Born: Unknown, about mid 1500s
Died: May 1612
Although Robert is not the first Collier in the Axe area to be known, he is the first whom we have any real information on. He was what was known as a Husbandman. That means that he was a small farmer,
renting land probably from Sir Walter Earle, who owned all the land in Axmouth at that
time. The Collier family would typically hold the land originally for three 'lives' (three generations). A large fine was usually paid initially and then a very small annual rent. One of their fields was the Mill Meadow, for which permission to dig a drainage trench was given on an agreement on the very first page of the Axmouth church register, dated 1603:
NOTES FOR THE VICARS IN PERPETUAM
Md I Tho. Colliar do acknowledge yt the mill-stream at tymes purveyed by a trench to water the mill-meadow and to digge the ground there to that end; is merely of sufferance and with ii ame I give willingly one dayes cariage with ii horses at harvest, as oft as I shall take every year the same.
signed Thomas Colliar
testibus Richard Kerswell
Thomas Collins
Note also yt Jo. Newton whose Hye Meadow was and evermore take my leave breaking my ground when
he presumed at last to do it wtout, I forbad him upon pain of action & hold him from it, v or vi years before his death & filled up the trench. But afterward it was opened by Tho. Collier upon this agreement as is above mentioned.
So by intreatie Henrie Treviliam used it also.
Note also that the 5 & 6 leaves of this booke were cutt away when it was first bought by and at
the book binders at Exeter.
Testo.Richd Harvud
John Abott came in clerke the 14th. of November in 1653.
Md that between the 3 and 4th leaves of this booke there were 2 leaves found to be cutt out when
this book was bought, and before anything was registered therein.
Testibus Rd Harvey vicar
Jeffrey Carswyll
Rbt. Collier
No. 1
THE REGISTER BOOKE of the parish of Axmouth in the ach are contained the names of all such marieages
christenings and buriaaalles as have been sithend the yere of our Lord 1603 being the yere in wch
our most noble King James of famous memory came to be King of England.
There can be seen the marks of both Robert Collier and his son Thomas. Neither could write, so the marks are simple crosses. The Reverand Richard Harvey of Lyme Regis was vicar of the ancient church at Axmouth from 30th of March 1590 to 1632. Through marriage he was the Uncle of Thomas Earle. In the agreement, Thomas accepted to dig the trench from Mill Stream to Mill Meadow "merely on sufferance" and that in payment he was required to supply two horses at harvest time for one day's work to help the vicar.
A husbandman is reckoned to have farmed 18-20 acres, enough to keep a family. Robert would plough the
land and plant rye for bread, using the common ground for grazing his Black Cattle and long-haired sheep. Like everyone else, he would have at least one pig, which the family would feed to an enormous size for bacon. This was nearly all fat. Oxen, as well as horses, were used for ploughing, but horses did all the carrying work. The West Country was very late to see any wheeled vehicles. In fact, loads were moved using a 'truckamuck', a sort of cart dragged along the ground. It was made of two trees tied together.
Food was very simple but, needless to say, the women of the family would be expert in making cream. That, together with the bacon and bread, seems to have been staple food of the period. Places near the sea, like Axmouth, would also be able to have fish. Axmouth itself was a fairly major port since the Roman occupation of Devon. By the 1600s it may well have started to silt up, but even today some fish live in the river. To see the tiny village today, it is difficult to imagine that it was described as 'an olde and bigge fischer toune' in Robert's time. The two modern pubs there now were preceded by 14 'hotels' catering for the sailors and fishermen.
And then there was the cider, of course! All cottages had orchards attached, and the people made the cider individually with crushed apples. But Robert, as shown by his will, was one of the few farmers in the parish who actually had his own equipment for pressing his and other people's apples. His cider making apparatus, the "wringer and stone and vat and knife" was very previous, and was to go to son Thomas after the death of Robert's wife Alys.
His house would have been quite small, but it did have an upstairs, for "the chamber over the hall" is mentioned. It would be something like the cottages we see now in many villages. In fact, it might be there in Axmouth somewhere, and still lived in. The hovels that the farm labourers and poorer folk inhabited have all disappeared, and a good thing too!
