Mysterious Marshalls of Benenden & Rolvenden

[jibba]

Hi all

I am having problems tracing my Marshall ancestors in and around the Benenden & Rolvenden area.
While both parish have many members of this surname baptised at their respective churches, I have not been able to link  my ancestors into them. At least one of my Marshall lines must be related to them given the common usage of the first names, Reynold (Reginald) & Stephen, which crop up in almost every generation.

My Marshall ancestors are as follows:

1) Stephen Marshall

Stephen was born c.1763. This is estimated from his death certificate and his burial entry at Rolvenden. He married Ann Goldsmith (1786 Rolvenden), and Elizabeth Cotton (1800 at Benenden). Three of his children bear the first names Reynold and Stephen.

2) Mary Marshall

Mary married William Pellatt in 1760 at Staplehurst. Its not until 1762 that she was baptised at Benenden, giving her age as 23 (c.1738). Also baptised on the same day was a Jane Marshall, aged 20 (c.1742). I believe they are sisters, but how can I go about proving this and more importantly, their parents?

Looking through Benenden, Rolvenden and other nearby parish records, there does seem to be a gap around the times when both Mary and Stephen were born, not in the records, but for the Marshall's in general. Two questions arise from this:

a) How can I trace them?

b) Could they be part of a different religious group (i.e. Baptist, Quaker) and if so, how could I trace those records?

Thanks in advance

Lee

[Linda_J]

Hi Lee

It is possible the family moved out of the area and later returned. I Would suggest checking to see if any Settlement Certificates have survived.

One Marshall family from Benenden settled in Marden and there is a Settlement Certificate dated 22 May 1784 which names Richard Marshall, blacksmith, his wife Anne & two children.


Linda

[janian]

Hi Lee

I am pretty sure we have common ancestors in the Marshall family.
My family tree on my mother's side [her maiden name was Marshall] agrees with the names & dates on your email. My tree goes back to 1707 when Reynolds Marshall married
Mary Sharp also Stephen was a popular "Marshall" name culminating in my great grandfather Stephen Marshall [b 1855] who married Amy James [b1857].
I can appreciate the problems you have experienced tracing the family as they moved around the area of Benenden,Dingleden, Rolvenden Layne also Tenterden on various
occasions as it appears they often lived in tied cottages relating to where they could find
employment.
Over the past few years myself & my wife have compiled a comprehensive history of the
Marshalls-we now have a large folder of about 120 pages with information gained from
branches of the family who live in Hertfordshire,Australia & British Columbia,Canada,as well
as memories handed down from my late grandfather along with birth records etc.

If you think there is a connection [& it appears there is]please get in touch.
.
regards Ian Newman. 

[janian]

Hi Lee

I am pretty sure we have common ancestors in the Marshall family.
My family tree on my mother's side [her maiden name was Marshall] agrees with the names & dates on your email. My tree goes back to 1707 when Reynolds Marshall married
Mary Sharp also Stephen was a popular "Marshall" name culminating in my great grandfather Stephen Marshall [b 1855] who married Amy James [b1857].
I can appreciate the problems you have experienced tracing the family as they moved around the area of Benenden,Dingleden, Rolvenden Layne also Tenterden on various
occasions as it appears they often lived in tied cottages relating to where they could find
employment.
Over the past few years myself & my wife have compiled a comprehensive history of the
Marshalls-we now have a large folder of about 120 pages with information gained from
branches of the family who live in Hertfordshire,Australia & British Columbia,Canada,as well
as memories handed down from my late grandfather along with birth records etc.

If you think there is a connection [& it appears there is]please get in touch.
.
regards Ian Newman.

[jem65]

Hi,
My great grandmother was a Rosa Marshall (of Benenden) and her father was a Stephen Marshall, son of Reynolds Marshall, whose grave I discovered in Benenden Church yard two years ago. As far as I can trace she only had sisters and this can sometimes cause a 'trail' to disappear as the girls marry, change names and move away. My great grandmother moved to Folkestone and then Ashford where two of her sisters also ended up.

If you would like the dates and details i have let me know. The gravestone gave the names of all Reynolds' surviving children. I think that you have managed to get back further than me, but it would be a huge coincidence if there isn't a link!
Best wishes,
J

[janian]

Hi
I have a Reynolds Marshall [born 1803] son of Stephen Marshall [B 1763] also there was a Reynolds Marshall [ B 1767]-The combination of these two names repeating itself down through my tree with the most recent 'Stephen' being born in 1855 who was my great grandfather would suggest that there may be a link between our families although perhaps going back some way,as probably you may be aware that the same names were passed on through succeeding generations,certainly this was the case with "Stephen".
If you think this is worth pursuing please contact me at :
email address removed by moderator - please use the secure Rootschat personal message system to exchange email addresses thankyou

Regards

[jem65]

Hi,
I am pretty sure that with a name like Reynolds Marshall there has to be a connection!! I am in the process of typing up all my notes and as soon as I have done it I will pass this on! Have you visited Benenden?

Best wishes,
J

[janian]

Hi
Many thanks for your reply.In answer to your question,yes I have visited Benenden and over the past few years I have visited the Towns & villages nearby where various Marshall family members once lived including Dingleden [a small hamlet near Benenden],Rolvenden,Rolvenden layne,Tenterden & Smallhythe where my great grandparents are buried.I have also managed to trace some of the cottages where my Marshall family once lived & photographed them.We normally manage to visit the area two or three times a year as we don't live too far away [South Essex] with the intention of further research.

Kind regards, Ian

[bearkat]

Some MARSHALLS are mentioned in this book of monuments of Benenden

http://www.archive.org/stream/parishofbenenden00hasl/parishofbenenden00hasl_djvu.txt

Be warned - that character recognition isn't brilliant.