Robert Amberson Marten was born in Glastonbury in 1699. His father was William Martin, a soap boiler in Bristol. The origin of the Martin (sic) family was almost certainly from the Glastonbury area – but William appears to have married Elizabeth the niece of a Bristol trader and adventurer Robert Amberson in 1678. Robert Amberson Marten was the youngest of at least four children.
The Martin family had undoubtedly been caught up in the tumultuous events of the Civil War and the Monmouth rising of 1685 that hit the West country particularly hard. This may explain some of the movement to and from Bristol and the problems and persecution encountered by the non conformists and Quakers prevalent amongst the Bristol traders and Soap boilers.
Robert Amberson Marten was born into much more benign times just as the trading port of Bristol was booming with new colonies and adventures. This entrepreneurial spirit was to colour his life and bring him to the Port of London where his subsequent family was to settle. At one time he indeed professed to be a Quaker but whatever the case he remained strongly apart from the establishment and non conformist.
We know a fair bit about his career as his second eldest son Nathaniel Marten wrote a testimonial of his father’s life in about 1815. Nathaniel describes his father in glowing terms. He was undoubtedly a tall man of about six foot.
Robert Amberson Marten married Alice Harford, when she was reputedly only 15 years old. They had five children who grew to adulthood. Their careers bear testimony to the range of Robert’s business interests. He worked variably as a wine merchant, debt and tax collector and even mushroom grower. Although he was clearly in contact with merchants who sailed the world he never himself went abroad as far as we know.
The most distinguished son of his was Humphrey Marten who became Chief Factor of the Hudson’s Bay Company in Canada. His second son, Nathaniel Marten pursued a career in London in Pastry making becoming a Freeman of the Cooks Company. His youngest son also Robert Amberson Marten died at sea.
The London Gazette records that Robert Amberson Marten twice had spells in debtors prison which is at odds with his son’s radiant account – but was probably an occupational hazard of his zealous entrepreneurial nature.
He seems to have died in Dorset in 1758 seemingly on another venture that seem to have got more and more eccentric as he got older.
Family of Robert Amberson MARTEN and Alice HARFORD
Husband: | Robert Amberson MARTEN (1699-1758) | |
Wife: | Alice HARFORD (1708-1780) | |
Children: | William Loyd MARTEN (bap.1725, d.bef1730) | |
Martha MARTEN (bap.1726, bur.1773) | ||
Humphrey MARTEN (1729-1790) | ||
Nathaniel MARTEN (1735-1816) | ||
Robert Amberson MARTEN (1736-1773) | ||
Alicia MARTEN (1740-1823) | ||
Marriage | 6 Apr 1724 | Clifton, Gloucestershire |
Husband: Robert Amberson MARTEN
Name: | Robert Amberson MARTEN | |
Sex: | Male | |
Father: | William MARTEN (1655-bef1715) | |
Mother: | Elizabeth AMBERSON ( – ) | |
Birth | 2 Sep 1699 | Glastonbury1 |
Baptism | 5 Sep 1699 (age 0) | Glastonbury (St John The Baptist) |
Death | 1758 (age 58-59) | Dorset |
Burial | 13 Sep 1758 | St Mary’s, Burton Bradstock, Dorset |
Wife: Alice HARFORD
Name: | Alice HARFORD | |
Sex: | Female | |
Father: | Thomas HARFORD (bap.1659, d.bef1720) | |
Mother: | Martha BUTLER (b.1668, bur.1739) | |
Birth | 1708 | |
Baptism | ||
Christening | 24 Aug 1722 (age 13-14) | Clifton, Gloucestershire |
Death | 14 Mar 1780 (age 71-72) | Bristol |
Burial | 17 Mar 1780 |
Child 1: William Loyd MARTEN
Name: | William Loyd MARTEN | |
Sex: | Male | |
Birth | ||
Baptism | 2 Apr 1725 | St Mary Redcliffe, Bristol |
Death | bef 1730 |
Child 2: Martha MARTEN
Name: | Martha MARTEN | |
Sex: | Female | |
Spouse 1: | Edward POSGATE ( -c. 1762) | |
Spouse 2: | Stephen GOULDER (1712- ) | |
Birth | ||
Baptism | 7 Jul 1726 | St Mary Redcliffe, Bristol |
Death | ||
Burial | 22 Sep 1773 | St Anne Limehouse |
Child 3: Humphrey MARTEN
Name: | Humphrey MARTEN | |
Sex: | Male | |
Spouse: | PAWPITCH ( -1771) | |
Birth | 2 Feb 1729 | Bristol |
Baptism | 20 Feb 1729 (age 0) | St Stephens, Bristol |
Occupation | btw 1760 and 1780 (age 30-51) | -; Commander York (Factory), Manitoba, Canada |
Death | 26 Jun 1790 (age 61) | Windsor |
Child 4: Nathaniel MARTEN
Name: | Nathaniel MARTEN | |
Sex: | Male | |
Spouse: | Martha CLARKSON (1736-1790) | |
Birth | 19 May 1735 | London |
Occupation | btw 1770 and 1790 (age 34-55) | Freeman of the Cooks Company |
Death | 17 Oct 1816 (age 81) | Assembly Row, Mile End |
Burial | 24 Oct 1816 | Bunhill Fields MI |
Child 5: Robert Amberson MARTEN
Name: | Robert Amberson MARTEN | |
Sex: | Male | |
Birth | 27 May 1736 | |
Baptism | 14 Dec 1749 (age 13) | St Dunstans, Stepney |
Death | 1773 (age 36-37) |
Child 6: Alicia MARTEN
Name: | Alicia MARTEN | |
Sex: | Female | |
Spouse: | Burton BINDON (1726-bef1799) | |
Birth | 1740 | |
Death | 21 Apr 1823 (age 82-83) | Clonmel, Ireland |