The house would have been sparsely furnished, with a bedstead and feather mattress and pillows and bedclothes, with perhaps a chest or chair, in the chambers, or bedrooms. Downstairs in the hall, the main living room, there might have been a long table with a form to sit on, a couple of chairs or stools, and maybe a little cupboard. In the open fireplace there would have been some porter pots and pans, fire irons, and crocks to eat from. Maybe there was meat hung up in the rafters for smoking, for there was always plenty of smoke about!
The will mentions the names of several people who are possibly related in some way. The church records are not much help, but Robert Kerswell married Margaret Davis on 14th May 1604, and their daughter Mary was christened in 1604 and Elizabeth 1607.
We are very lucky to be able to read Robert Collier's will. Many were made, but most were destroyed in the Exeter Blitz. The 14 recorded husbandmen of this time whose wills remain showed an average of £56 in their inventories. Robert's was £66. As a matter of interest, the recorded yeomen of this time averaged £312 in their inventories.
The original will was destroyed, but a copy was made before the war, bound with others, and is now in the West Country Studies Library in Exeter. We know that Alys also left a will when she died in 1624, but hers was not transcribed, and so is lost, as is the will of Thomas Collier of Axmouth, died 1630.
Robert's will is transcribed thus:
COLLIER (Collyeare) Robert of Axmouth
Date of will 5 May 1612
Proved 22 May 1612 and executrix sworn by commission.
To John Collyeare of Uplyme my bedsted in the chamber over the hall after me and my wife.
To An Maynes the bedsted in the chamber within the hall after my desese and my wife.
To Mote Davis goods after deaths of me and my wife.
To Thomas Collyeare my wringer and the stone and the vate and the ropesse and leveare and the knife, after my wife.
I do give to foweare of my godchildren to oarye me to the church twelfe pense a pesse.
To Mary bages a heifer.
To Elizabeth Collieare dasteare of John Collieare 12d.
To Thomas Collieares 3 children 12d each.
To Robert Casswell 10s.
To Thomas Davie 5s and to Joane Davie 5s, children of Richard Davie.
To Mary Carswell and Elizabeth Carswell 12d each, children of Robert Carswell to be paid after my wifes death.
Residue to my wife Allse Collyeare, executrix.
Rulers: Robeart Ford and Thomas Collieare
Witnesses: Richard Clearke, Robert Ford, Thomas Colieare.
Invent. £66.
Robert and Alice had 3 children:
Thomas
John
Alice
Born: Unknown, about late 1500s
Died: 1630
Buried: 23/12/1630 Axmouth.
Robert's son Thomas presumably carried on the family business (we can assume this is why Robert left him the cider making equipment). He progressed to become a Yeoman. Yeomen were large farmers, who employed labour and produced enough to sell. (note is this correct?)
We don't know much of Thomas beyond the register entry and the fact that he left a will which has since been lost. He married Agnes WHITE (buried: 23/12/1630) on 11th February 1604 at St Michaels in Axmouth.
Thomas and Agnes had 4 children (one more than was mentioned in Robert's will):
Robert (born: 1605, baptised: 6/2/1605, died: After 1667)
Thomas
Agnes
Hanum
Born: 1605
Baptised: 6/2/1605 Axmouth
Died: After 1667
Robert married Mary WHITTY (buried 28/2/1667 Axmouth) at Branscombe, Devon on the 1st May 1633. Mary outlived Robert and went on to marry a John WHITE of Axmouth on 6th November 1673. John was possibly a relation of Mary's mother. A John WHITE of Axmouth was executed in 1685 for supporting the Monmouth Rebellion. He wasn’t the only one. Colyton (and its districts which included Axmouth) was the second most rebellious town in England, after Taunton. Many of the rebels came from this area of Devon and many were executed for their part. All of the rebels were known and registered with the Assizes Court. There Colliers were also listed from this area and it seems very likely that they were related to the family in some way (see Appendix I for a list)
Robert and Mary had 3 children:
Robert (born: 1633, baptised: 2/8/1633)
Marie
Mary
Born: 1633
Baptised: 2/8/1633 Axmouth
Died: After 1667
Robert married Rachel WEBBER (christened 3/9/1637 Axmouth) at Axmouth on the 23rd April 1667. Rachel was the daughter of James WEBBER.
