Born in 1524, John Strode was the eldest son of Robert Strode (d. 1559) of
Parnham and Elizabeth, daughter of Reginald Hody. He served as captain of musters by 1560, commissioner of concealed lands and
Sheriff of Dorset from 1572 to 1573 and
Justice of the Peace from about 1575. In his later years he investigated taverns and grain supplies at
Lyme Regis; entertained the
2nd Earl of Bedford at Bridport; stayed at
Marshwood with Sir
Amias Paulet, the lord of the manor; investigated horse theft; and, in 1578, investigated at the request of the
Privy Council the causes of the dispute between Sir Henry Ashley and
Henry Howard, son of
Thomas Howard, 1st Viscount Howard of Bindon. The Privy Council praised him for his "great travail" in 1580, when he and others had been examining the
recusant, Lady Tregonwell, the widow of Sir
John Tregonwell (d. 1565). He died 2 September 1581, leaving £1,400 to his children, and appointing Henry Coker overseer. His eldest son Robert, then aged about 22, was executor and residuary legatee. ==Marriages and issue==