John Thompson, Captain
  b: ~1632 - England
  d: 2/Jun/1707 - New Haven, New Haven Co., CT

Father: Anthony Thompson
Mother: *****

Spouse-1: Anne Vicars or Vicaris
  m: 4/Aug/1656 - Boston, MA

Child-1: John - b: 12/May/1657 - New Haven Col.
                        d: 15/May/1711 - New Haven, New Haven Co., CT
                       m: Rebecca Daniel - 9/May/1687 - New Haven, New Haven Co., CT
          2: Anne - b: 1659 - New Haven Col.
                         d: 15/Jan/1691(1692) - New Haven, New Haven Co., CT
                        m: Caleb Chidsey - 10/May/1688 - East Haven, New Haven Co., CT
          3: Joseph - b: 8/Apr/1664 - New Haven Twp., Conn. Col.
                           d: 14/Dec/1711 - New Haven, New Haven Co., CT
                          m: Elizabeth Smith - 2/Feb/1696(1697)
          4: (unnamed child) - b: 9/Sep/1667 - New Haven, New Haven Co., CT
          5: Samuel
          6: Sarah - b: 16/Jan/1671(1672) - New Haven, New Haven Co., CT
                          d: 21/Nov/1711
                         m: John Mix - 25/Nov/1702
          7: William - b: 17/Jan/1673(1674) - New Haven, New Haven Co., CT
                            d: 13/Mar/1716(1717) - New Haven, New Haven Co., CT
                           m: Hannah Glover - m: Martha ***** - ~1707
          8: Mary - b: 16/May/1675 - New Haven, New Haven Co., CT

Spouse-2: Hellena *****
  d: 8/Apr/1690 - New Haven, New Haven Co., CT

Biographical Details:

Circumstantial evidence indicates that John Thompson, son of the immigrant, Anthony Thompson, was born in England about 1632.  The name of his mother is not known.  As a child in 1638, he apparently settled with his family in the newly founded colony of New Haven.  With the death of his father in the fall of 1648, he became an orphan at about the age of sixteen; however, it seems that he and his siblings were supported by his stepmother and her second husband.  There is documentary evidence that John Thompson was married by Governor Endicott to Anne Vicars or Vicaris at Boston on August 4, 1656.  This is, at least, partially supported by the work of Savage.1  However, he identifies Ann Vicaris as the wife of John Thompson, brother Anthony Thompson, not his son.  Moreover, Savage further identifies Ellen Harrison as the sister-in-law of Anthony Thompson, wife of his brother John.  Accordingly, upon close inspection it is clear that the corresponding chronology implies that the older John would have had to have been married to both Ellen Harrison and Ann Vicaris simultaneously.  Since, polygamy was not an acceptable practice in the Puritan community, this would seem to be a clear indication of error.2  Furthermore, Savage indicates that John and Ellen Harrison Thompson had only daughters, which is consistent with later probate records, which affirm that Ellen Harrison was, indeed, the true wife of the older John Thompson.  Therefore, it seems reasonable to presume that Anne Vicars was the wife of the younger John Thompson, nephew of the older.  In addition, the marriage date stated for John Thompson and Anne Vicars is quite consistent with the birth of a son, John, on May 12, 1657.  Alternatively, Hellena, whose maiden name is unknown, has been indicated by some authorities as the wife of John, son of Anthony Thompson.3,4  Moreover, it has been suggested that Hellena may have been his second wife, which would, thus, remove any inconsistency.5  In any case, it appears that John Thompson resided at New Haven throughout his life and, as asserted by Cutter, was a seafaring man.  Indeed, he has been called "Captain", "Skipper", or "the Mariner" in many later accounts; however, although probable, it is not clear if any of these designations were applied to him during his lifetime. (Perhaps, his identification as a seafarer explains the location of his marriage at Boston rather than New Haven, since travel by land was very slow and difficult in seventeenth century New England.)  Within this context, Dodd's East Haven Register states that John Thompson subscribed to the Colony Constitution on February 7, 1657.  (However, it seems that Dodd thought that this was John Thompson, Jr., of East Haven, perhaps, a cousin, but it would seem more likely from the chronology that this was instead Captain John.)  He was a proprietor of the colony in 1685 and seven children have been attributed to him.  Of these, John, Joseph, Samuel, and Sarah seem reasonably certain; however, some difficulties are associated with the remaining three.  In particular, the birth years and birth dates of the two daughters, Anne and Mary, are quite uncertain with  1659, 1667, and 1669 given for Anne and September 9, 1667, and May 16, 1678, given for Mary.  Moreover, there seems to be no indication that Mary ever married, which probably means that she died as a child.  In addition, the birth of the son, William, is variously stated to have occurred either about 1660 or on January 17, 1673 (1674 N. S.).  Similarly, two different wives have been attributed to William, which although not necessarily impossible or inconsistent, it is likely that information for two individuals has been conflated.6

