Marden, John Merrill

Debbie shows birth as 30 Nov 1823; 1900 Census and "Pioneer Families"show Nov 1828.
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History of Early Pioneer Families of Hood River, Oregon. Compiled by Mrs.D.M. Coon
JOHN M. MARDEN AND FAMILY 1859
John M. Marden was born in Georgetown, D.C. November 30, 1828. Hisparents were Nathaniel M. and Mary (Lutz) Marden. He attended the publicschools of Washington D.C. and later entered college. When his schooldays were over he learned the carpenter trade.In 1849 he joined a partyof men going west, they were known as "Washington City and CaliforniaMining Association", and numbered sixty-four men in their company. Theycrossed the plains with mule teams arriving at Lassen ranch in Californiaon Oct. 13th, 1849. He mined at Bidwell''s Bar until January 1, 1850, whenhe went to Sacramento in hopes of getting letters from home.In Februaryhe went to Marysville and helped to build the first frame buildingerected in that town. Later he went to Shasta with pack train, then toScotts Bar, Weaverville and again to Marysville.In 1856 he sold hismules and returned to Shasta filing on a placer claim on Whiskey Creekwhere he washed out considerable gold in nuggets, one nugget being worth$800. That fall he went again to Marysville and up the Yuba river toTrask Bar, working there successfully for six months. In July 1858 hewent to Fraser river with three men traveling from Victoria B.C. in anIndian log canoe as far north as Port Langley, B.C. He then returned toOlympia, going across country to Monticello at the mouth of the Cowlitzriver and then to Portland and up the Columbia river to the Cascades. In1859 he filed a pre-emption claim on land about twenty miles east of theCascades, on the south bank of the Columbia river. This land was formerlyoccupied by a warlike tribe of Indians under Chief Walluchian, the placebeing called Polally-Illahee, which in English means sand land. In lateryears it was given the name of Ruthton by a lumbering company thatoperated a planer on the place. For ten years Mr. Marden lived alone onhis farm, then on February 13, 1869 at The Dalles he was married to MissHarriet Reed of Troutdale, Oregon.Their farm was isolated from HoodRiver Valley, if they wished to ship their produce on the steam boatsthey had to take it in a small boat to the steamer landing two miles eastof their place.They had no road in those days, only an Indian trail,following the river, came through the farm and wound its way up aprecipitous bluff to the valley nearly four hundred feet above. TheodorePerham made his home with the Marden family for a time, and twice eachschoolday he dared its perils, attending the Hood River school which waslocated on the south-west corner of Wm. Jenkins claim.Mrs. Armstrong ofNew York was the teacher and left an impress for good on the charactersof her pupils.Their nearest neighbors were Amos and Ed Underwood, whowith their wives lived on the north bank, nearly two miles distant. AmosUnderwood had filed on Polally-Illahee before Mr. Marden came, butpreferring the north bank had moved across the river where he made hishome. The wife of Amos Underwood was a Cascade Indian woman, baptized bythe missionaries as Ellen, daughter of Chief Chenowith.Col. Lear, of theU.S. Army had married her, according to Indian rites, but when the armywas ordered away Ellen and her daughter were left behind. Amos Underwoodbefriended her and later married her with the Indian ceremony, sayingthat later he would have the ceremony repeated by a minister when onecould be found. Ed Underwood while on a visit to his brother at WhiteSalmon met and loved Isabel Lear; an Indian marriage ceremony followed1and a new home was founded near the home of Amos Underwood.At the closeof a cold disagreeable day two forlorn travelers stopped at the Mardenhome and begged for shelter. For three weeks they had been traveling overrough Indian trail along the bank of the Columbia river. The man wasabout thirty years old, the girl sixteen, her home had been at Hillsboroin Oregon and she had run away with her lover when her parents hadrefused their consent to her marriage. They had found no one to performthe marriage ceremony and the girl was exhausted. Mrs. Marden listened totheir story, then made them welcome to her home, Rev. Thomas Condon,Congregational minister of The Dalles was sent for and a message was alsosent to Amos and Ed Underwood. Mrs. Marden made three wedding cakes andwhen the minister arrived a wedding was solemnized at the Marden home andsoon after two more at the home of the homes of the Underwoodbrothers.In 1872 the Marden Farm was sold to Haynes and Sanders. LaterMr. Marden purchased a tract of land east of Mosier which he soondeveloped into one of the most valuable ranches on the Mid-Columbiariver. In 1883 this farm was sold and the family moved to The Dalles.
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