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The Williams and Collett family
(see below for Heher family 1900-1950)
Note: This is not a genealogy. See geni.com or similar for detailed birth and death dates, siblings, parents, etc.
But links to geni.com entries are provided for many of the key great-grandparents and grandparents.
Minnie Williams wrote her memoirs in the early 1900s describing her life from the time of her grandfather's death in 1856 until about 1920. The opening paragraph of her memoirs make for gripping reading:
"These memoirs have begun but I think a preface should be added. You all know that your grandfather was a missionary to the South Pacific Islands and that he was killed by the natives on Erromanga. Not that they had any personal dislike to the good man but the Germans had some time previous to his coming kidnapped some of the young women and the men said they meant to kill the next white men who came to the island.
Grandfather Williams happened to he the next and was in the small boat which took the party to shore through the coral reef. To show their detestation of their enemies, the natives cut the bodies up and threw the remains on the big fires end ate the flesh. The vessels carrying the Missionaries and their families stood outside the Coral reef and this was seen by all on board and they could do nothing but sail off and report what happened to Sydney"
A copy of all 19 pages of her Memoirs are available in the pdf file listed below. For the official account of the life and death of her Grandfather, John Williams, see the Wikipedia article.
"My great-great grandfather was eaten by cannibals" is a guaranteed conversation starter (or stopper as the case may be) at any dinner party! And if not believed, have this page available to back your story...
A typical large Collett gathering at The Grange in Umzimkulu (they were frequent!)
The "Cannibal story" has now been turned into a tourist attraction. This is Beth (nee Collett) and Gill (nee Heher) visiting in 2017
Collett family approx 1922
Back: Douglas, Charles, Kath, Lionel; Middle: Lil, Meg, Minnie, Aubrey ; Front ? Grey
"Boy meets Girl Next Door". The Heher and Collett families lived on opposite sides of Boshoff street in Pietermaritzburg. In addition, Charles Collett and Edwin Heher were Presidents (at different times) of the Pietermaritzburg Tennis Club, so the families knew each other well.
Lil went to Epworth and Dennis Pietermaritzburg College, but with a 4 year age gap, it was well after school before they met. They got engaged in 1931 when Lil was 23 and Dennis 27.
Dennis wanted to be an engineer but the Great Depression put an end to that aspiration and he joined Standard Bank. He did not like the bank but stuck at it for 40 years to support his family. Shortly after their engagement, Dennis was posted to Ndola in then Northern Rhodesia for 5 years. To the shock and horror of the family, Lil went to visit him! To maintain decorum, she drove up with her future sister-in-law, Mavis. This 5000km trip by two young women through Africa in the 1930s was quite novel and brave.
Mavis in her 1930 DeSoto Roadster ~1932
Minnie Collett (nee Williams) approx 1940
A motor cycle yarn:
One Friday night Dennis set off from Pietermaritzburg on his motorcycle to visit Lil in Umzimkulu. Driving in thick mist on the muddy road, his bike slipped and went into a spin. He picked himself up, set off and, unable to see a thing in the thick mist, arrived back in Pietermaritzburg an hour later!
Well, that was his story. Dennis had a wicked sense of humour.
284 Boshof St, Pietermaritzburg, Heher home
( 2023 photo - now a doctor's rooms)
Directly across the road, 275 Boshoff Street, Collett home.
( 2023 photo. House a bit run down, but still the original)
Heher Family: 1902 - 1950s
1900 Charlestown, Natal; on right Edwin Heher and Irene Hilder
Edwin & Irene were married in 1902
Irene had 17 siblings + 2 half-brothers!
Dennis Heher 1906
(b 14 March 1904)
Dennis Heher ~1910
1912 Dennis, Doris, Mavis, Edwin & Irene Heher ~1915
(Shirley was born 26 years after Denis in 1930)
1927 Irene, Clifford and Edwin Heher, in the UK for Mavis' music
Clifford subsequently joined the RAF and flew in the Middle East in WW2. He went missing over the Mediterranean in 1943.
Doris, Irene, Clifford, Edwin - going to the UK ~1922
Mavis (b 1906), Doris (b 1908). Dennis (b 1904), Clifford (b 1917) ~1925 (Shirley followed 5 years later, so Dennis had a brother 13 years younger than him and a sister 26 years younger!)
Clifford Heher ~1942
Minnie Collett, Lil, Charles Collett, 22 Feb 1936
Lil, Amy Hebburn, Robert Hancock (nephew), Shirley (sister-in-law))
Lil, 22 Feb 1936
Lil, 22 Feb 1936
Robert Collett, Amy Hepburn, Dennis, Lil, Hugh Corder, Shirley
After they were married Dennis and Lil lived in Durban Rd, Pietermaritzburg. They paid £4 for the house! From there they moved to 393 Bulwer Street, about a block away from their parents. In 1948 Dennis was transferred to Standard Bank in Durban and purchased 89 Kensington Rd in Durban North.
Their early life was marked with a number of traumatic events:
Both Edwin and Irene Heher died in the early 1940's, leaving Dennis to be the primary carer for his 10 year old sister, Shirley
Eddie contracted polio and was very ill for an extended period and required a long rehabilitation. From our later experience with Ralph, I am convinced Eddie suffered mild brain damage during his illness which impacted his whole life. Polio also affected heart muscle and contributed to his early death at 72.
Lil's nephew Robert ( who had a been a page boy at their wedding), caught polio from Eddie and died at age 18
Lil's brother-in-law Charles (Robert's father) died from illness contracted during the war
Despite, or perhaps because of these events, they had a wonderful positive, loving, demeanor and lived life with zest. Dennis was an enthusiastic fisherman and we spent many weekends fishing all up and down the North and South Coast of Natal.
Anthony and Beverly ~ 1945
~ 1947, Anthony, Gill, Beverly
~ 1950 Beverly (-> Edwin), Anthony (->Tony)
Charles and Minnie Collett, 63rd Wedding Anniversary, 1956
According to family lore, Heher and Hehir (and earlier versions of O'Hehir), were used interchangeably. In the 1700s and 1800s, surnames were not immutable!
... the story continues at Hehers 1950 to 2000
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