The American History of our branch of the Tomlinsons begins when Calvin Cooper Tomlinson of Northhampton, England and his wife Elizabeth Hessling Tomlinson, who was born in Germany, settled into South Carolina where in 1808 John L. Tomlinson was born. John L. came to Hayneville, Lowndes County, Alabama, about 1833, married Malinda Bond and they had several children. John died in 1859. His son Carney Cotton married Elizabeth McDaniel in 1858 and he went off to the Civil War. He was wounded around the eyes and by 1900 was almost blind for which he received a Civil War pension. Carney left Alabama before 1870 and was in Mississippi until 1875 where two or three more children were born and then came on to Mason County Texas. William Bond Tomlinson, who was born in 1865 to Carney and Elizaabeth back in Alabama, married Sarah Berry in Mason County Texas on July 7 1887. Carney and son William Bond moved on to Brown County where William Bond settled down and eight of his children were born there. Carney and Elizabeth moved on to San Saba by 1876 where Edgar Andy was born in the McMillin Community. Eventually most of these Tomlinsons settled into the China Creek where some were still farming into the 1950s. In fact there are a couple of Tomlinson families still living in China Creek today. Carney's wife Elizabeth died there in 1912 and Carney himself died in San Saba on October 4, 1942.
William Bond and Sarah Tomlinson had ten children, the oldest of which was John Franklin Tomlinson, born April 9, 1888 in Mason County. Martha Pearly, their second child was also born in Mason County. John moved with his father William to Brown County about 1890 where the remaining eight children were born. Dollie Beatrice was the last child and was born in Brown County on July 4, 1910.
At some point in time John Franklin left his father's farm in Brown County and began working on one of the Tomlinson farms in the China Creek Community. Edgar Andy, younger brother of William Bond was farming in the China Creek area about this time along with other Tomlinson families.
John and Ethel Tomlinson - Christmas 1951
It was in China Creek that John Franklin became acquainted with the Young and Roxie Pierce family and their daughter Cora Ethel. Young and Roxie had moved their family of four children from Sugar Loaf in Coryell County in 1892. Ethel was four years old at the time and Lewis two when they were packed in a wagon bound for San Saba where they leased a farm that was irrigated with water from the San Saba River. It wasn't very long until John began courting Ethel and on July 3 1907 they were married. They were both 19 years old at the time of their marriage as their birth dates in mid April 1888 were only 12 days apart.
To Be Continued
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