The earliest concrete record of the
Marder family in the area is of Sir Richard Marder who was
curate at West Monkton and vicar at Pitminister before his death
in 1509. The next is William Marder baptizing his children
1570-80s in Colyton, Devon.
Except for relationships listed in the
records I am not inferring any. Many Christian names are
repeated down the generations and this is only intended to be a
summary of presence in the parish.
In 1569 Nicholas Madder is listed in
Combe St. Nicholas in the muster rolls as an archer. From 1583
to at least the early 1800s the Marder family occupied the Tenne
Acre tenement in the tithing of Twelve Site, (XII Scytes), with
a cottage adjacent and sometimes twenty acres in the Tithing of
Clayhanger. In 1583 Richard deceased and Thomas had the holding
“with Ridgeway.” In 1598 Thomas is deceased and his father,
Nicholas surrenders the property to take it up again for
himself, and two sons John and Nicholas.
In 1608 a son of Nicholas marries, in
Combe, Thomasine Jeffery and it is possible that he dies this
year as there are a number of transactions with the property
during the year ending up With Nicholas the elder, his son the
junior and Thomasine Jeffery, widow, holding the property.
John Marder baptizes a son John. In
1608, mentioned in the parish in 1610, and in 1611 is Church
Warden.
In 1611 Nicholas signs the great
session rolls and in 1616 turns the land over to his son John
and John’s sons Nicholas and Thomas. In 1621 a Nicholas is
mentioned in the parish and in 1632 a Nicholas Marden’s,
of Combe St Nicholas, will is probated in Canterbury with the
request to be buried at the parish church; and a bequest to the
church, after taking care of his wife and daughters.
In 1639 Thomas Marder and Joan Meadway
are married in Combe St. Nicholas.
In 1642 John and Thomas Marder, from
Combe St. Nicholas, sign Protestation Roll.
In 1686 Margaret, daughter of Thomas is
buried in Combe, then in 1698 Thomas.
In the late 1700s Nicholas Marder,
probably the same that is a merchant from Combe with a number of
records on file liquidating his assets through the 1780s with
his son Nicholas is granted a cottage in 12 sites and two acres
in Westfield then five years later surrenders the same by
summons. By 1814 Nicholas, Henry and Mary Marder seem to have in
several transactions transferred the holdings, including the
cottage, “West Underwood House” to Mary Gawer and John Gawer.
The Marder family name by this time is
appearing in Dorchester, Weymouth, and Triverton records as
well.
Our ancestor Thomas Marder(s), “from
Taunton” who emigrated from Bristol to Virginia in 1676 helped
us track the family in the New World by having, in his passage
from England, an “s” added to the end of his name. After
becoming an established, colonial Virginia family the “Marders”
joined the fight for independence from England, (and from the
north in our Civil War), and spread across the US on all the
southern frontiers to California and beyond. We have been able
to distinguish this family from later arriving Marder families
from Great Britain and elsewhere.