Edward was born in 1825 at Brampton near Carlisle in 1825. The entry in the Brampton baptisms register reads:
25 September. Edward, son of Francis and Margaret Jollie of Carlisle,
printer.
Edward was about eighteen months old when his father died. His mother Margaret Jollie took over the newspaper, The Carlisle Journal which her husband had started. When Edward was four years old, the Journal published something which caused Lord Lonsdale, a prominent local magnate, to prosecute for libel. Mrs Jollie chose to go to prison rather than pay the imposed fine, and she took little Edward with her.
When he was sixteen years old in 1841, he sailed to New Zealand on the barque Brougham arriving at Wellington on 9th February 1842. He was a surveyor-cadet with the New Zealand Company for three years. When he had served his time he took surveying contracts and did much surveying and exploring, mainly in the South Island. He laid out Lyttelton, Sumner, Christchurch, Timaru and Temuka. In the 1850s Edward Jollie and his partner Edward Lee established the Parnassus Sheep Station.
In 1860 Jollie was elected Member of Parliament for Cheviot, so he had to go to Auckland for the Parliamentary session. Governor Gore-Brown and his wife had dancing and music parties one a week, at which he met Miss Caroline Orsmond. Then he was invited to join in some private theatricals, and a meeting at Government House it was decided to produce 'The Rivals' by Sheridan. Jollie had the part of Captain Absolute and Miss Orsmonde was Lydia Languish. Jollie was in Auckland about three months, and towards the end of his stay, one evening seeing Miss Orsmonde home after attending a concert, he asked her to be his wife and she kindly consented. Edward still had the Parnassus Station in partnership with Edward Lee. So he returned south and they disposed of his interest in Parnassus. He also had to complete his work in connection with the Survey of the Runs south of the Ranitata River. Then he returned to Auckland to claim his bride.
Edward Jollie and Caroline Orsmonde were married at St. Pauls Church, Parnell bt Dr. Selwyn
Bishop of New Zealand on 14th May 1861. They spent three weeks honeymoon at Howick, and then
settled in lodgings in Christchurch before going to England where their first daughter Margaret,
known as Madge, was born.
When they returned to New Zealand they settled at his new Beachcroft estate, Southbridge, where
the rest of the family were born. Mary Jollie who married Robert Story was the fifth child.
There were seven daughters and two sons, but one daughter died aged four.
In 1877, Edward Jollie took his wife and eight children, with a maid to help with the children, on the four month voyage by sailing vessel to England and Europe via Cape Horn. They were away in England and Europe for nine years, and the children went to school in Dresden and Lausanne. When the Jollie family returned to New Zealand, they left the South Island and went to a new home called Waireka near Patea, Taranaki where they kept open house and had many visitors, and suitors for the girls.
Edward wrote a short account of his life from the time of his coming to New Zealand till he took his family abroard. This is now in the Alexander Turnbull Museum in Wellington.
Edward died in Patea in 1894 aged 69 and there is a large memorial plaque in Christchurch Cathedral, N.Z.