It appears that Captain John Thompson's wife, Hellena, died April 8, 1690, presumably in New Haven.  Captain John apparently survived into his seventies and died June 2, 1707.  As is made evident by Savage's work, "John Thompson" was not an uncommon name in colonial Connecticut, which may account for the many errors and conflations found in pedigrees of the Thompson family.  Indeed, both John Thompson of Stratford and "farmer" John Thompson of East Haven often seem to have been confused with Captain John Thompson.  (This is particularly troublesome in the case of  LDS records.7)  Of these, the Stratford Thompson family is probably unrelated to the New Haven Thompson family.  However, Savage indicates that farmer John Thompson was likely the son of a John Thompson who had brought several children as well as probably his wife with him from England and who had settled in New Haven about 1639.  Even so, it is evident from these details that this John cannot be the same as John, brother of Anthony.  Identification of these individuals becomes further confused because both immigrants are commonly thought to have settled at East Haven.  Nevertheless, these circumstances suggest that it is quite plausible that these two John Thompsons were relatives, perhaps, first cousins.  Of course, such a presumption is by no means proven, but it is consistent with settlement patterns of early New England.

Source Notes and Citations:
1. James Savage, A Genealogical Dictionary of the First Settlers of New England - Vols. 1-4, Little, Brown and Co., Boston, MA, 1860-1862: Vol. 4, pgs. 285-7.  (Reprint available from Genealogical Publishing Co., 1001 N. Calvert St., Baltimore, MD, 21202-3897)
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2. Elizabeth M. Leach Rixford, Three Hundred Colonial Ancestors and War Service, pub. by The Tuttle Co., Rutland, VT, 1934: pgs. 304-5.
      "John Thompson, son of Anthony, was born in England, in 1632; and died June 2, 1707.  He was called 'mariner' and is mentioned frequently in deeds, etc., owning land in New Haven.  He married Anne Vicars, Aug. 4, 1656.  He was one of the Proprietors of New Haven.  (Hist. of New Haven, p. 153.)  (See Vicars.)  (John Thompson, No. 22, 'Elizabeth and Ann,' p. 153.  See Drake Founders, p. 84.)
      John2 Thompson (Anthony1) called 'Mariner,' has usually been assigned a wife Ellen or Hellena ( 'cf. History of Goshen, and Genealogical History of Connecticut, 1911, p. 1000').  This is an error, and the only wife of John who appears on record was Anne Vicars, or Vicaris.  On 25 Feb. 1657, John Tompson entered and action against the estate of John Roberts, part of which was then in the hands of Mr. Wakeman, on the ground that there had been a treaty of marriage betwixt the said John Roberts and Ann Vicars (now wife to the said John Tompson), and that her former betrothed had by word of mouth left his estate to Ann (Hoadley, Records of the Jurisdiction of New Haven, Vol. II, p. 198'.)  It should be noted that John Wakeman's wife, Elizabeth Hopkins, had a first cousin Ann, daughter of Walter Vicaris (see the will of William Hopkins of Bewdley, Worcestershire, given in the 'Wakeman Genealogy,' p. 30.)  John Thompson died 2 June 1707, and the inventory of Mr. John Thompson, Marriner, late decd,' was presented 28 Oct. 1707  (New Haven Probate Records, Vol. III, p. 116)  In the absence of any distribution of the estate, it is difficult to place his daughters with certainty.  Most of his land ahd been deeded in the later years of his life to his sons, John, Joseph, Samuel, and William  (New Haven Deeds, Vols. II and III)  There is no difficulty in identifying the first three, but there seems to have been considerable misapprehension as to the identity of William. ... There is no proof that Ann Vicars was mother of all the children, but no other wife has been found."
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3. Cuyler Reynolds (ed.), Hudson-Mohawk Genealogical and Family Memoirs - Vol. I, Lewis Historical Publishing Company, New York, NY, 1911: pgs. 94-100.
      "(II) John, eldest son of Anthony Thompson, was born in England in 1632.  He is called Skipper John Thompson and John Thompson, the 'Mariner.'  This to distinguish him from 'farmer' John Thompson.  He was a seafaring man and a resident of New Haven.  He married Hellena -----------, who died April 8, 1690.  Captain John survived her until June 2, 1707.  Children:

