilton was
recorded at Bradford (Vol. 81)
Tracey Ann Collett [64S44], whose birth was recorded at Cardiff
register office (Ref. 8b 88) during the third quarter of 1972, was the
first-born children of Allen Collett and his first Janet Yorath. The record of her birth also confirmed that
her mother’s maiden-name was Yorath.
Tracey is now married and has two children, a daughter and a son
Michael David Collett
[64S45], whose birth
was recorded at Pontypridd register office (Vol. 27 63) during the third
quarter of 1977, following the second marriage of Allen Collett and Shirley D
Morris at the start of that same year.
His birth also confirmed that his mother’s maiden-name was Morris. Upon being married Michael and Rebecca had
three children in the order, a daughter, a son, and then another daughter. Tragically Michael’s son, who was born on 3rd
May 2013, was very sadly found dead in his cot on 27th July
2014. The obituary, published by the
Media Wales Group on 4th August reads follows: ‘COLLETT Callum
Evan Stanley, fell asleep at home July 27 aged 15 months; a dearly loved baby
boy of Rebecca and Michael and a loved brother of Caitlin, devoted grandson of
Allen and Shirley and Janet and John, and a beloved nephew and cousin. Callum will be very sadly missed’. At the inquest, a pathologist informed the Cardiff Coroner's
Court that toddler Callum Collett was a victim of cot death and that the cause
of his death was unknown, upon which the coroner declared an open conclusion
64T7
– Caitlin Collett was born in Wales on an unknown date
64T8
– Callum Evan Stanley Collett was born in 2013 at Cardiff, where he died in
2014
64T9
– a Collett daughter was born during August 2014 at Cardiff
Nicola Jayne Collett
[64S46], whose birth
was recorded at South Glamorgan (Vol. 28 54) during the early months of 1979
when her mother’s maiden-name was stated as being Morris. It is that fact which confirms the parents of
Nicola Jayne were Allen Collett and Shirley D Morris who were married in
1977. Nicola Jayne Collett has a son and
daughter from her first partnership. She
was later married and that second relationship produced another two sons
Neil
Tarot Collett [64S50]
was the base-born son of Christine Collett whose birth was recorded at Cardiff
register office (Ref. 8b 33) during the third quarter of 1971, when his
mother’s surname was confirmed as Collett.
He was three years of age when his mother married Paul Harris, giving
Neil two half-sisters. Although not yet
confirmed, it does seem highly likely that Neil was married in 2002, when the
wedding of Neil T Collett and Clare M Jones (possible Welsh connection?) was
recorded at the Bath & North East Somerset register office (Vol. 300)
during the summer of that year
Ben Nicholas Collett [64T2] was born in Australia
during 1992, the eldest of the three children of Nicholas James Collett and
Shelley Dianne Doherty. In 2012 Ben was
living at Yan Yean in Victoria, and it was thanks to the information received
from him and his aunt Gillian M Collett (Ref. 64S2) that this new family line
has been recreated using details previously included in Parts 12, 28 and 44
APPENDIX
The Other
Collett Families of Hullavington in Wiltshire
During
the research into this family line, numerous other Colletts have been
discovered by Maureen Iliffe nee Collett (Ref. 64R46) amongst the parish
registers for the Church of St Mary Magdalene in Hullavington. Some of them have now been inserted into the
main body of this document, with one branch of the family the subject of this
appendix. Whilst no obvious link to any
of the aforementioned Collett families has been found, it is hoped, by
including them here, that their place within the main body of the document
could be found at some date after 2021
St Mary Magdalene Church
Arthur Collett [64k7] was married to Anne and their three
children were born and baptised at Hullavington. It was also at Hullavington that Arthur died
and was buried on 17th January 1798.
The date of birth of the couple’s first-born child would suggest that
Arthur was born sometime around 1720, which would make him around 77 when he
died
64l4
– Mary Collett was born
in 1742 at Hullavington
64l5
– Betty Collett was
born in 1744 at Hullavington
64l6
– John Collett was born
in 1747 at Hullavington
Mary Collett [64l4] was born at Hullavington in 1742, where
she was baptised on 21st May 1742, the eldest child of Arthur and
Anne Collett. It was also at
Hullavington where she married William Farr of Grittleton on 7th
September 1773
Betty Collett [64l5] was born at Hullavington in 1744 and
was baptised there on 13th September 1744, another daughter of
Arthur and Anne Collett. It was on 17th
April 1769 at Hullavington that, as Elizabeth Collett, she married Jonas
Matthews of Malmesbury. The witnesses at
the wedding ceremony were Mary Collett, her older sister (above), and Gabriel
Greenman who were also the witnesses at another Hullavington Collett wedding in
1808 (below). It is possible that
Gabriel Greenman was in some way attached to the church for him to be listed at
both ceremonies, especially with an interval of almost forty years between the
two events. That second wedding was
between Betty’s niece Ann Collett and Robert Greenman, who was possibly related
in some way to Gabriel
John Collett [64l6] was very likely born in 1747 and was baptised
at Hullavington on 29th January 1748, the only known son and third
child of Arthur and Anne Collett. The later
marriage of John Collett, said to be of Easton Grey, near Malmesbury, and
Elizabeth Taviner, took place at Hullavington on 7th October 1772,
