Chapter 2
John Collier and his Descendants
How and why did William Scrivens the Younger come to start a solicitor's practice in Hastings? The full reason may never be known, but a brief examination of the lawyers who practised in Hastings at the end of the eighteenth century shows that John Collier was perhaps the greatest of the local legal and business influences. At the same time he owned most of the key land which would be required for the future growth of the town. His death without a male heir precipitated the break up of his estate and facilitated the expansion of Hastings. Dare one say that he served the town no less well in death than in life?
John Collier was born at Eastbourne in 1685. He was the son of Peter Collier, the landlord of the Lamb Inn. He trained and practised as a solicitor and settled at Hastings early in life. He served as Town Clerk for thirty-nine years and was Mayor in 1719, 1722, 1730, 1737 and 1741. John Collier was a Baron of the Cinque Ports and carried the canopy over Queen Caroline at the coronation of George II in 1727. He was one of the two joint solicitors to the Cinque Ports. He also held many posts under the Crown.
In his private capacity he was the steward of several manors and the agent for the Sussex estates of Henry Pelham who was Prime Minister under George II. He also acted as banker to the Town. In addition, he was the agent of the Duke of Newcastle, the brother of Henry Pelham and, as such, was the channel through which government patronage found its way to Hastings.
John Collier owned substantial areas of land in and around Hastings. His properties included The Mansion (now Old Hastings House) in the High Street where he lived. Sir Peckham Micklethwaite (see Chapter 5) and the poet Coventry Patmor, subsequently lived there as tenants of the Milward family. (Young Coles & Langdon acted for Sir Peckham and the trustees of Coventry Patmore's estate.) This house has been extended and is now a Registered Home for the Elderly run by the Trustees of the Magdalen and Lasher Charity for whom the Firm also acts. John Collier converted four cottages on the opposite side of the High Street into a new stable block. In 1959 this building reopened as the Stables Theatre and the Firm has represented the Council of Management as Honorary Solicitors since that time. He also owned the land between the West Hill and the Priory Stream (known as the Priory Field) and the Mill Field located on top of the West Hill.
John Collier was twice married but, out of his twenty-four children, was survived by only five daughters. His son James was a barrister and Mayor of Hastings in 1745 but died in 1747 aged 27. John Collier himself died in 1760. It is an interesting reflection on the Hastings mentality that in St. Clement's Church the memorial to him and to his notable achievements commences, "Tho' not a native ." His estate was divided between his daughters. Edward Milward Senior (appointed a Notary Public in 1747) courted John Collier's daughter Jane - but she rejected him and he married instead her elder sister, Mary. As a result of this marriage, the Priory Field eventually passed to John Collier's grandson, Edward Milward Junior who sold it in December 1815 to Breeds, Farncomb, Breeds and Wenham with offices at 33 High Street. Their intention was to develop it for building purposes and Langham House stands on part of this land.
At the time of John Collier's death his daughter Jane was still unmarried. However, in 1759 a new gun battery was built to the West of George Street and an engineer, William Green, was employed in the work. He made a runaway match with Jane and settled with her in Lewes. She died before him and through her he inherited the Mill Field which eventually came into the ownership of William Scrivens the Elder.
