John Lewis Tomlinson & Deborah Bassett (Grandparents of Lucy)

by Catherine Sevenau on May 22, 2011

(Capt.) John Lewis Tomlinson

  • 9th child of John Tomlinson & Elizabeth Wooster
  • Born Sep 23, 1725, Derby, New Haven, Connecticut
  • Died: Nov 18, 1817 (age 92), Derby, New Haven, Connecticut
  • Buried: Derby Colonial Cemetery (aka: Old Derby Uptown Burying Ground) in Derby, New Haven, Connecticut
  • Married: Apr 28, 1748, Deborah Bassett, Derby, New Haven, Connecticut
  • Six children: Damoris Tomlinson, Phebe Tomlinson, LEVI TOMLINSON, Luthene/Luthenia Tomlinson, John Lewis Tomlinson, Jr., Daniel Tomlinson

Deborah Bassett

  • Daughter of Capt. Samuel Bassett, Sr. & Deborah Bennett
  • Born: Mar 22, 1726, Derby, New Haven, Connecticut
  • Died: Sep 29, 1796 (age 70), Derby, New Haven, Connecticut
  • Buried: Derby Colonial Cemetery (aka: Old Derby Uptown Burying Ground) in Derby, New Haven, Connecticut
  • Married: Apr 28, 1748, John Lewis Tomlinson, Derby, New Haven, Connecticut
  • Six children: Damoris Tomlinson, Phebe Tomlinson, LEVI TOMLINSON, Luthene/Luthenia Tomlinson, John Lewis Tomlinson, Jr., Daniel Tomlinson

1. Damoris/Damaris Tomlinson (female)

  • Born: May 11, 1749, Derby, New Haven, Connecticut
  • Died: Dec 28, 1825 (age 76), Derby, New Haven, Connecticut
  • Buried: Derby Colonial Cemetery (aka: Old Derby Uptown Burying Ground) in Derby, New Haven, Connecticut

2. Phebe Tomlinson

  • Born: Sep 23, 1750, Derby, New Haven, Connecticut
  • Died: unkn
  • Buried: unkn

3. LEVI TOMLINSON

  • Born: Feb 15, 1752, Stratford, Fairfield County, Connecticut
  • Died: Mar 4, 1831 (age 79), Burton, Geauga County, Ohio
  • Buried: Pleasant Hill Cemetery in Burton, Geauga County, Ohio
  • Military: Revolutionary War
  • Married: Dec 29, 1774, AMELIA BEARD, Derby, New Haven, Connecticut
  • Twelve children: Betty “Betsy” Tomlinson, Amelia Tomlinson(#1), Ruth Tomlinson, Deborah Tomlinson, LUCY TOMLINSON, Phebe Tomlinson(#1), Urania Tomlinson, Levi Tomlinson, Jr., Amelia Tomlinson(#2), Alice Tomlinson, Phebe Tomlinson(#2), Elizabeth “Eliza” Tomlinson

4. Luthene/Luthenia Tomlinson

  • Born: Jan 27, 1755, Derby, New Haven, Connecticut

5. (Rev.) John Lewis Tomlinson, II

  • Born: Jan 24, 1757, Derby, New Haven, Connecticut
  • Died: 1829 (age 72), West, Connecticut
  • Buried: unkn
  • Military: War of 1812, Lieut.
  • Occupation: Minister, Presbyterian Church
  • Married: Sarah ___
  • Eight children: Luthenia Tomlinson, John Lewis Tomlinson, III, Samuel Tomlinson, Sarah Tomlinson, Lewis Tomlinson, Levi Tomlinson, Betsey Tomlinson, Laura Tomlinson

6. (Rev.) Daniel Tomlinson

    • Born: May 20, 1759, Derby, New Haven, Connecticut
    • Died: Oct 29, 1842 (age 83), Oakham, Worcester County, Massachusetts
    • Buried: Oakham Center Cemetery, Oakham, Worcester County, Massachusetts
    • Married (1): Rhoda Deborah Bassett
    • Married (2): Nov 23, 1786, Lucy Beard, Oakham, Worcester County, Massachusetts
    • Two known children: Daniel Tomlinson, Fabian Tomlinson

Capt. John Tomlinson

SIXTH REPORT

of the

NATIONAL SOCIETY

of the

DAUGHTERS OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION,

OCTOBER 11, 1902 – OCTOBER 11, 1903

“Home and Country”

