Tidman & Wedd documents

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Torla Mackarness nee Tidman (1920-2020) was the eldest of three children born to Oscar Tidman and Muriel Wedd.  Oscar had four siblings, Muriel two.  These individuals, and some of their forebears back to the late 18th century, are shown on the portrait tree 'Tidman and Wedd Family Tree'.

​Right: Tidman coat of arms. Lynda Tidman notes  it 'was probably adopted by the family, after they had achieved prosperity during the 19th century.  The devices are not on record and seem to have been assumed earlier in the century by a family of Tiddeman!'

Click on documents in the gallery below, to view.

The Strange Tale of Miss Wallman: identifying an ancestor

1811 - the story of a painting. Thomas Lawrence's portrait of William and Jacob Pattisson. Scanned from The Magazine of Art, 1904. (The boys were nephews of 'Miss Wallman' - thanks to Dr Imogen Wedd for identifying them)

1825 - extracts from a court case involving Alfred Wedd of Great Wakering

The Wedd family in Great Wakering - extract from 'The Rayner Family of Great Wakering' by Albert Rayner. Image: Little Wakering Hall

1872 - letter from Frances Tidman to her sister-in-law Elisabeth Tidman, written from Indonesia. Frances was the wife of Paul Frederick Tidman, a merchant. At the time the letter was written, they had 4 children aged between 6 and 1, who were not travelling with them. Click on the letter and zoom in to read.

1880 - 'Grandfather used to perform on the French horn on his way to and from his Drug Mills'. Letter from Elizabeth Metcalfe nee May (1791-1885) to her niece. The letter deals with the history of West House, Maldon (pictured, present day) and also has interesting reminiscences of the writer's childhood in the late C18 and early C19.

Before becoming a teacher, then a clergyman, Oscar Tidman was a professional actor in F R Benson's company. This document, from the Lyceum Theatre in 1900, shows that at the age of 24, he played minor parts in a number of Shakespeare plays

1911 - 'I think there is a certain reticence in the family character, which I .. think ... goes with 'good blood''. Letter from Edward Arthur Wedd 1844-1925 to Mary Wedd 1827-1917, on the subject of genealogy. Thanks to Dr Imogen Wedd.

1916 - funeral of Kathleen Wedd, Torla's grandmother (newspaper cutting)

1918 - obituaries of Edward Parker Wallman Wedd (1883-1918)

Poem written by by Arthur Tidman 1865-1921, under the name 'Hart Dumartin'. The title of this fiercely anti-suffragette poem, written in 1908 and forming part of a volume he self-published in 1913, translates as 'Not Such Help'.

1918 - transcript of letter from Edward P. W. Wedd at the Front (May 1918), two months before he was killed

1920 - letter from Frances Tidman to her son and daughter-in-law Oscar and Muriel, written shortly before her death and also just before Torla was born (April 1920)

The soap manufacturers were another branch of the Tidman family (Isaac Tidman, born 1782) Thanks to Isaac's descendant Jessie Tidman, for sharing this image.

In 1944, Torla Tidman wrote this story, 'Wenceslas Woodlouse', for her mother Muriel. Muriel's son Paul had been killed in a road accident earlier that year.