Thomas Atkinson
Pre-Campaign
Born: 6 Sep. 1810, Burlington, New Jersey
Baptized: Dec. 1840 by friend, neighbor, future electioneer William I. Appleby in Recklesstown, New Jersey
Married: 1 Jan. 1833 (23 yrs old) to Margaret Fields (14 yrs old) in Burlington, New Jersey.
Occupation: Innkeeper of the Rising Sun Inn, Burlington, New Jersey.
Church Experience: ?
Other: Moved to Nauvoo late 1843. The Atkinsons had four children before the campaign.
Campaign
Age: 34
Assignment: Called at the 17 May 1844 Nauvoo convention as a delegate from New Jersey.
Electioneering Experience: Unsure after the convention. He was still in Nauvoo in early June.
Location 27 Jun. 1844: Most likely in or around Nauvoo.
Post-Campaign
1 Jan 1846: Nauvoo. He was endowed as a seventy with Margaret on 12 Jan 1846. They were also sealed that day.
1850: St. Joseph, Missouri
1860: Douglas County, Nebraska as a bricklayer with $0 real estate and $200 personal wealth, both of which are average compared to their neighbors.
Family: The Atkinson's had ten total children.
Synopsis: Made a seventy at the Oct. 1844 conference. Moved to St. Joseph, Missouri in 1846 and worked as a bricklayer. In 1852, he was called as the president of the St. Joseph branch. Around 1860, moved to Douglas County, Nebraska. Came west in 1861. 1 Mar. 1863 set apart with Hiram S. Kimball as a missionary to the Sandwich Islands (Hawai'i). On 27 Apr. 1863 in San Pedro harbor in California, their ship the Ada Hancock exploded, killing the missionaries and forty-four other souls. Thomas was 52 years old. Margaret lived in Salt Lake until her death in 1896.