Julia Keese Colles

Born in 1853, Julia Keese Colles was an American writer, historian, and civic figure closely tied to Morristown, New Jersey. She is known for books including Authors and Writers Associated with Morristown and The Old Inn at Morristown, works that helped record the town’s literary and historical life.

Colles was active in local cultural and patriotic organizations, and her writing reflects a strong interest in preserving community history for future generations. Rather than focusing on fiction, she devoted much of her work to places, people, and traditions that might otherwise have been forgotten.

She died in 1941, but her books remain useful to readers exploring New Jersey history and the literary world around Morristown. Her work has the feel of someone writing not just to inform, but to keep a cherished local story alive.