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The Clan of Tomkyns

Thanks to the generosity of an anonymous donor, the Los Angeles Public Library has been able to digitize ten typescript volumes of The Clan of Tomkyns by Robert Angus Tompkins as well as four additional volumes by him which are called The Clan of Tomkyns, Descendants of Girls, all published by him in 1957.

These are in PDF format and are very largw.

Volume X is the index to the first three volumes and some of the fourth volume of The Clan of Tomkyns. Pagination throughout the set is as follows:
Volume I has pp. 1-200.
Volume II has pp. 201-399.
Volume III has pp. 400-600.
Volume IV has pp. 601-689 followed by Abrams MSS vol. I, pp. 1-73. There is an index for the Abrams MSS at the end of the volume.
Volume V is the beginning of the supplement and has pp. 1-208.
Volume VI has the supplement, pp. 209-320.
Volume VII has the supplement, pp. 321-444.
Volume VIII has the supplement, pp. 445-554c. There is a brief three page index at the end of the volume.
Volume IX has the supplement, pp. 555-678. Pp. 666-677 are an index to the supplement, volumes V-IX.

Volume III of The Clan of Tomkyns - Descendants of Girls has an extensive index at the end of the volume. Pagination throughout the set is as follows:
Volume I has pp. 1-135.
Volume II has pp. 136-270.
Volume III has pp. 271-400. The unpaged index starts after p. 400.
Volume IV has the supplement which is numbered pp. 401-550. There is a two page index for this volume after p. 550.

An earlier version of some of this data was compiled, printed, and published in 1942 under the title of "The Tomkins-Tompkins Genealogy" by Robert A. Tompkins and his wife Clare F. Tompkins. In some respects the ancestry set out in "The Clan of Tomkyns" differs from that in this earlier book, and clearly supersedes it.

Here are two critiques of some of the English portions of the ancestry in both works, written by Dr. Matthew Tompkins of the University of Leicester, United Kingdom, who has kindly granted the library permission to post his remarks here.

The first, entitled 'Robert A. Tompkins and the Cantilupe connection', written in April 2008, comments on the connection made in "The Clan of Tomkyns" between the earliest known Tompkins and the de Cantilupe family.

The second, entitled "The Tomkins-Tompkins Genealogy: some comments on pages 1-5", first published in February 1998 but revised in April 2008, comments on the very first parts of the earlier book. Dr. Tompkins points out that many of the errors in the English portion of the ancestry that caused him concern in the 1942 publication have been replicated in this 1957 work.

Robert A. Tompkins donated a copy of his 1942 work to the library of the Society of Genealogists in London. In it he added the following note:

"In printing this work, a page was erroneously omitted. This page was to explain that the early English data was only tentative. It gives the names of persons of such a time and/or place. which names we had encountered in English records we had seen, but with no proof as to their relationship. It was intended as a place where future research might look, and find corroboration or correction as to the facts.

ONLY insofar as it agrees with the visitations or other English records, is this tentative pedigree to be considered as factual.

Regarding the Thomas Tomkyns we have as number 12 on page 5, this was NOT the Thomas Tomkyns we have as Bishop of Hereford. The Thomas who was Bishop of Hereford, born in 1218, one generation earlier than our Thomas number 12 on page 5. Thomas, Bishop of Hereford was known in Catholic records as Thomas de Cantilupe, now known as St. Thomas of Hereford.

We would be glad to hear from anyone interested in our family name, giving any correction or addition to our data, as we expect to publish other and better books on the Tomkyns families. Thank you. [signed] Robert Angus Tompkins"

The 1942 book is found in the collections of many libraries including the Los Angeles Public Library. A digitized version of it is found on the HeritageQuest Online website which is available at many libraries.

 

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