How do we find his birth in Derbyshire, as family lore suggests?

Question

This is my 3x great grandfather. Family lore and dubious sourcing have led us to believe he was born in Derbyshire (Birchover, specifically) but I have not had luck finding any conclusive sources to support this. In fact, the earliest source I have for him is the US 1850 census, which does list his birthplace as England.

An additional clue that may help: his occupation is listed as "miner" in 1850. Legend has it he was a miner in England as well.

I will endeavor to add all the children I have for him in the next day or two, as there are far more than the two that are currently on wikitree.

Answer 1

I think. There is confusion with George and son George W.

https://www.ancestry.com/sharing/21269289?h=01b610&utm_campaign=bandido-webparts&utm_source=post-share-modal&utm_medium=copy-url

Comments

Having tried looking further there appears to be 3 or more Georges with sons George emigrating at various times, with one even dying in England and the wife and children then going to US

Answer 2

Marsden is a very common surname in that area, as was the occupation of lead miner. The parish register (Youlgreave) has Hannah daughter of Thomas and Mary Marsden, miner of Birchover, on 1 Jan 1813; Elizabeth and Mary, twin daughters of Jonathan and Ellen Marsden, miner of Birchover, on 23 May 1813; Hannah daughter of William and Mary Marsden, miner of Birchover, on 27 Feb 1814; and Jane daughter of George and Sarah Marsden, miner of Birchover, on 14 May 1815; but I can't see any record for George.

Comments

Marsden is also common in Durham, and in Cumberland(where the Durham lot originated).  My Marsden line seem to have been the ones who populated Durham back in the day.  We were mainly coal miners, though, not lead.

Answer 3

Dawn Scotting in New Zealand, who has researched the area around Winster very thoroughly, has this information on him: https://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/trees/242549/I7053/george-marsden/individual . Unfortunately I can't see her sources: you may need to contact her directly.

Answer 4

If you look at the image of the 1840 census you can see Matthew Marsden living next-door to George. His household has a male aged 60-70, presumably Matthew himself, so he was a generation older than George. I am pretty confident that Matthew was a close relative from Derbyshire.

"United States Census, 1840," database with images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHTF-DLX : 19 May 2020), George Marsden, Franklin, Missouri, United States; citing p. 237, NARA microfilm publication , (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll ; FHL microfilm

Matthew Marsden has been extensively researched and mentioned in Stephen Heathcote's answer as the father of George. This is certainly possible, even likely, but I'm slightly concerned that none of the dozen or so children of Matthew seems to be called George and that I can't find a record of the baptism myself. Also none of George's children appear to be called Matthew, even as a middle name, which seems a little odd. I would keep in mind the possibility that Matthew may not be his father but his uncle.