Thomas Tilden

Biography

Thomas Tilden was baptised at Benenden, Kent, England before 1541, but the records before 1541 for Benenden have not been found. His parents were Richard and Elizabeth Tilden. His mother's family name was possibly Glover. His parents moved to Tenterden, Kent about 1553, because their last four children were born there. Thomas married Alice Bigge on March 10, 1577 in Tenterden. Thomas and Alice had seven children, all born in Tenterden between 1579 and 1593. Alice died in May of 1593 and was buried at Tenterden on May 13, twelve days after the birth of her last child. Thomas married, on November 6, 1593, Eleanor Hubbard of Rolvenden, Kent, the widow of Thomas Couchman and Emmanuel Everenden. Thomas and Eleanor had no children. Eleanor died and Thomas took a third wife, Alice Bourne, possibly the sister of Freegift Bourne. Thomas and Alice had one child, a son named Freegift after her brother, born in Tenterden and baptised on May 29, 1604 there. After that, Thomas moved to East Guilford in Sussex until 1614. He then moved to Wye in Kent and died there in June of 1617. He was buried in Wye on June 6 at the St. Gregory & St. Martin Churchyard?

Will

• The Will of Thomas Tylden of the parish of Wye in the County of Kent, 14 March 1616-17.
• To the poor of Wye 20s. 5 pounds to be distributed among the poor ministers.
• I make my son Joseph Tilden my executor and give him all that debt due me from James Thetcher of Willingdon I the County of Sussex.
• My wife Alyce shall have the use of all my household stuff and moveable goods during her life, with liberty to dispose of them to all or any of my children during her life and at her death to dispose of them that remain to such of my children as shall be living and not elsewhere.
• To my son Thomas Tylden 5 pounds.
• My will concerning the disposition of all my lands, tenements and hereditaments in the Counties of Sussex and Kent or elsewhere within the Realm of England is as follows:
• First my will & meaning is that Nathaniell my sonne his heyres & Assignes shall for ever holde and enioye o peece of fresh marshe land lyinge in the parish of East Guyldeford in the Countye of Sussex called by the name of Cowelees contayneinge by estymation xxx acres accordinge to one deede of feafment thereof by me made to the use of the said Nathaniell
• Itm I doe will giue and bequeath to the said Nathaniell my sonne & to his heyres forever one peice of fresh mersh land with the appurtenances called or knowne by the name of the Gyve acres lyinge & beinge in the aforesaid Parish of East Guyldeford together with a sufficeint carrying way to carrye driue goe to & for him his heyres & Assignes through one peece of land called the upper peece of the lesser Spanyards lyinge in Guyldfford aforesaid.”
• To my sons Joseph and Hopestill Tilden their heirs and assigns forever the aforesaid piece of land called the upper piece of the lesser Spanyards containing twenty acres.
• To sone Freegift Tilden and his heirs forever, if he live to the age of one and twenty years, a piece of fresh mersh land in East Guyldford containing fifteen acres known by the name of the nether piece of the lesser Spanyards and abutting upon Cowe lees aforesaid toward the south, with right of way to said land through the land called the upper piece of the lesser Spanyards bequeathed to son Nathaniel.
• If Freegift die before the age of one and twenty years, reversion to sons Nathaniel and Hopestill and their heirs forever.
• During the minority of Freegift 10 pounds a year to be paid to wife Alice toward her jointure of 20 pounds made by me to her during her life, the other 10 pounds of the said 20 pounds to be paid out of the lands bequeathed to sons Joseph and Hopestill.
• To son Freegift at the age of one and twenty years my messuage with the barn and other buildings, orchard, garden and seven pieces of land containing seventeen acres now in the occupation of the widow Gylbert, lying in the parish of Cranbrook upon the den of Omenden. If he die before said age, reversion to son Joseph and his heirs.
• Wife Alyce to receive the profits of all Freegift’s land during his minority and use them to see him brought up to learning, and if she die, son Joseph to receive them for that purpose, allowing to Freegift sufficient maintenance and yielding an account to him when he accomplishes his age of one and twenty years.
• {signed} Thomas Tilden.
• Witnesses: Suretonhie Nicholes, Robert Hall, and Willyam Avsten.
• Proved 20 June 1617 by Joseph Tilden, son and executor named in the will.
• (The will was contested 23 September 1617, the widow Alice Tilden and sons Nathniel Tilden of Tenterden, Hopestill Tilden of the town of Sandwich, and Thomas Tilden and Freegift Tilden of Wye bringing suit agains the Executor Joseph Tilden. 27 March 1618 sentence was given for the confirmation of the will, the judgement being that the testator was sane at the time the will was made. (Consistory Court of Canterbury, Original will, bundle for 1617.)

(English Origins of New England Families, publised by NEGHS)

Family

Thomas Tilden (son of Richard Tilden and Elizabeth Glover)1 was born 21 Nov 1551 in Benenden, Kent County, England1, and died 06 Jun 1617 in Wye, Kent County, England1.