Robert and Rachel had 5 children:
Thomas
James
Rachel
John
Joseph (born: 1676, baptised: 2/3/1676 Axmouth,died: 1747, buried:
10/11/1747 Colyton)
Born: 1676
Baptised: 2/3/1676 Axmouth
Died: 1747
Buried: 10/11/1747 Colyton
Joseph married Mary HORE of Kilmington, Devon. They probably married at Mary's home parish, however the records from that time are lost. There is a will of Mary's mother, Charity HORE, unusually written into the parish register. In it she mentions 'Mary, wife of Joseph Collier'. Joseph is listed as an executer. The will was proved in 1728. The name of Jasper probably comes from Mary's family. It was probably Charity's husbands name. The HORE family were well off, and there are a lot of land leases in their name, some quite ancient. The wealth seems to have failed to transfer into the Collier family though!
Joseph's son Jasper moved to Combpyne, Branscombe, Devon and left us a will (IRW 909, available at the Devon Records Office). He was a labourer and his estate was valued at less than £100 and was executed by Mary Ann Newton, probably his daughter. The will was proved 14th September 1826. This simple will reads:
I, Jasper Collier [said] a resident of Combepyne in the County of Devon
do hereby
declare that I give and bequeath unto Mary anne Newton my niece of the Parish
of Branscombe in the said county of Devon in consideration of her taking
care of me during the remainder of my Natural life that <haudy> of a
farm called
or commonly known by the Name of <> alias Heywood in the Parish of
Branscombe in the said County of Devon and likewise all my personal property
whatsoever and wheresoever independant of her present or any future Husband
for
her sole and [separate] use and I do hereby declare and appoint the said Mary
Anne Newton my Exectrix to this my last Will and Testament <written by>
my
Hand this 14th Day of July 1826 [Herein do] I set my hand & seal
in presence of
Robt Bartlett }
Jasper Bradford } {sig}Jasper Collier
John <Halse> }
Figure 1. Jasper Collier's Will from 1826.
Joseph's son Johns descendants were probably fishermen and smugglers around Seaton and Beer, Devon.
Joseph and Mary had 5 children:
Jasper (died: 6/9/1826 Branscombe, Devon).
Robert
John (born: 1712, baptised: 18/3/1712 Colyton)
Mary (born: 1715, baptised: 7/9/1715)
Joseph (born: 1719, Axmouth, baptised: 18/8/1719 Colyton, died: 3/1800,
buried: 13/3/1800 Combpyne)
Figure 2, Jasper Collier's house. Branscombe, Devon.
Born: 1719, Axmouth
Baptised: 18/8/1719 Colyton
Died: 3/1800
Buried: 13/3/1800 Combpyne
Joseph was a husbandman, like his great-great-great grandfather. He married Jane BAKER (died: 23/5/1779 Colyton, buried: 26/5/1779) at Shute, Devon 15th May 1749.
Joseph and Jane had 7 children:
Joseph (born: 1750, baptised: 21/5/1750 Colyton)
Mary (born: 1752, baptised: 1/4/1752).
Henry (born: 1752, baptised: 1/4/1752, died: 1759, buried: 3/10/1759 Colyton).
Jasper (born: 1754, baptised: 11/6/1754 Colyton, died: 1759, buried: 9/9/1759
Colyton)
Jenny (born: 1759, baptised: 24/8/1759 Colyton, died: 1794, buried: 21/2/1794
Colyton)
Jasper II (born: 1715, baptised: 17/11/1761 Colyton, died: 1831, buried: 13/11/1831
Northleigh, Devon)
Richard
Born: 1750
Baptised: 21/5/1750 Colyton
Joseph, another husbandman married Hannah NEWTON of Kilmington at Colyton 6th December 1771. She too was the daughter of a husbandman James NEWTON of Kilmington and Axminster.
Joseph and Hannah had 4 children:
Jasper (born: 17/12/1772 Colyton, baptised: 25/12/1772 Colyton, died:
15/11/1845 Staddiscombe, Plymstock, Devon)
Hannah (born: 25/7/1773, baptised: 22/8/1773).
