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Henry James Tolley lived in London all his life (1802-83) - his family came from Bisop's Stortford, Herts about 1720. He had several children, with a small number of descendants now in UK, as they do not seem to have been vey fertile! His son Henry (1835-1922) emigrated to NZ in 1883 with his six children. They spent some time in Sydney and Newcastle before moving on to NZ. They settled in the Palmerston Nth - Feilding area, and began as farmers but some branched out, e.g. Harry (1868-1931) who founded Hodder and Tolley, a retailer of seeds, fertilizers, machinery etc with many branches in the N. Is., and also a flour mill. All of Harry's children married, including the ones mentioned e.g. Eleanor married Walter Boshier (1865-1951) and had 10 children, all married with families, and with many descendants today living in NZ and the Commonwealth. Henry Richard Payne married Mary Gray and founded Tolley and Sons Electricians, a large firm which continues in a different form today (Tolley Industries?) Alice married a Mr Alfred Bennett - about whom I know nothing. There are many descendants of Harry Tolley living in NZ and Australia, and a few have returned to the UK. The surname is in fact rather rare over here, with very few in the 'phone books I have examined. The only one with a substantial number of Tolleys is that for Worcestershire, with about 70, and most have only five or six. The only Tolleys to be really famous were the golfer Cyril, who was very prominent between the wars, and Charles Henry, the founder of the enormous Tolley Publishers well known to all lawyers, accountants etc. Cyril and Charles were probably related to Henry James as their families lived in the same area of London, but I have found nothing concrete as yet.
Hodder and Tolley, Feilding Hodder and Tolley, Palmerston North Feilding High School, FAHS, Feilding
TOLLEY family that originate from London, in the area of Spitalfields. Henry Tolley (b1836) married Hannah PAYNE (b1838) 5 Oct 1859 in Stepney, London. They had six children, Alice (b1861), Henry R P (b 1862, emigrated NZ) Lucy (b1864), Harry (b 1868, emigrated to NZ married Janet (Jinny) Palmer 1895), Eleanor (b 1872) and William Greayer TOLLEY (b 1875, emigrated to NZ, married Ellen Hilda NEWTH 1903