1. He married (1) Alice Bigge on 10 Mar 1575/76 in St. Mildred Church, Tenderden, Kent County, England, daughter of Robert Bigge and Elizabeth.
2. He married (2) Ellen Hubbarde Evernden on 18 Nov 1593 in St. Mildred's Tenterdon, Kent County, England.
3. He married (3) Alice Bourne on Abt. 1603 in County Kent, England.

Notes for Thomas Tilden:

1. THOMAS1 TILDEN was born 1544 in Of, Tenterden, Kent, England, and died June 06, 1617 in Wye, Kent, Eng, England. He married (1) ALICE (ALYCE) BIGGS March 10, 1575/76 in Tenterden, Kent, England. She was born Abt. 1546 in Of, Benenden, Kent, England, and died May 13, 1593 in Of, Benenden, Kent, England. He married (2) ELLEN HUBBARDE EVERNDEN November 13, 1593 in , Tenterden, Kent, England. He married (3) ALICE Abt. 1603.

More About THOMAS TILDEN:
Burial: June 06, 1617, Wye Parish, Tenterden, Kent, England
Christening: Abt. 1544, Tenterden, Kent, Eng.

Notes for THOMAS TILDEN:

Thomas Tilden acquired lands in Sussex (possibly through his third wife, Alice.) It is not clear that he ever resided there. He was named eleventh Jurat in Queen Elizabeth's Charter for Tenterden, dated 1600. He removed to Wye where he held lands. His son Thomas lived in Wye also. The date of, and reasons for, his removal is not clear. His oldest son (third child) Nathaniel, our first American Ancestor, remained in Tenterden, became Jurat, then Mayor in 1622, an emigrated with his family to America, in 1634-5.

(Tilden Family Our English Ancestors)

Between 1604 and 1614, Thomas Tilden moved from Tenterden and went, perhaps, to East Guilford, County Sussex, which is ot much beyond the border from Tenterden, as he possessed considerable real estate there according to his will. (Tilden Family Our English Ancestors)

More Notes for THOMAS TILDEN:

He married three times. He married Alice BIGGE March 10, 1575/6 in Tenterden, Kent, England. Alice was born in Benenden, Kent, England. She is the daughter of Robert BIGGE and Elizabeth (BIGGE). Alice died at age unknown. Her body was interred May 13, 1593 in Tenterden, Kent, England.

He married Elinor HUBBARD November 13, 1593 in Tenterden, Kent, England.

Elinor was born circa 1545 in maybe, Rolvenden, Kent, England. Her body was interred July 22, 1601 in Ashford, Kent, England.(23) An article about the Cushman family in N.E.H.G. Register (April, 1914) shows her three marriages in parish registers, extracts the wills of her first two husbands. Her son, Robert Cushman, is said to have probably been he who was "the agent of the Leyden Pilgrims in England." The article argues that if Thomas Tilden's last son, Freegift, was of his 3rd wife, then

Elinor must have died before 1604. The article says her parents are undiscovered.

He married Alyce (TILDEN) after 1602. Alyce was born date unknown. Alyce died after 1616/7 at age unknown. John G. Hunt, in English Origins of New England Families, suggests that she may have been Alice Bourne, daughter of Thomas Bourne of Boughton Monchelsea, Kent, whose will was proved June 6, 1608 in the Consistory Court of Canterbury. That Alice Bourne had a brother named Freegift, who inherited lands in Tenterden. However, the will of Thomas Bourne refers only to his daughter Alice, without surname.

Thomas's estate was probated June 20, 1617 in Consistory Court, Canterbury, Kent, England.(24)

More About Thomas Tilden:
Date born 2: 1546, Beneden, Kent County, England.1

More About Thomas Tilden and Alice Bigge:

Marriage 1: 10 Mar 1575/76, St. Mildred Church, Tenderden, Kent County, England.
Marriage 2: 10 Mar 1576/77, St. Mildred's Tenterdon, Kent County, England.

More About Thomas Tilden and Ellen Hubbarde Evernden:
Marriage: 18 Nov 1593, St. Mildred's Tenterdon, Kent County, England.

More About Thomas Tilden and Alice Bourne:
Marriage: Abt. 1603, County Kent, England.

Children of Thomas Tilden and Alice Bigge are:
Nathaniel Tilden, b. 28 Jul 1583, Tenterden, Kent County, England1, d. 25 May 1641, Scituate, Plymouth County, Massachusetts1.
Sarah Tilden, b. 30 Aug 1579, Tenterden, County of Kent, England1, d. 06 Jun 1617, Tenderden, Kent County, England1.
Abigail Tilden, b. 26 Feb 1580/81, Tenterden, County of Kent, England1, d. 05 Aug 1582, Tenterden, County of Kent, England1.
Joseph Tilden, b. 28 Nov 1585, Tenterden, County of Kent, England1, d. 01 Feb 1641/42, London, County of Middlesex, England1.
Hopestill Tilden, b. 01 May 1588, Tenterden, County of Kent, England1, d. 19 Dec 1661, St. Mary's, Sandwich, County of Kent, England1.
Thomas Tilden, b. 01 May 1593, Tenterden, County of Kent, England1, d. Abt. 1617, England1.
Theophilus Tilden, b. 11 Oct 1590, Tenterden, County of Kent, England1, d. 20 Apr 1613, St. Peter, in the East, Oxford, England1.