where Elizabeth had been born. Over the
next few years, Elizabeth presented John with seven children, all of whom were born
and baptised at Hullavington, the first of which was named after his
grandfather. And it was at Hullavington
that John Collett died and was buried on 25th December 1830, at the
age of 82. Interesting Note: It seems very likely that John had a cousin
by the name of John Collett who was married to Mary. The marriage of that couple produced a child
who was baptised at Hullavington on 2nd April 1775, although no name
was entered in the parish record
64m2
– Arthur Collett was
born in 1773 at Hullavington
64m3
– Sarah Collett was
born in 1775 at Hullavington
64m4
– John Collett was born
in 1777 at Hullavington
64m5
– Ann Collett was born
in 1779 at Hullavington
64m6
– Mary Collett was born
in 1780 at Hullavington
64m7
– Elizabeth Collett was
born in 1784 at Hullavington
64m8
– John Collett was born
in 1787 at Hullavington
Arthur Collett [64m2] was born at Hullavington where he was baptised
on 26th June 1773, the first of the six children of John Collett and
his wife Elizabeth Taviner. The parish
records at Hullavington confirmed that Arthur Collett, of Hullavington, married
Sarah Bromsgrove at Malmesbury on 22nd April 1805, with whom he had
at least four children, all of them born at Hullavington. It would appear, following the birth of their
last child at Hullavington, that Arthur and Sarah took their surviving children
to live at Kington Langley. Sadly, it was
there, on 6th August 1816, that the couple’s youngest child was
buried. Upon the deaths of both Sarah
and Arthur, they were buried at Hullavington, Sarah Collett ‘of Langley’ first
on 27th April 1836, when she was 67, following by widower Arthur
Collett of Kington Langley on 7th October 1837 at the age of 64
64n1
– Louisa Collett was
born in 1805 at Hullavington
64n2
– John Collett was born
in 1807 at Hullavington
64n3
– Ann Collett was born
in 1809 at Hullavington
64n4
– John Collett was born
in 1812 at Hullavington
Sarah
Collett [64m3] was born
at Hullavington and was baptised there on 16th March 1775, the
eldest daughter of John and Elizabeth Collett.
She suffered an infant death and was buried at Hullavington during the
following year on 25th July 1776
John Collett
[64m4] was born at
Hullavington, where he was baptised on 8th July 1777, another son of
John Collett and Elizabeth Taviner
Ann Collett [64m5] was born at Hullavington and was
baptised there on 21st February 1779, the eldest surviving daughter
of John and Elizabeth Collett. When she
was twenty-nine years old, she married Robert Greenman at Hullavington on 9th
June 1808. The witnesses at the wedding
ceremony were Mary Collett, Ann’s younger sister (below), and the
aforementioned Gabriel Greenman. The
parish register recorded the event in the following way. Robert Greenman was a dealer of Hullavington,
and the first bondsman was John Smith from Yatton Keynell, who was also
described as a dealer
Mary Collett [64m6] was baptised at Hullavington on 14th
October 1780, another child of John and Elizabeth. where she was most likely
born and where she was a witness at the marriage of her older sister Ann
(above) at the Hullavington parish church in 1808. It would also appear that, not long after
that, Mary was married at Hullavington to William Tanner, of nearby Grittleton,
although no date for the event has been found.
It is of interest to note that in 1835, Henry Collett (Ref. 64N5)
married Hannah Tanner who was the daughter of William Tanner of Grittenham
(near Wootton Bassett) and Ellenar Hilliar who was probably his second wife,
the first being Mary Collett. Another
connection between the two families, was recorded at Hullavington on 22nd
May 1800 for the baptism of Elizabeth Collett Tanner, the illegitimate daughter
of Elizabeth Tanner
Elizabeth
Collett [64m7] was born
at Hullavington, where she lived all her life, having been baptised there on 15th
August 1784, a daughter of John and Elizabeth Collett. She never married and died at Hullavington,
where she was buried on 7th August 1840, at the age of 55
John Collett [64m8] was born at Hullavington on 18th
April 1787, where he was also baptised on 5th April 1789, the last
child of John Collett and Elizabeth Taviner
Louisa Collett [64n1] was born at Kington St Michael near Hullavington
towards the end of 1805, or very early in 1806, and was baptised at
Hullavington on 13th March 1806, the eldest of the four children of Arthur
Collett and Sarah Bromsgrove. Although
no further details regarding Louisa were known prior to 2014, it now seems
highly likely that she married Edwin Buckland of Kington St Michael. Further details of the family of Edwin
Buckland and Louisa Collett, and the continuation of this family line, are
provided from Ref. 62l3 in Part 62 – The Trowbridge to New Zealand Line
John
Collett [64n2] was born
at Hullavington and was baptised there on 20th May 1807. Just one year and two days later John
Collett, the son of Arthur and Sarah Collett was buried at Hullavington on 22nd
May 1808
Ann
Collett [64n3] was born
at Hullavington, where she was baptised on 23rd July 1809, another
daughter of Arthur and Sarah Collett
John
Collett [64n4] was born
at Hullavington and it was there also that he was baptised on 25th
June 1812, the last child of Arthur Collett and Sarah Bromsgrove. Shortly after he was born, his parents took
the family to live at Kington Langley. And
it was there, at the age of only eighteen months, that John Collett of Kington
Langley died, following which he was buried at Hullavington with his brother
and namesake