Joseph COLLITS

Joseph was the 5^th child of Pierce and Mary Collits born on 1^st March 1808. He had 2 older brothers, John aged 5 and James, aged 2 and  3 older sisters Mary aged 14, Sara aged 13, and Francis aged 4, when he was born at the Castlereagh  property and they all lived in a  small slab cottage on the banks of the river at Birds Eye Corner.  Joseph was born on the 1^st March 1808  in Castlereagh and the family had just been in the new colony for 7 years, when he was born.

At that time his father was still officially regarded as a convict at that time and was  assigned to his mother, but in reality his father Pierce had become a very valuable settler within the district.

Pierce was put on the Minorca and Mary decided to come out as a free settle with her 2 daughters rather than be left behind for her prospects in the harshness of London seemed overwhelming compared to being separated from Pierce. At this time not many women had chosen to come out as free settlers so Pierce and Mary were given all considerations.

When they arrived they were given 70 acres of land as this was the system for free settlers, 20 acres for Mary and 20 acres for each child. (Mary got 20 acres, John got 20 acres and James got 20 acres, so it is a query where the extra 10 acres came from) To encourage emigration out here as well as assistance from the government stores, there was the ability to apply for a convict to be assigned to them to help with the establishing of themselves. Hence Pierce was assigned to Mary. In 1806 Mary Collitt along with husband Pierce had 11 acres under cultivation on the Castlereagh Road

Pierce & Mary’s neighbours (who later also moved to Hartley) were  Edward Field who lived two blocks away,  Robert Sherringham,  John Harris,  James Morris,  Thomas Markwell, Robert Williams and Nathaniel Norton.

Joseph became firm friends with the many sons and daughters of the settlers of Castlereagh Road and many other started to look  for wives and husbands within the close knit community.  Joseph and James however were quite the lads and were notorious for having a good time.

By the age 20 Joseph was listed as a blacksmith in the 1828 census, when he was living with his sister Sarah who had married Watkins. 6 years later in 1834 he was the licensee for the Dog and Duck Inn at George Street Sydney, then a central hub of activity for the comings and goings of the arrivals and departures of coaches and wagons.. 

By 1828  Pierce & Mary Collitt had moved to managing a licensed hotel along the 'Western Road' in the Blue Mountains, and their son Joseph would seem to have been managing the land grant, now reduced to 20 acres (Census of New South Wales: November 1828, entry no. C1708)

 In 1841 his  mother Mary passed away and this must have had an dreadful effect on Pierce as she had been his stalwart for so long and stood by him through thick and thin.   Seven years later  in 1848,  his father  Pierce Collit, passed away By this stage Joseph had married Mary Anne Field. Joseph had probably moved to Hartley once he married,  to be with his father,  who was aged 79.    This was an end to an era  of Cold England, of convicts.  Now it was the era of the future.

MARIAGES

Joseph was still  living in Castlereagh  when he married Mary Ann Field had previously been married to Thomas Perry but the marriage  was annulled AFTER Thomas was declared dead in 1844.

Marriage 1 Mary Ann FIELD b: 14 MAR 1795 in Parramatta NSW Australia  and was married to Joseph 13 JULY 1845 in Castlereagh NSW Australia. Joseph  and Mary Ann‘s residence was recorded as being Mt Victoria as Hartley was know as, but he was  working in Sydney as the licensee for the Dog & Duck Inn in George s Street Sydney. He then moved to Hartley to take up the license at Rose Inn in 1846   Mary Ann was the eldest daughter of Edward Field and  was a close neighbor of The Collits on the Castlereagh Road. Named after the ship her mother arrived in Australia on (The Mary Ann)

Her  marriage to at the age of 17 to  Thomas PERRY  aged 35  was on 3 AUG 1812 in Windsor NSW Australia Thomas was born about 1777 and died at on the 7^th December 1844 aged 67

1st  Marriage  Mary Ann FIELD b: 14 MAR 1795 in Parramatta. Mary Ann died in Nov 1865 aged 60, at Bugabigli Station, Forbes, NSW where they were living at the time.  Four months later Joseph again was married this time to Martha Sherringham the widow of James Sherringham who was running the Rose Inn at the time and who had previously been married to his sister Mary in 1845, but Mary had died at the age of 25.   

 2^nd Marriage Martha GULLY on 6 MAR 1866 in Mt Clarence. Martha  later died at Forbes on 9^th July 1880

(Martha GULLY was the widow of James Sherringham. James was married to Joseph’s eldest sister Mary in 1845 who had died at the age of  25 hence Joseph married the widow of his brother-in-law.)

Joseph COLLITS Died on the 2 NOV 1888 in Forbes, NSW aged 80.

Initially Llsted as Licensee of the Dog and Duck hotel in George Street, Sydney in the Australian Newspaper dated 7 April 1834.

In 1846 he was the first licensee of the Old Rose inn at Hartley, which was once used by Cobb & Co as an overnight stop on the way to Bathurst.

Joseph seemed to be a favorite of Pierce as he appeared to have used his name a lot in his land transactions.

in the Sands directory of 1872 the following is recorded.

Henry FLANAGAN  was the  overseer at joesph Collits property at Begabigal Forbes