Nicholls Family Genealogy & History

Arthur Bell Nicholls (1819–1906) was best known as the husband of English novelist Charlotte Brontë. Serving as a curate for Patrick Brontë from 1845 to 1861, Nicholls gained notoriety through his brief but significant marriage to Charlotte, who passed away nine months after their wedding. He became the copyright holder of her literary works, playing a key role in managing her legacy. Despite his reluctance, he participated in Elizabeth Gaskell's biography of Charlotte, becoming embroiled in controversies over its content. Nicholls later returned to Ireland, where he left the ministry and remarried.

Arthur Bell Nicholls was one of ten children born to William Nicholls, a Presbyterian farmer, and Margaret Bell Nicholls, an Anglican, in Killead, County Antrim, Ireland. He was educated at the Royal Free School in Banagher, County Offaly, under the guidance of his uncle, Alan Bell, and later graduated from Trinity College Dublin in 1844.

Francis Redding Tillou Nicholls (1834–1912) was a prominent American attorney, politician, and judge best known for his roles as a Confederate brigadier general and as the 28th Governor of Louisiana. Nicholls served two non-consecutive terms as governor, from 1876 to 1880 and 1888 to 1892, playing a crucial part in the post-Reconstruction era. His early military career was marked by severe injuries, including the loss of an arm and a foot. Later, as governor, he fought political corruption and was involved in the Compromise of 1877. Nicholls also served as Chief Justice of the Louisiana Supreme Court and was a sugarcane planter at Ridgefield Plantation.

Francis T. Nicholls was born in Donaldsonville, Louisiana, to Thomas Clark Nicholls and Louisa Hannah (Drake) Nicholls. His father was a seventh son, and his mother was the sister of poet Joseph Rodman Drake. Nicholls’ paternal grandfather was Cornish American Edward Church Nicholls. He married Caroline Zilpha Guion and had one son and six daughters. The Nicholls family is interred in St. John's Episcopal Church and Cemetery in Thibodaux.

Sheila Elizabeth Nicholls is an English singer and songwriter renowned for her unique piano pop sound, critically acclaimed albums, and her independent music label, Essex Girl Records. Rising to fame with her band, Sheila Nicholls and the Splendid Frock, in New York City in the mid-1990s, she gained further recognition with her solo album "Brief Strop," featuring the hit track "Fallen for You." Nicholls secured a deal with Hollywood Records, expanding her creative control, and collaborated with notable producers like Glen Ballard on her second album, "Wake." Her discography includes four albums, the latest being "All of Nature" (2018), reflecting her commitment to creative independence and evolution as an artist.

Elizabeth Webb Nicholls was a pioneering suffragist in South Australia, renowned for her leadership in the Woman's Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) and her instrumental role in the 1894 suffrage petition that helped secure women's right to vote. As the colonial president of the WCTU and later a League Councillor, she advocated for women's political education and reform. Nicholls was also one of the first female Justices of the Peace in 1915, and a founding member of the Australian Federation of Women Voters, demonstrating her lifelong commitment to women's rights and temperance.

Born on 21 February 1850 in Adelaide, Elizabeth was the daughter of Samuel Bakewell and Mary Ann Pye. After her mother's early death, she spent time in England before returning to Adelaide, where her father remarried her aunt, Eliza Hannah.