1. John, born May 12, 1657; was called Lieutenant John; married Rebecca Daniel; children:
1. Anna, married Thomas Ives;
2. Daniel, married Mary Ball;
3. Rebecca, married Caleb Mix;
4. Elizabeth, married John Bassett;
5. John;
6. Anthony.
2. William, born 1660, married Hannah Glover; children: James; Abigail; Mary, married John Hitchcock, Josiah and Benjamin.
3. Joseph, born April 8, 1664; married Elizabeth Smith; children: Anna, Joseph and Ebenezer.
4. Samuel, see forward."
As noted elsewhere, the mother of these children was probably Anne Vicars.  It is plausible that Hellena was Captain John's second wife, although this by no means certain..  (Schenectady Digital History Archive, www.schenectadyhistory.org/families/hmgfm/thompson-1.html, 2003.)
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4.a. William Richard Cutter, Genealogical and Family History of Western New York - Vols. 1-3, Lewis Historical Publishing Company, New York, NY, 1912: Vol. 1, pg. 296.
      This account of the early Thompson family is identical to that given above by Reynolds and must have come from the same earlier source.

b. ibid.: Vol. 2, pg. 575.
      "John, son of Anthony, seems to have been a sea captain."
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5. "Jared Sidney Torrance, in his history of the descendants of Lewis Hart, states that John's wife was named 'Hellena' according to records of Goshen, CT, and suggests that she may have been a second wife.  He also states that she is supposed to have died 8 April 1690.  It is certainly possible that he married twice."
      "John was designated 'Mariner' in the family history written by William Baker Thompson in 1911.  They resided at New Haven, CT."
      "At his death, his estate was inventoried at nine pounds, eight shillings, sixpence.  He served as Selectman of New Haven in 1688."
      "According to the Will of his brother Anthony, written 26 Dec 1654, he received Anthony's land."  (Keith Thompson, "Thompson ka.ged", www.gencircles.com/users/katman01/1/data/7002, 2003.)
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6. "There is conflicting information on this William. 'Families of Ancient New Haven', p. 1749 & 1757 gives his birth date as 17 Jan 1674, and his wife's name as 'Martha'.  They also show him with the following family:
      1] Caleb, b 15 Sept 1708; m. Rebecca Hickox 16 Aug 1731 - settled at Waterbury & Harwinton, CT
      2] Martha, b Feb 1710, d 22 Dec 1769; m. Stephen Austin 19 April 1732
      3] Abraham, b June 1711, d 2 Sept 1774; m. Mary Alling 9 Nov 1732
      4] Sarah, b 1 Oct 1717, d 24 Dec 1780; m. Matthew Gilbert 12 June 1755"  (Keith Thompson, "Thompson ka.ged", www.gencircles.com/users/katman01/1/data/7011, 2003.)
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7. Ancestral File: 8W4G-2S & 4JF2-G8, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Salt Lake City, UT, continuously updated.
      These two ancestral files are both for John Thompson; however, they appear to be conflations and, as such, mix genealogical details of Captain John Thompson with those of John Thompson, Sr., John Thompson of Stratford, and perhaps other individuals as well.  In this confused state, the information is essentially useless.
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Additional Citations:

8. Stephen Dodd, The East-Haven Register, T. G. Woodward and Co., print., A.H. Maltby, distrib., New Haven, CT, 1824: pg. 11 & 154.

9. Donald Lines Jacobus, Families of Ancient New Haven - Vols. 1-9, Printed by Clarence D. Smith, Rome, NY, 1923 & 1929;  also appeared as "New Haven Genealogical Magazine", Vols. I-VIII, 1922-1932.  (Reprint available from Genealogical Publishing Co., 1001 N. Calvert St., Baltimore, MD, 21202-3897)

10. Jared Sidney Torrance, The Descendants of Lewis Hart and Anne Elliott, privately published, Los Angeles, CA, 1923.

11. William Baker Thompson, Thompson Lineage with Mention of Allied Families, Telegraph Printing Co., Harrisburg, PA, 1911.

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