Children of Thomas Tilden and Ellen Hubbarde Evernden are:
Freegift Tilden, b. 29 May 1604, Tenterden, County of Kent, England1, d. 05 May 1662, Langley, Herts, County of Kent, England1

NEHGR 65:323. Will of Thomas Tilden of parish of Wye 14 March 1616-17. Son Joseph Tilden executor; names wife Alyce; son Nathaniel; son Hopestill; son Freegift Tylden (when he reaches age 21). Proved 20 Jun 1617. Contested 23 Sept 1617 by widow Alice and sons Nathaniel of Tenterden, Hopestill of Sandwich and Thomas and Freegift of Wye, against executor Jospeh. Sentence confirmed the will and that testator was sane. Suit possibly because son Thomas was given ��5, and others given much more.

First wife Alice died 1593, shortly after birth of Thomas.

Married second Ellen Evernden; yet leaves widow Alice, who must be third wife

The Will of Thomas Tylden of the parish of Wye in the County of Kent, 14 March 1616-17.

To the poor of Wye 20s. £5 to be distributed among the poor ministers. I make my son Joseph Tilden my executor and give him all that debt due me from James Thetcher of Willingdon I the County of Sussex. My wife Alyce shall have the use of all my household stuff and moveable goods during her life, with liberty to dispose of them to all or any of my children during her life and at her death to dispose of them that remain to such of my children as shall be living and not elsewhere. To my son Thomas Tylden £5.

My will concerning the disposition of all my lands, tenements and hereditaments in the Counties of Sussex and Kent or elsewhere within the Realm of England is as follows: “First my will & meaning is that Nathaniell my sonne his heyres & Assignes shall for ever holde and enioye o peece of fresh marshe land lyinge in the parish of East Guyldeford in the Countye of Sussex called by the name of Cowelees contayneinge by estymation xxx acres accordinge to one deede of feafment thereof by me made to the use of the said Nathaniell Itm I doe will giue and bequeath to the said Nathaniell my sonne & to his heyres forever one peice of fresh mersh land with the appurtenances called or knowne by the name of the Gyve acres lyinge & beinge in the aforesaid Parish of East Guyldeford together with a sufficeint carrying way to carrye driue goe to & for him his heyres & Assignes through one peece of land called the upper peece of the lesser Spanyards lyinge in Guyldfford aforesaid.” To my sons Joseph and Hopestill Tilden their heirs and assigns forever the aforesaid piece of land called the upper piece of the lesser Spanyards containing twenty acres. To sone Freegift Tilden and his heirs forever, if he live to the age of one and twenty years, a piece of fresh mersh land in East Guyldford containing fifteen acres known by the name of the nether piece of the lesser Spanyards and abutting upon Cowe lees aforesaid toward the south, with right of way to said land through the land called the upper piece of the lesser Spanyards bequeathed to son Nathaniel. If Freegift die before the age of one and twenty years, reversion to sons Nathaniel and Hopestill and their heirs forever. During the minority of Freegift £10 a year to be paid to wife Alice toward her jointure of £20 made by me to her during her life, the other £10 of the said £20 to be paid out of the lands bequeathed to sons Joseph and Hopestill. To son Freegift at the age of one and twenty years my messuage with the barn and other buildings, orchard, garden and seven pieces of land containing seventeen acres now in the occupation of the widow Gylbert, lying in the parish of Cranbrook upon the den of Omenden. If he die before said age, reversion to son Joseph and his heirs. Wife Alyce to receive the profits of all Freegift’s land during his minority and use them to see him brought up to learning, and if she die, son Joseph to receive them for that purpose, allowing to Freegift sufficient maintenance and yielding an account to him when he accomplishes his age of one and twenty years. {signed} Thomas Tilden.

Witnesses: Suretonhie Nicholes, Robert Hall, and Willyam Avsten. Proved 20 June 1617 by Joseph Tilden, son and executor named in the will. (The will was contested 23 September 1617, the widow Alice Tilden and sons Nathniel Tilden of Tenterden, Hopestill Tilden of the town of Sandwich, and Thomas Tilden and Freegift Tilden of Wye bringing suit agains the Executor Joseph Tilden. 27 March 1618 sentence was given for the confirmation of the will, the judgement being that the testator was sane at the time the will was made. (Consistory Court of Canterbury, Original will, bundle for 1617.)

Entry in the Bishop's Transcripts of Wye : "1617 Mr. Thomas Tilden an aged man buried 6 June."

["Genealogical Research in England," NEHGR, Oct., 1911].

Immediate Family: Daughter of Richard Tilden and Elizabeth Mary Tilden if they are one and the same person - someone is going to have to decide if female or male and change all profiles to one name and one sex.

I will gladly change my profile to THOMASEN and THOMASINE if the documentation is given to warrant the change

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• Reference: Find A Grave Memorial - SmartCopy: May 22 2017, 8:08:39 UTC