Alias:<ALIA> Nicholas /Martian/
[Brøderbund WFT Vol. 19, Ed. 1, Tree #1362, Date of Import: Apr 26, 1999]
[Brøderbund WFT Vol. 7, Ed. 1, Tree #3244, Date of Import: May 29, 1997]
!Nicolas was a Frenchman of the family de la
Martaigne. He was a French Huguenot
settler. He came to VA in 1620 and
naturalized both himself and his name. The
spelling evolved to Martineu, then Martian.
Nicolas was a French Walloon, who was the
first to patent the site of Yorktown, and
to represent Kent Island, York and Chiskiack
in the House of Burgesses (1632)
He was settler of Elizabeth City, Charles
City and York Counties, VA. He was a Justice
of York County and also a Burgess there.
Nicolas died between 1 Mar 1656/7 and
24 Apr 1657.
In Vol. IV of "Genealogies of Virginia
Families", we read "Nicholas Martian's name
is rendered variously in the records, Marlier,
Martue, Martin, Martain, &c. In 1621 a large
party of French Walloons applied to the London
Company for leave to settle in Virginia.
Permission was granted, but as they received
more favorable terms from the Dutch, they sailed
to New York in 1622 and constituted the first
Dutch colony in America. Some few, nevertheless,
came to to Virginia, and among them was Nicolas
Martian, who received his denization in England.
In the list of Walloons presented in 1621 to
the London Company, there is entered "Nicholas
de la Marlier, his wife and two children;" and
in the census of 1625 "Capt. Nicholas Martue" is
named as living in Elizabeth City. (Hotten,
List of Emigrants to America, 99, 176, 249.)
When Chiskiack, on York River, was opened in
1630 for settlement he obtained the land at
Yorktown and was the first representative in
the Assembly for Chiskiack and Kent Island. He
was one of the first justices of York County,
and in 1639 obtained a patent for land at
Yorktown due him on account of importing himself,
Nicholas Marlier, wife, Jane, Nicholas, his
son, Elizabeth Marlier, his daughter, and Jane
Berkeley her daughter and several others "the
first year to Chiskiack." In 1625 Lt. Edward
Berkeley had living with him his wife, Jane
Berkeley, and daughter Jane. It seems that
Martian married his widow. In 1635 he took a
leading part in protesting against the tyranny
of Governor Sir John Harvey, and the loss of
Kent Island to Lord Baltimore, and was arrested
and confined. But Sir John Harvey was deposed
by the council and Martian and his friend were
released. In the records of York he is mentioned
in 1645 as married to Isabella Beech. His will
dated March 1, 1656-'7, and proved April 4, 1757,
names his eldest daughter Elizabeth, wife of
George Reade, Mary who married John Scasbrook,
of York Co., and Sarah who married Captain
William Fuller, distinguished as Puritan
governor of Maryland. These daughters were
probably by the second wife Jane, the widow
of Edward Berkeley, and Col. Scasbrook had a
daughter named Jane. Martain's French wife and
children probably did not survive the "seasoning
period." He was the common ancestor of George
Washington, Robert E. Lee and many other
eminent Virginians."
[Brøderbund WFT Vol. 16, Ed. 1, Tree #2294, Date of Import: Apr 26, 1999]
{Rd 1.2.1f-l; ref 32,103} immigrated to VA c1620