The first reference to Marple in written history was to Merpel, believed to be derived from the Old English maere pill, meaning 'the stream at the boundary'.

This was confirmed around 1998 when an archaeological dig in Mellor revealed many clues about the existence of Marple's earliest residents.

[2] The pre–Industrial Revolution inhabitants of the village mostly worked on small farms and others specialised in linen weaving and hatting.

After 1790, Samuel Oldknow transformed much of this lifestyle, with the construction of lime kilns and mills as part of the Industrial Revolution.

He built workers' cottages and churches, introduced aspen trees to the area, and assisted in the constructions of the Macclesfield and Peak Forest Canals.

[2] These navigations accelerated Marple's growth, but eventually declined into disrepair when the railway arrived in 1865.

In 1936, Marple Urban District, at the time part of Cheshire, annexed from Derbyshire the parish of Ludworth and Mellor.

Marple grew as a residential suburb of Stockport after the arrival of frequent bus and rail services in the 1920s.

[2] The area, close to Derbyshire, covers just over 11 square miles (28 km2) of countryside, ranging from heavily wooded valleys to hill-top moorland.

On a clear day it is possible to view the Beetham Tower in Manchester as well as the city centre, the Winter Hill TV transmitter and the surrounding counties of Cheshire, Derbyshire, Lancashire and West Yorkshire and the mountains of North Wales from the top of these hills.

[4] In 1974 the urban district was abolished and its former area was transferred to Greater Manchester to form part of the Metropolitan Borough of Stockport.

[8] For the United Kingdom Parliament, Marple is in the Hazel Grove constituency, which is represented by Lisa Smart, a Liberal Democrat, elected in 2024, gaining the seat from the Conservatives.

[13] Local news and television programmes are provided by Salford-based BBC North West and ITV Granada.

[17] Marple featured in a 2010 BBC documentary on Dr Beeching which described the long-term effects of axing much of the UK railway network in the 1960s.

The programme highlighted the transport issues and how getting a direct train from Marple to Stockport was now impossible and the road traffic made the journey one of the most difficult in the UK.

The Roman Lakes leisure complex, in the valley bottom close to Strines, is popular with walkers, anglers, nature lovers and horse riders.

In 2011, volunteers uncovered the wheelpit and entrance footings to the mill and are currently seeking funds to continue the exploration.

There Christie bought two Jacobean oak chairs which she still possessed at the time of writing and, wanting a name for her old-maid character in The Thirteen Problems, she thought of Jane Marple.

Marple station hosts regular services between Manchester Piccadilly, New Mills Central and Sheffield.

Rose Hill was originally on the Macclesfield, Bollington and Marple Railway, which was closed in 1970, and is now at the end of a spur providing services to Manchester Piccadilly, via the Hyde loop.