Tompson History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms
The roots of the distinguished surname Tompson can be found in Scotland. The name is derived from the popular given name Thomas, an Aramaic name meaning "twin," and refers to "a son of Thomas or Thom." 1 The spelling of the name with a "p" distinguishes the family from the Thomsons, who were a Scottish Clan originally known as MacThomais.
Early Origins of the Tompson family
The surname Tompson was first found in Cumberland, where the Tompson family held a family seat from ancient times. However, some of the family were found at Shotton in Durham. "The family of Thompson held property here, chiefly by copy of court-roll, at least as early as the reign of Elizabeth; and from them the estate came by marriage, in the middle of the last century, to the Brandlings." 2
"This name is distributed over the greater part of England, but is rare or absent in the south (south of a line joining London and Bristol). Its great home is in the north, in the region north of a line connecting the Humber with Morecambe Bay, and Northumberland in particular is pre-eminent for the number of its Thompsons. It extends in force in its Scottish form of Thomson across the border into Dumfriesshire, Roxburghshire, and is very numerous over a large part of Scotland, but particularly in the region south of the Forth and the Clyde. As we trace it southward from its northern home, we find its numbers rapidly diminishing. It is, however, well represented in the midlands. Further south, again, as above remarked, it becomes rare or dies out altogether." 3
Early History of the Tompson family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Tompson research. Another 133 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1614, 1625, 1639, 1659, 1661, 1663, 1668, 1673, 1679, 1681, 1683, 1689, 1690, 1693, 1695, 1698, 1700, 1701 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Tompson History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Tompson Spelling Variations
Spelling variations of this family name include: Tompson, Thompson and others.
Early Notables of the Tompson family
Notable amongst the family at this time was
- Richard Tompson (d. 1693?), was an English printseller who carried on business in London during the reign of Charles II, and was associated with Alexander Browne. 4
Tompson Ranking
In the United States, the name Tompson is the 15,320th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 5
Migration of the Tompson family to Ireland
Some of the Tompson family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 94 words (7 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Tompson migration to the United States +
Some of the first settlers of this family name were:
Tompson Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
- Nicholas Tompson, who arrived in Virginia in 1621 aboard the ship "George" 6
- George Tompson, aged 17, who landed in Virginia in 1623 aboard the ship "George" 7
- Paule Tompson, aged 14, who landed in Virginia in 1623 aboard the ship "George" 7
- Rich Tompson, who landed in Virginia in 1637 6
- Samuel Tompson, who arrived in Braintree, Massachusetts in 1637 6
- ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Tompson Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
- Patrick Tompson, who landed in Virginia in 1706 6
- Cornelius Tompson, who arrived in New Jersey in 1723 6
- John Tompson, who landed in America in 1760-1763 6
- William Tompson, who arrived in Mississippi in 1798 6
Tompson Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
- Michael Tompson, who arrived in Maryland in 1820 6
Tompson migration to Canada +
Some of the first settlers of this family name were:
Tompson Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
- Daniel Tompson, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1750
- James Tompson, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1750
Tompson migration to Australia +
Emigration to
Australia followed the
First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:
Tompson Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
- Mr. Charles Tompson, (Thompson), (b. 1784), aged 19, English gentleman who was convicted in Warwick, Warwickshire, England for 7 years for stealing, transported aboard the "Coromandel" on 4th December 1803, arriving in New South Wales, Australia, he died in 1871 8
- Mr. William Tompson, English convict who was convicted in Leicester, Leicestershire, England for 14 years, transported aboard the "Caledonia" in 19th June 1822, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 9
- Mr. Mesheck Tompson, British Convict who was convicted in Norwich, Norfolk, England for 10 years, transported aboard the "Asiatic" on 26th May 1843, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land) 10
Contemporary Notables of the name Tompson (post 1700) +
- Ruthie Tompson (1910-2021), American animator for Walt Disney, known for her work on Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937), Sleeping Beauty (1959), Mary Poppins (1964), The Aristocrats (1970) and many more
- Frederick Augustus Tompson (1857-1919), American architect from Portland, Maine, several of his works have been placed on the National Register of Historic Places
- Marian Leonard Tompson, American co-founder of La Leche League International, President of La Leche League for 24 years, from 1956 to 1980
- J. R. Tompson Jr., American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Georgia, 1944 11
- Tompson Mensah (b. 1954), former Togolese cyclist who competed in the individual road race at the 1972 Summer Olympics
The Tompson Motto +
The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.
Motto: Nosce teipsum
Motto Translation: Know thyself.
Citations +
- Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
- Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
- Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
- Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
- "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
- Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
- Pilgrim Ship's of 1600's Retrieved January 6th 2023, retrieved from https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/shiplist.htm
- Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 22nd March 2021). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/coromandel-and-experiment
- Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 30th November 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/caledonia
- Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 14th July 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/asiatic
- The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 21) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html