Approved by the National Board of Management

WASHINGTON

GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

1904

Capt. John Tomlinson. Revolutionary patriot, born in Derby, Conn., September 23, 1725; died November 18, 1817. Located in Colonial Cemetery, Derby, Conn. assisted in establishing American independence while acting in the capacity of patriot and committee. September 16, 1777, he accepted the oath of fidelity. (History of Derby, p. 186.) On December 8, 1777, was one of the committee to provide clothing for soldiers. (History of Seymour, p. 46.) March 1780, was committee to class, for filling the state’s quota for the Continental Army. (History of Seymour, p. 48.’ March 1780, was inspector of provisions to be forwarded to the army. (History of Derby, p. 184.) At the time of Tryon’s raid of Connecticut towns, Capt. John Tomlinson, who lived at Derby Neck with wife, Deborah, daughter of Samuel Bassett, was in New Haven, and learning Tryon’s intention to capture the military supplies awaiting transportation at Derby, mounted his horse and spurred him over the hills, warning those having stores in charge. Through his foresight they were hidden in Pork Hollow before Tryon’s men came in sight, and thus the supplies were saved for our soldiers. (History of Derby, p 1812).
Note: page 400

Deborah Tomlinson headstone reads:
In Memory of
M’ DEBORAH TOMLINSON
Comfort of
Capt JOHN TOMLINSON
And Daughter of
SAMUEL BASSETT Esq
Who departed this Life
Sep 29th, 1796
In the 71st Year of her Age
She liv’d beloved and died lamented
to all her acquaintance.

John Lewis Tomlinson headstone reads:
In
In Memory of
CAPT. JOHN TOMLINSON
Who died
Nov 18, 1817
Aged 92 years

*Deborah (Bassett) Tomlinson has both a headstone and footstone, as does husband Capt. John Lewis Tomlinson.

In the colonial period, gravestones were often sold in pairs, a headstone and a footstone. With time most of the footstones have disappeared. Most had simple initials, but some bore full names with carved angels, tympanums and borders.

Many of the stone carvers from the Derby area used the chocolate-colored sandstone quarried in Portland, their signature beagle-eared cherubs adorning the tops.

In Memory of
SAMUEL BASSETT Esq.
A man long employed
in civel & military Offices
Which he discharged with
great fidelity, and having
served his Generation by ye
Will of God fell on Sleep
Sep 15, AD 1764
(remainder is below soil line)

Headstone & footstone for Samuel Bassett,
father of Deborah (Bassett) Tomlinson
Hi Catherine,
I took photographs of Lucy Tomlinson Chatfield’s paternal grandparents – John and Deborah (Bassett) Tomlinson’s gravestones in the Derby Colonial Cemetery in 2007, and also one of Deborah’s father – Samuel Basset’s stone in the same cemetery.
Steve Smith

Catherine and Steve,
Samuel Bassett headstone and footstone are by David Miller of Middlefield (he worked out of North Haven for a time as his mother’s family was from there).
Ruthie Brown, CGN

Olde Uptown Burial Ground/Old Derby Uptown Burying Ground
Aka: Derby Colonial Cemetery, Derby, New Haven County, ConnecticutThe Olde Uptown Burial Ground is reputedly the oldest public burial ground in the United States. Most early burial grounds were associated with church organizations, but Derby was one of—if not the first—community to create a public burial ground. The oldest stone remaining is dated 1687, with a period of 241 years between the first and last stone placed.

Stone Carvers

Obadiah Wheeler (1673-c.1749)

The finest craftsman of the early inland rural carvers of eastern Connecticut lived in Lebanon. His early stones somewhat resemble those of John Hartshorne. They have a series of elaborate curls beside the face rather than wings and usually some form of diamond or triangle border design. Later Wheeler stones have several different styles of wings which are sometimes very elaborate. Wheeler faces are characterized by slender, aristocratic noses, almond eyes, and a small smiling or frowning mouth. In later stones the eyes are closed or squinting.

Some of his most elaborate stones have faces in strong relief; finials are usually six- or eight-rayed rosettes. There is usually a horizontal row of designs below the face and above the legend consisting of a central heart or triangle and lateral stemmed rosettes and circles. Wheeler footstones are very distinctive, many of them large ellipses and others great circles with large six-rayed rosettes within. Wheeler is often considered the greatest of all eastern Connecticut carvers.
Source: Connecticut Gravestone Network, 2007; http://www.ctgravestones.com/index.html