Author Topic: Hello other children of Tom.  (Read 16447 times)

uneven

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Hello other children of Tom.
« on: November 28, 2010, 09:49:57 AM »
I'm from Michigan. I always went to scotchtober fest for my wife who's a Sutherland. Attempted to figure out where my Thompsons are from (needle in a needle stack) and although I'm stuck in the 1830s, most of the other Thompsons living around them are Ulster Irish from Pennsylvania and North and South Carolina. The odds are in favor of being an Ulster Scot, so this year I went to our local Scottish Festival in Kalamazoo for myself.

I tried out DNA with ancestry.com to see if I could get through my genealogy roadblock and find some Thom(p)son who knows more than me. No Thom(p)sons on my list. Tried out ysearch, ybase, genetree, and genebase.  I don't match another Thom(p)son in about 1000 years.

In true Thompson fashion though, I've decided everyone is lost but me.

So i've got a blog where people can watch me flail around attempting to make sense out of anything and I've posted my family tree in one form or another anywhere I can think of.
Mike Thompson from Michigan..then Indiana..then Pennsylvania and further...probably somewhere there are sheep. Call me Legion for I am many.

Sis Thompson's oldest

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Re: Hello other children of Tom.
« Reply #1 on: November 28, 2010, 03:04:06 PM »
Welcome Mike,

I too am from Michigan by way of Indiana, North and South Carolina, and a bit of New Jersey (way back, gotta land somewhere right?) thrown in just for good measure. I've made it back to 1777 and my 4th Great Grandfather. I've wandered back to North Carolina (10 years here now) and there are Thoms everywhere down here!

Glad you joined us! We have a good time on the forum! Post away my man!

Cheers,
Sherry
The bad news? There is no key to the universe. The good news? It was never locked.

uneven

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Re: Hello other children of Tom.
« Reply #2 on: November 28, 2010, 08:44:06 PM »
Hi Sherry, where at in Indiana? We're Alexandria Thompsons for quite a few generations.

Thanks for the warm welcome.

Genetically, I have a lot of nearish matches from North and South Carolina, not Thompsons but lots of other good Scots Irish and borders names. I see that area as a prime suspect for my own family's infiltration of the colonies.
Mike Thompson from Michigan..then Indiana..then Pennsylvania and further...probably somewhere there are sheep. Call me Legion for I am many.

Mary

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Re: Hello other children of Tom.
« Reply #3 on: November 29, 2010, 09:33:48 AM »
Hi Mike ---

Where is your blog??? 

I posted under your genealogy post....but I'll welcome you here, too!  :D

uneven

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Re: Hello other children of Tom.
« Reply #4 on: November 29, 2010, 03:52:04 PM »
Hi Mary,

Thanks for welcoming me.

My blog is at http://thompsonhunt.blogspot.com. It's basically me trying to collect my thoughts and leave a message in a bottle for other Thompsons that may be in my family. Mostly I'm trying to make sense of all the differing research, clues and leads I come across.

Most of the time I have more questions than answers.
Mike Thompson from Michigan..then Indiana..then Pennsylvania and further...probably somewhere there are sheep. Call me Legion for I am many.

uneven

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Re: Hello other children of Tom.
« Reply #5 on: November 30, 2010, 10:16:34 PM »
I've been tooling around a bit. I remember reading somewhere that forum membership is separate from society membership. What is entailed in society membership and what are the dues?

mike
Mike Thompson from Michigan..then Indiana..then Pennsylvania and further...probably somewhere there are sheep. Call me Legion for I am many.

Thomas Thompson

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Re: Hello other children of Tom.
« Reply #6 on: December 04, 2010, 11:56:24 AM »
Good question Mike.

   We debated about having a dual type membership. It is my position that we must have a method of providing for all divergent Thom's needs. I felt the free forum and general membership would stir interest and provide a service to any and all Thom's. Further I thought that, over time, most of the nonsupporting members would become supporting members by joining Clan Thompson Society.
   In the beginning we, as every nonprofit organization, needed a source of income. We started by forming a nonprofit Corporation. "Clan Thompson International, Inc. and established Clan Thompson Society as the business name. The parent Corporation pays for the web site (forum), tent equipment,
and some of the games fees. Thankfully some of our members have assumed the costs of game fees at various events around the nation. Without their generous donations we would not be able to have a presence at many of the games. We also publish a Quarterly newsletter. We voted to use the internet for the newsletter to hold postage costs down. Additionally the Supporting membership dues pay for the Licence and State corporation fees and liability insurance for the tents at the various games. The supporting members attend a general membership meeting once a year and have the duty to vote ( those unable to attend vote by mail) and serve as Directors, Officers, approve of the budget, changes to Articles of Corporation, bylaws and location of the next AGM as well as any other items they feel important.The membership dues also go into an account to pay for the Lyon Court fees for formal recognition. With the current exchange rate I am planning on a cost of about $6,000.00 for the Petition. We are in the final draft version of the Petition and hope to iron out the final sticking points soon. I plan on posting the complete Petition on the members only topic section after Lyon receives it and has had time to ask for more information or has commented on it. The delay of posting is because I don't want to do anything to jeopardize our position.
   You will find a hot link on the home page to a membership application form and a credit card (paypal) link for supporting membership.
Thanks of the question and I hope I have answered your questions.
Tom

uneven

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Re: Hello other children of Tom.
« Reply #7 on: December 04, 2010, 01:21:52 PM »
Thanks Tom. You've answered all my questions.
Mike Thompson from Michigan..then Indiana..then Pennsylvania and further...probably somewhere there are sheep. Call me Legion for I am many.