Joseph (died: 7/1780, buried: 23/7/1780)
Joseph II (born: 1782, baptised: 30/6/1782 Axminster)
Born: 17/12/1772 Colyton
Baptised: 25/12/1772 Colyton
Died: 15/11/1845 Staddiscombe, Devon
Jasper married Jane (also known as Joan and Jenny) HARTNELL (baptised: 25/11/1777 Churchstanton, buried: 1857 Plymstock aged 80) daughter of Edward Hartnell and Betty Poole. (Edward had a twin sister Dorothy. Jane also seems to have had twins.) They married at West Bagborough, Somerset 2/12/1796 and after the birth of their first child, Joseph, moved the family to Staddiscombe near Plymstock, Devon. Agriculture in Devon at the turn of the 18th Century was become a difficult and unrewarding profession. Devon lagged behind some of the other major farming counties in terms of technique and technology. This meant that the move towards large fields and mechanisation was a prolonged business.
Jasper became a labourer and herdsman in Staddiscombe. He and Jane had some 13 children over their lives together. They must have been a close family as the tythe map of 1861 shows no less than 4 members of the family living in different houses in Staddiscombe and the 1851 census shows Jane, 76, was living with her youngest son Henry, Jasper having died some 6 years before.
During the 19th Centuary, Devon doubled in size. Unlike some areas of the country, Devon didn't have the iron and coal resources to power the industrial revolution; instead tourism and retailing became the growth areas. Farming employed 1 in 4 and during the French wars the trade became prosperous. Labourers and farm workers didn't benefit from this prosperity until the late 19th centuary. Their wages were poor (less than 3/4 of national average) most earning about 10 shillings a week, with bonuses at Harvest and Michaelmas time. A fathers wage would often be supplemented by older children who would have worked as servants or in the fields. Indeed, Jasper and Jane's grandchild Henry Hartnell appears on the 1881 census aged 14 employed as a House Servant for Richard POPPLESTONE, farmer of Staddon Farm, Plymstock, who employed 3 labourers to work his 270 acres. Henry's father was probably employed by Popplestone.
To get an idea of the cost of living, a typical labourer's diet would have consisted mainly of bacon or pork (which would have come from the family pigs), bread and weak tea. To keep even a basic standard of living, the fathers wages of 10s would barely cover costs.
|
Bread |
6s 5d |
Sugar |
1s 8d |
|
Bacon |
2s 1.5d |
Tea |
5.5d |
|
Butter |
1s 8.5d |
Soap |
6d |
|
Oil/Candles |
3d |
Tobacco |
1s |
|
Wood or coal |
2s |
Rent |
1s |
The family may have paid the local baker to bake bread or roast meat for 1/2 penny. When the pig was slaughtered, half of it would be sold to the local butcher, while the rest was either preserved or given to neighbours who had helped feed it on scraps. Occasionally, wild rabbit, hedgehog or pigeon may have supplemented the diet, but this was the exception rather than the rule.
In contrast, Plymouth was the boom area of Devon. The growth of Devonport as the regions main port both for military and civilian ships, together with it prosperous industries meant that the city was growing out of all proportion. This is probably what prompted Jasper and Jane to move to Staddiscombe. As Plymouth grew, so the population would need feeding, and the farms around the city would reap the benefit. Plymstock, even at that time, would have been very close to Plymouth and as such the farms would be busy. This movement of labourers was not unusual at the time. Many left the villages of Devon for other areas of England or even abroad to countries like Canada or the US.
Jasper and Jane had at least 13 children:
Joseph (baptised: 10/9/1797 Axmouth) *1
Maria (born: 1798 Staddiscombe, died: 1823).
