Dear Friends,
We were spending Christmas with our large extended Thompson family in Arizona when we found your website. We left the website information with everyone there so you may get even more members from out west. What a lovely surprise to get approved for posting today and to find your warm welcome. Thank you for the lovely phone call welcoming us into the Clan. We are so impressed with the research that's been done. The research is what helped us find you.
This summer, Lin's mom got us more seriously involved with genealogy. The oldest relative we can trace in Lin's Thompson line is Archibald Thomson, who was born about 1678 in either Scotland or Ireland. He settled in Norriton, Montgomery County, PA. Our only hint to earlier ancestors was found in a Montgomery County, PA Historical Society document. "Among the writings of one of the descendants is a description of the old ancestral home of Robert Curry Thomson at Changewater, N.J. It says, "A stag's head, with the antlers always hung in the hall, and I have a faded remembrance of being told when a child that it represented a special connection with the Thomson name. I have since learned that it must have represented a part of the Thomson Arms." These writings also state that the following was taken from the genealogy of the family compiled by Edward Sharp Thomson of Port Colden, N.J. This genealogy has not been found.
The Arms: A stag's head, cabossed, affronted, gu. Cross-crosslet, fitched, on a agure, engrailed chief, between two spur rowels.
The Crest: A dexter, embowed arm in armor, the hand ppr. holding a cross-crosslet, fitched, -all gu.
The Motto: Honestie is the best policie."
(Excerpt from document entitled "Thomson Genealogy and History. Historical Society of Montgomery County, PA , stamped #8232.
Researching on the coat of arms led us to the image labeled "John Thomson" on
http://www.baronage.co.uk/2002d/thomson.html and then to all of you. We love Google Search!
Warm Thanks,
Lin and Malia
P.S. Below is a quick sketch of Lin's direct line from Archibald. We hope to find cousins among clans members. Please feel free to contact us. Lin's Y-DNA testing has only led us to one link thus far. We'd like to find more.
Linwood C. Thompson's direct line documented as of 1/2010.
• Archibald Thomson b. abt. 1678 m. Rebecca
• Robert Thomson b. about 1707 m. Mary
• (Col.) Archibald Thomson b. about 1740 Norriton, PA m. Hannah Bartholomew. Brother of (Col.) Mark Thomson and uncle to his son, Robert Curry Thompson. See note on earlier ancestors below.
• Benjamin Thompson b. 25 Mar 1777 Norriton, PA m. Elizabeth (Betsy) Stroud
• Archibald D. Thompson b.1802 Norristown, PA m. Elizabeth Bryan.
• Walter McClellan Thompson b.1843 Norristown, PA m. Huldah Ann Makens
• Walter Linwood Thompson b. 1879 Phoenixville, C, PA m. Annie H. Edwards
• Willis R. Thompson b. 1923 in Pittsburg, A, PA m. Beverly Wardlow
• Linwood C. Thompson (historydude@hotmail.com DNA test 159795) m. Malia Bray