The Milward and Collier Families

The Milward and Collier families were prominent families in Hastings, England, during the 18th and 19th centuries. The two families were connected through marriage over several generations.

John Collier, a prominent solicitor and five-time Mayor of Hastings, had five surviving daughters at the time of his death in 1760. One of his daughters, Mary Collier, married Edward Milward the elder. Edward Milward the elder also served as Mayor of Hastings and held the position of Surveyor General of Customs for Kent. He was appointed to this role in 1756, succeeding his father-in-law, John Collier.

Edward Milward the elder and Mary Collier had a son, Edward Milward the younger, born in 1765. Edward Milward the younger followed in the footsteps of his father and grandfather, serving as Mayor of Hastings. He married Sarah Whitear, daughter of Reverend William Whitear, in 1817.

John Collier also had a daughter named Jane Collier, who was initially courted by Edward Milward the elder before he married her sister Mary.

Edward Milward the younger died in 1833. His widow, Sarah, later married William, Earl Waldegrave, in 1846.

Both Edward Milward the elder and Mary Collier are commemorated with a monument in St. Clement's Church in Hastings.