mardu is one of the oldest preserved farms in the territory of today's soomaa national park, dating back to early 1800. first known written recordings of the farm have been found from estonian literary museum- tales and stories of how farm and surrounding villages formed through time. mardu appears on general maps starting from 1882. though place it self has been mentioned earlier also in the maps of suure-kõpu and väike-kõpu manors, as traditional foresters place with no direct obligations towards feudals or landlords.
due to economical changes in estonia, mardu has not been operating as a traditional foresters place or farm since late 1980. in last decades household has had several different owners and has been deserted between 1998-2008. in 2008 farm came to the hands of today's owners and to restore the farm, its buildings and traditional landscapes ngo mardu studio was formed.