Stirling Thompson

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Re: Hello other children of Tom.
« Reply #8 on: December 22, 2010, 09:24:41 AM »
Mike, a hearty welcome from the Thompsons of New England! Born in Maine currently living in exile in Massachusetts.
Stu
Semper Fidelis! Semper Familia!
Stu

uneven

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Re: Hello other children of Tom.
« Reply #9 on: December 22, 2010, 09:14:26 PM »
Thanks Stu. It's good to meet you.
Mike Thompson from Michigan..then Indiana..then Pennsylvania and further...probably somewhere there are sheep. Call me Legion for I am many.

Sis Thompson's oldest

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Re: Hello other children of Tom.
« Reply #10 on: December 29, 2010, 10:18:54 AM »
Mike,

The Holidays got in the way of reading posts and replying...........at least that's my story.

.....where at in Indiana? We're Alexandria Thompsons for quite a few generations.......

Most of my Thompsons are in the Lynn, Richmond, Winchester Indiana area. There is indication that my 4th great grandfather Robert W. Thompson (also spelled Thomson) was from North Carolina. He was born in 1777 and died 1848 at 70 yrs 3 months and 13 days. Or so it says on the grave stone in the Bethel Cemetery outside of Lynn. My cousin has 6 or 7 three ring binders full of information on our Thompson family. Pictures, birth certificates, civil war pay stubs,roll calls, land grants on and on.  Haven't found anything on R.W.'s parents though...we keep looking!

I have a family tree on Ancestry.com which is public, have a keek, see if you recognize anyone. It's the Marchand /Thompson tree. I've also posted a smaller version on the genealogy page of this forum.

Good luck and keep on posting!
Sherry
The bad news? There is no key to the universe. The good news? It was never locked.

uneven

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Re: Hello other children of Tom.
« Reply #11 on: December 30, 2010, 11:00:03 PM »
Thanks Sherry for that information. My Thompson sticking point is Levi Thompson. I'm interested in his children, but I've had a hard time tracking them. They have very common names. His youngest son Albert is mine but he has an older son James and four daughters, Mary, Emily, Rena Francis and Maddie.

James is terribly hard to track because his names is James. Once he leaves the family..I don't know how to tell him from any other James Thompson at Ancestry.com. Mary is also kind of a non starter. Mary is very common and I'm not sure if she married or whom. Emily was easier because her mom lived with her while she was married. I have some records later in the 1900s of Albert's mom living with another Daughter Rena in Anderson Indiana.

Ironically, Emily's husband last name Silcott is gone at the same time that Levi Thompson also goes missing in the 1880 census, although both women claim married in that census. It did make me wonder if something was going on at that point that would have both men gone. I think Levi may have died in the 1870s but I can't verify it.

I was in contact with the Madison historical society. They provided me with an Ancestry.com record of the Death of a Levi Thompson in 1894. His death is recorded in a different county I believe, which lead me to think that he wasn't my Levi Thompson.

I had to let my Ancestry.com account lapse for a bit, I'll probably pick it back up in the future and take a look at your tree. Maybe I'll try harder to find the Silcott man as well. Maybe he died too and there is some event associated with it. I could always try to order the record of the 1894 Levi Thompson death from the state but it seems like a waste of money if I'm not sure it's him.
Mike Thompson from Michigan..then Indiana..then Pennsylvania and further...probably somewhere there are sheep. Call me Legion for I am many.

Thomas Thompson

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Re: Hello other children of Tom.
« Reply #12 on: December 31, 2010, 11:59:32 AM »
Mike
  I suggest you not discount Levi's death in another county. In my research in Indiana I found my James Thompson died in Cicero IL. he had gone there to open a new jewelry store after selling his Remington IN store. The newspapers were my primary sources - verified by public/ deeds, Redman Lodge reports and his gravestone.
Tom

uneven

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Re: Hello other children of Tom.
« Reply #13 on: December 31, 2010, 12:28:09 PM »
That gives me some hope. I'd like to see him with an 1894 death record because I would be able to contact the county for the full record!

I've wondered if he and his son in law both disappeared from the 1880 census for a reason, but wasn't sure where to search next...Although I guess a search in that county would be worthwhile.

I'll have to check the paper they sent me because I can't remember which county it was right off hand.
Mike Thompson from Michigan..then Indiana..then Pennsylvania and further...probably somewhere there are sheep. Call me Legion for I am many.