Many of the earliest male Colliers I have found that we are related to have been Wheelwrights in Groby, Leicestershire there have been others earlier and there are documents that I now have copies of showing wheelwright colliers in Groby back to at least 1729.
John Collier (Born Circa 1769)
According to the 1841 Census (taken 6th June 1841) showed that John was 70 years old living in Groby and working as a wheelwright as was his son John.
| First name(s) | Last name | Sex | Age | Employment | Born in county |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| John | Collier | Male | 70 | Wheelwright | y |
| Ann | Collier | Female | 70 | y | |
| Elizabeth | Collier | Female | 40 | y | |
| Mary | Collier | Female | 35 | y | |
| John | Collier | Male | 30 | Wheelwright | y |
John Collier (Born Circa 1805)
By the time of the 1851 census, the younger John Collier from the precious census was the head of the household with his sister Mary and their Nephew, my Great Great Grandfather William who is 16, the earliest relative we have a photograph of.
| Name | Relation to Head | Condition | Age Male | Age Female | Rank or profession | Where born |
| John Collier | Head | Unmarried | 45 | Wheelwright | Leicestershire, Groby | |
| Mary Collier | Sister | Unmarried | 48 | House Keeper | Leicestershire, Groby | |
| William Collier | Nephew | Unmarried | 16 | at home | Leicestershire, Groby |
In the 1846 – White’s – History, Gazetteer & Directory of Leicestershire & Rutland John Collier is shown as a Groby Wheelwright:
In the 1880 – Wright’s Directory of Leicestershire & Rutland John is still shown as a Wheelwright in Groby.
By 1888 the Cottage and Wheelwrights shop was up for sale and the Colliers’ time as Groby Wheelwrights had come to an end. William Collier moved to the Rookery with his wife Ann (nee Mason) and his son George Harry Collier went to the school in Groby. William and his family moved to Belgrave where William was a Carpenter.
The following will of Joseph Collier in 1742 shows he was a wheelwright in Groby during his working life. At present I don’t know for certain but have a working theory that he is my six times great grandfather, I have some evidence for this but I am still working on it.
The page below from Richard Ward’s will on 04 May 1728 shows that his daughter Sarah was married to Joseph Collier a Wheelwright in Groby.
During a visit to Groby I was told that the taller three-story building on Chapel Hill was known as the Wheelwrights cottage but that is still a tenuous link, I’d like to get more evidence of this. I hoped some deeds for the cottage/workshop at the Leicestershire records office would have a sketch map to confirm the location but they did not, although they are very attractive Vellum documents.
