TUMLINSON, JOHN JACKSON, SR. (1776-1823). John Jackson Tumlinson, first alcalde of Colorado District in Stephen F. Austin's first colony, was born in Lincoln County, North Carolina in 1776. With his wife, Elizabeth (Plemmons) Tumlinsonqv and five children, he left North Carolina for Tennessee. They moved on to Illinois and then to Arkansas, where they established a community called Tumlinson Township thirty-five miles south of the site of present Fort Smith. In 1821 they moved to Texas. Tumlinson chose the site of present Columbus on the Colorado River for his headright. Other colonists were settling here, and during the difficult times of Austin's first absence in Mexico City the community was organized according to Mexican process. Tumlinson was elected alcalde. Protection of the settlers from murder and theft by marauders was urgent. In 1823 he was en route to San Antonio to consult with the governor on this problem when he was slain by Indians. His companion, Mr. Newman, escaped. Tumlinson's body was never recovered. He and Elizabeth had two daughters and five sons, including John Jackson, Jr., Joseph, and Peter Tumlinson.
BIBLIOGRAPHY: Dan E. Kilgore, A Ranger Legacy: 150 Years of Service to Texas (Austin: Madrona, 1973). Samuel H. Tumlinson, Tumlinson, A Genealogy (Eagle Bay, British Columbia, 198?).