Richard (born:1801, became a Stoker in the Royal Navy)
Robert (born: 1801, became a boatman at Hooe)
Bettey (baptised: 20/4/1803 Staddiscombe)
Jane (baptised: 1/6/1806 Staddiscombe)
John (baptised: 25/12/1807 Staddiscombe)
Jasper (baptised: 25/12/1807 Staddiscombe, died: 1883 Honiton, Devon)
Hannah (Anna) (baptised: 18/5/1811 Staddiscombe)
Jane (born: 19/5/1811, baptised: 9/5/1813 Staddiscombe)
Thomas (baptised: 14/5/1815 Staddiscombe, died: 20/10/1894) *2
Henry Hartnell (baptised: 25/1/1818 Staddiscombe, labourer) *3
William (baptised: 21/5/1820 Staddiscombe, labourer)
Figure 3, Tithe Map of Staddiscombe in 1861.
 |
 |
| Figure 4, Joseph Collier | Figure 5, Joseph's daughter Mary Ann Collier |
*1) Joseph is the earliest picture we have of the family. We also have his daughter's picture. It is interesting to note that both display the bushy eyebrows and nose that seem to be a familiar part of the family.
*2) Thomas' headstone can be found in graveyard at St Mary's and All Saints Church, Plymstock, Devon. The inscription reads as follows:
 |
In memory of |
| Figure 6, Thomas Collier's family grave |
The fact that they were able to afford a stone that survives to this day (the cheaper stones crumble) suggests that Thomas did quite well for himself. It is sad to note that both Sarah Jane's died as infants. It was not uncommon to re-use a popular name in this way. Thomas and Sarah Davis had 9 children in all.
*3) Henry Hartnell married Ann (born 1819) of Buckland. Although he started as a labourer, he and Ann became the inn keepers of The Wobbly Wheel at Wembury. In 1861 they are listed as living there, but by 1871 Ann is there alone after Henry's death. The Wobbly Wheel is now called the Odd Wheel and looks every bit the part of a country pub. They had 9 children (7 girls and 2 boys, one of which was also called Henry Hartnell).
Figure 7, Jubilee Inn (now Odd Wheel), Wembury, Plymouth, Devon
Baptised: 25/12/1807 Staddiscombe
Died: 1883 Honiton, Devon
Jasper married another Jane (as if families weren't confusing enough for the researcher!). This time it was Jane COBBLEDICK, a local girl. The name Cobbledick seems to appear quite a lot in the Plymstock area at that time.
Jasper and Jane had 12 children:
Hannah Jane (baptised: 12/1871 Plympton St Mary)
Robert
Henry Hartnell (born: 1836 Elburton)
Sarah Maria
Elizabeth Emma (born: 1841 Staddiscombe)
Caroline Anna
James Cobbledick
George
Jasper William
Samuel John
Albert Joseph
Lucy Jane
Born: 1836 Elburton
 |
Henry Hartnell married Sarah Willcocks of Eggbuckland in 1868. The name Willcocks is another local name to Plymstock. Henry was another labourer around the Elburton area. Henry and Sarah had 6 children: Walter Robert (born: 3/4/1869, died: 5/3/1955) *4 *4) Walter Robert grandfather of Ann Honey from Tiverton. Walter
was famed to those who knew him. He was deaf, short-tempered and a good
fighter in his time. He was conversely also heavily involved in the
Salvation Army. He was known to still be working in a market garden
in Wembury in the 1950s. He married Ann Jane Cormode (born: Ramsay,
Isle of Man 1869, died: Plymstock 16/10/1942)  |
| Figure 8, Henry Hartnell Collier | Figure 9, Elburton Village, circa 1900 |
Born: 9/11/1877 Elburton
Baptism: 17/4/1878
Died: 29/3/1942
|
James was married twice. His first marriage was to Blanche MARSH with whom he had two sons. He later married Elizabeth (Bessie) GUEST (born: 29/9/1890, died: 14/2/1941) on 24/11/1914. From this union he had three more sons and a daughter. James and Blanche had 2 children: Albert Edward Henry (born: 12/8/1901, died: 15/6/1979 Exeter
Hospital) James and Bessie had 4 children: Cyril James (born: 22/2/1917, died: 4/10/1979) |
 |
| Figure 10, James Collier |
Born: 12/8/1901
Died: 15/6/1979 Exeter Hospital
Figure 11, Albert 'Harry' Collier (right)
Albert Edward Henry (known as Harry) also married twice. His first wife Winifred Helen died in 1945 from TB. They had one child, Derek. At the time of Derek's birth, Harry was working as a Licensed Victualler (someone who sells alcohol) in Devonport, Devon. I believe he had previously been in the Royal Marines. They lived at 26 John Street, Devonport. The managed the Freemason's Arms in John Street, which I have been lead to believe had a bomb land in the beer garden during the blitz of Plymouth. Some time later, Harry married Ivy. They moved to Topsham, Devon (I'm not sure if this was before or after they married) where they both lived until their deaths.
