More Jasper Genealogy
By John Harvey
This week we trace the fifth and last family researched by Mrs. Elizabeth McPherson. The five families were among the early families coming into the area when it first opened to settlement. The families were also connected through marriage. They were the Harvey's, Reid's, Gaston's, Simon's and Tomlinson's
Tomlinson
Tomlinsons are found among the earliest settlers in America. This widely scattered family came from many points in Europe, principally, England. Among the early evidence of their presence are the tombstones in Trinity churchyard in New York City, as conspicuous land owners in the Great Lakes, and in the area around Tate Springs, Tennessee, which once belonged to the family. The name appears prominently in records of Pennsylvania, North and South Carolina.
Four Tomlinson men were known to have drawn land in Jasper, Putnam and Morgan Counties. All were said to have been Revolutionary War veterans. They were: Humphrey Tomlinson, John Tomlinson of Pennsylvania and South Carolina, Nathaniel Tomlinson of Virginia and Nathaniel Tomlinson of Pennsylvania and South Carolina. Nathaniel Tomlinson of Virginia is listed in Revolutionary records as an officer while Nathaniel of North Carolina is listed as a private.
Aaron Tomlinson of Washington County, Georgia, drew land in the lottery of 1827. Elizabeth Tomlinson, widow of Nathaniel Tomlinson of Virginia, in her will left land in Putnam and Jasper Counties to her children, Lucas Tomlinson, Mary Vincent and Jane Powell and to her granddaughter, Jane Vincent. Humphrey Tomlinson of Putnam County was executor of the will of Humphrey Reid in Wilkes County. He later established his home in Jefferson County where he died.
The original Tomlinson homestead was said to have been near Staffordsville in Putnam County on the Putnam-Jasper County Line. This area is located along Cedar Creek and Georgia Highway 212 East.
Humphrey Tomlinson, mentioned above, married first Lucy Callaway of Wilkes County and second Amanda Tomason of Jasper County. He was a trustee of the McDonough Collegiate Institute. Descendants of Humphrey Tomlinson were found in recent years in Carroll and Jefferson Counties.
Susannah Tomlinson, a small dark haired woman, daughter of a Pennsylvania Quaker family, married Author Fort, born in North Carolina, who served in the Revolution as a soldier from Burke County, Georgia. They moved to Baldwin County when it was created. Their son, Tomlinson Fort, born July 14, 1787, became a famous Georgia physician.
In the fall of 1750, a group of Quakers from Ireland, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina settled on the Santee and Wateree rivers near Camden, S.C., at a place called Pinetree Hill. Among the settlers were Nathaniel, John, William and Josiah Tomlinson. Nathaniel and John are believed to have been father and son. A loss of records made it impossible to research Nathaniel before 1750. In 1807, both Nathaniel and John Tomlinson drew land in the area of Baldwin County that became Putnam and Jasper Counties.
Nathaniel and John Tomlinson are believed to have come to Baldwin County about the time it was created by the legislature. This supposition is based on Nathaniel's will, dated in 1818. John Tomlinson, born in 1739, the only son of Nathaniel Tomlinson, was a Revolutionary War soldier. He married first a Miss Anderson, of South Carolina. Their children were Nathaniel, Elizabeth, Sarah (who married Zephaniah Harvey), two children who died in infancy, and John, Jr. John Tomlinson married second, Sallie Harvey, daughter of Zephaniah.
Additional Comments:
Transcribed by Suzanne Forte (suzanneforte@bellsouth.net)
April 2005, from copies of articles contained in the Monticello News. There articles were prepared by Mr.
John Harvey and published in this newspaper during the 1970's and 1980's time frame.
Some were under the title "Jasper Reflections", others
"Bicentennial Bits".
Permission has been granted by Mr. Harvey for use of these very valuable and informative articles.
Copies of articles provided by Benny Hawthorne.