482 



BIOGRAPHICAL NOTICES. 



Nixon, John, was settled in Ridley 

 as early as 1683, was a member of 

 Friends' Meeting, but took little or no 

 interest in the afi'airs of the Society. 

 But little is known in respect to him. 



Maris, George, emigrated from the 

 parish of Inkborough in the County of 

 Worcester, England, in 1683, with his 

 wife Alice and several children. On 

 his first arrival, he appears to have 

 tarried for a short time with the Friends 

 that had arrived the year before and 

 settled at Darby, but he soon located a 

 large tract of land in Springfield town- 

 ship, whereon he settled and named it 

 "The Home house." He was among 

 the most eminent of the public Friends 

 that came over with the first settlers, 

 and was so esteemed in his native 

 country, where meetings had been held 

 at his house, and where he had suffered 

 by fines and imprisonment. His certifi- 

 cate, which is recorded at Darby says, 

 " he hath adorned the Gospel of 

 Christ." He held many public trusts : 

 was a Justice of the Peace, one of the 

 Judges of the Court, and on several 

 occasions was chosen a member of the 

 Provincial Assembly. He was one of 

 those who signed the testimony against 

 the celebrated George Keith. 



The descendants of this worthy patri- 

 arch are numerous ; those bearing his 

 name in this County, Chester County, 

 and in the City of Philadelphia, are 

 proljably all descended from him. His 

 death occurred in 1703, at the age of 

 seventy-three years ; his wife having 

 died nearly four years earlier. His 

 children, so far as is known, were Eliza- 

 beth who intermarried with John Men- 

 denhall; George, with Jane Maddock; 

 Ann, with John Worrilow ; John, with 

 Susanna Lewis of Haverford, and Rich- 

 ard, with Elizabeth Hayes of Marple. 



Markham, William, the cousin and 

 the first Lieutenant Governor of William 

 Pcnn, no doubt resided at Upland 

 (Chester,) from the time of his arrival 

 till the City of Philadelphia was laid 

 out, and suitable accommodations were 

 provided there. He was not a Quaker, 

 but seems to liave been rather a military 

 man, as he is called captain, and some- 

 times colonel. He emigrated from 

 London, and it is said he was but 

 twenty-one years of age when he 

 arrived here. He continued to reside 



in Pennsylvania till his death, which 

 happened in 1704, when he resided in 

 Front Street, Philadelphia. His will 

 shows that he was the owner of several 

 slaves, which, with the chief part of his 

 property, he bequeathed to his wife. 

 One of his slaves was an Indian boy, 

 named Ectus Frankson, born in 1700, 

 whom he manumitted at the age of 

 tAventy-four, unless his wife by a special 

 deed, should direct him to be held in 

 servitude. He had no son, and only 

 speaks of one daughter. 



Marshall, John, emigrated from 

 Elton, in Derbyshire, England, in 1687, 

 and probably at first settled in Block- 

 ley township, Philadelphia Couuty, 

 but within the verge of Darby Friends' 

 meeting, of which he was an attentive 

 member. In 1688 he married Sarah 

 Smith, of Darby, their marriage being 

 the first that was solemnized at the 

 first meeting-house built at that place. 

 Their children were John, William and 

 Thomas. He died in 1729. 



Marshall, Abraham, was born about 

 the year 1669, at Gratton, Derbyshire, 

 England, and emigrated to America in 

 the year 1700, fixing upon Darbj-, at 

 first, as his place of residence. Con- 

 vinced by the preaching of John Grat- 

 ton, at the early age of sixteen, and 

 " carefully abiding under the discipline 

 of the cross," he had, before leaving 

 England, a few words in the ministry, 

 which, in the language of his certificate, 

 "were received as from a babe in the 

 Truth." Late in the autumn of 1701, 

 with the approbation of Darbj' Monthly 

 Meeting, he united with Vincent Cald- 

 well in making a religious visit to 

 Maryland. In January, 1703, he was 

 married to Mary, the daughter of James 

 Hunt, of Kingsessing, and in 1707 re- 

 moved to the forks of the Brandywine, 

 where he purchased large tracts of 

 land among the Indians, and where his 

 son Humphrey, who afterwards became 

 noted as a botanist, was born ; he being 

 the eighth of nine children. His death 

 occurred in December, 1767, at tlie 

 advanced age of ninety-eight years ; 

 his wife surviving him less than two 

 years. She was born in Kent, Eng- 

 land ; came to this country with her 

 father a young child, about the year 

 1684, and was eighty-seven years of 

 age at the time of lier decease. 