 |
Albert and Winifred had 1 child: Derek Henry (born: 5/2/1930 Plymouth, baptism: 6/3/1930 St James the Great, Devonport, Plymouth, died: 21/12/1992 97a Exeter Road, Exmouth, Devon, cremated: 23/12/1992 Exeter Crematorium) Figure 12, The Freemason's Arms, John Street, Devonport. It was demolished about 1958. Information from 1951 shows that the pub was one of only a couple of buildings left standing in the area. This area of Devonport has been heavily redeveloped and is now home to the Royal Navy nuclear submarine base. |
Born: 5/2/1930 Plymouth
Baptism: 6/3/1930 St James the Great, Devonport, Plymouth
Died: 21/12/1992 97a Exeter Road, Exmouth, Devon
Cremated: xx/12/1992 Exeter Crematorium, Exeter, Devon
| Derek was born and spent his early years in Devonport. He was an only child and his father did of the supporting of the family due to his mother's ill health. During the Blitz of Plymouth during the Second World War, Derek was sent away for his own protection. The war had a severe affect on the family, separating members, causing them to lose contact to some extent. On 26th May 1948 Derek joined the Royal Air Force, having worked as a shipyard labourer, presumably in Devonport. After his national service period of 2 years, he left the force ranked AC1. He quickly discovered that he wasn't sure what to do in the civilian world and decided to re-join. In the break he had been working as a salesman with Hole's Radio in Exmouth. The shop was owned by the father of his wife to be Ena Winifred HOLE (born 4/5/1930 Sowton, Exeter, died 16/8/1985 Exmouth, Devon). Derek and Ena met at the Pavillion in Exmouth. She was working as a demonstrator for English Electric at the time in Barnstable. She turned to her friend and said 'I'm going to marry him!' referring to Derek. Indeed she did, shortly after he re-joined the RAF (31/1/1952) in Exmouth (on 12th April 1952). He continued in the RAF as a electro-mechanical engineer until 30th January 1957. Ena also did her national service with the RAF from 1948 to 1950, working as a clerk in Whitehall, London among other places. Derek's service took him as far as Eygpt and he was involved in the Berlin airlift. |
 Figure 13, Derek and his mother Winifred |
 |
After being transferred to the reserve list, Derek continued working in the civilian world, including as an insurance salesman and helping out at Hole's Radio. In 1961 they had their first child, Helen. They bought a large house in Exmouth. Helen, however, spent a fair bit of her early years with Ena's sister Nora at Clyst St Mary, Devon. This was because Ena had Chron's Disease - a debilitating bowel disease - which meant she was ill frequently. |
| Figure 14, Derek and Ena |
By the late 1960's Derek was working for Pankhurst Engineering, Littleham, Exmouth where he continued to work until his death. Ena gave birth at home in 1970 to son Peter. The day was eventful. Firstly Derek had to pick Helen up from school and keep her busy with sweets while the birth took place at home. Nora was with Ena during the birth - unlike the mid-wife who got held up and arrived just at the end.
| The family continued to live in Exmouth until after Ena's death in 1985. The day before her death, she was having a coffee morning with Nora and their mother Winifred Hole (nee Humphries) at. Ena collapsed in pain and was taken to Exmouth Hospital where she later died. Helen had not long moved to Germany with her new husband Christopher Mark TELFORD. They had 2 daughters; Lena Michelle TELFORD (born 1987) and Danielle Sarah TELFORD (born 1989). |
 |
| Figure 15, Helen and baby Lena |
In 1988, Derek moved into a flat in Exeter Road, Exmouth. The Royal Air Force Association in Exmouth played a large part in his life after Ena's death and he continued to support the club until his death just before Christmas 1992.
Derek and Ena had 2 children:
Helen (born: 1961 Exeter, Devon)
Peter (born: 1970 Exmouth, Devon)
Born: 1970 Exmouth, Devon
Baptism: Exmouth, Devon
Figure 16, Peter Collier (far right) graduating at Coventry CathedralAs has already been said, Peter was born at home in Exmouth where he grew up. His education was at Exeter Road Junior School, Exmouth and latterly, Exmouth Community College, Exmouth where he stayed until the completion of A-levels in 1988. He then moved to Coventry and spent 3 years studying Engineering at the Polytechnic (now Coventry University). During the summer and Easter holidays during this time, he worked as a tour guide at the historic house of A La Ronde in Exmouth. It was during this time that he met his future wife Dawn Josephine HUNT (born: 1973 Tiverton, Devon). After he finished his degree, they moved to Wellington in Somerset and worked at the local Gateway supermarket while trying to get a job in electronics or computer programming. Just before Christmas 1992, he was offered a job as a software designer with Swedish telecoms company, Ericsson in Burgess Hill, West Sussex. He and Dawn decided to get married and told his father Derek so. This was the subject of their last communication, days before Derek died.
Peter started with Ericsson in February 1993 where he stayed until August 1999. The department he worked in was responsible for a software Private Branch Exchange (PBX) system called Centrex. In Summer 1999, Ericsson decided to stop software development in the UK and the department was sold to another Scandinavian company, Q-Labs. It was during this period that he started work on assembling his family tree - a piece of work that father Derek had wanted to do. It was also during this period that he formed a team to build combative robots for the TV series 'Robot Wars'. This became an enduring hobby, often driving Dawn to despair!
Figure 16, newborn Megan and Dawn Collier
Peter and Dawn had 2 children:
Megan (born: 2000 West Sussex)
Rebecca (born: 2005 West Sussex)
COLLIER, Henry, blacksmith, of Lyme Regis, 'absent and supposed' (CP); of Uplyme,
'being
in the late rebellion' (LRMB).
COLLIER, John, excepted from the GP.
COLLIER, Robert, of Chardstock, 'suspected guilty' (CP)
COLLIER, William, tried at Wells; transported thence for Bridgeman (JR); by
White, Oct.
31, on the Constant Richard to Jamaica (SL).
COLLIER, William, presented at Exeter, March 1686, pardoned and dismissed (GD)
COLLYER, George, feltmaker, of Uplyme, imprisoned in Wilts. (DLD); tried at
Dorchester
(JR); hanged at Bridport on Sept. 12 (NL)
Abbreviations are as follows:
CP=Constables' Presentments of 2,611 names intended for the
Assizes at Dorchester, Exter
& Taunton (also called the Monmouth Roll): British Library, Additional MS
30077
DLD=List compiled for the Deputy Lieutenant of Devon of men
in prison in Wiltshire,
Somerset, Dorset and Devon: Churchill College, Cambridge, Erle MS 4/2 (photocopy
in
Somerset Record Office T/PH/wig)
GD=Gaol Delivery Book for the Western Circuit, 1685: Public
Record Office Asz 1/23/3.
Printed, not entirely accurately, in F.A. Underwick, Sidelights on the Stuarts
(2nd edn.
1891); Gaol Delivery Book for the Western Circuit, 1686: Public Record Office
GP=General Pardon (issued 10 March 1685/6): British Library,
Proclamations, 2 James II,
shelfmark 816. m. 3 (10)
JR=Jeffreys' Report to King James: British Library, Additional
MS 90337; copy in
Harleian MS 4689. Printed in Bloody Assize, ed. Muddiman, 195-225
LRMB=Lyme Regis Misdemeanour Book: Dorset Record Office B.7 A 3/1
NL-Newsletter
SL=Sailing and Shipping lists: Pubic Record Office, Colonial
Office (CO) 1/57, 58, 66.
Partly printed in The Original Lists of Persons of Quality, Emigrants, Religious
Exiles,
Political Rebels...who went from Great Britain to the American Plantations,
1600-1700,
ed. J.C. Hotten (Reprinted 1974)
