Tomlinson Hill: The Remarkable Story of Two Families Who Share the Tomlinson Name - One White, One Black

by Chris Tomlinson, David Drummond (narrator), Tantor Audio (publisher)

Journalist Chris Tomlinson grew up hearing stories about his family's abandoned cotton plantation in Falls County, Texas. Most of the tales lionized his White ancestors for pioneering along the Brazos River. His grandfather often said the family's slaves loved them so much that they also took Tomlinson as their last name.

LaDainian Tomlinson, football great and former running back for the San Diego Chargers, spent part of his childhood playing on the same land that his Black ancestors had worked as slaves. As a child, LaDainian believed that the Hill was named after his family. Not until he was old enough to read a historical plaque did he realize that the Hill was named for his ancestor's slaveholders.

A masterpiece of authentic American history, Tomlinson Hill traces the true and very revealing story of these two families. From the beginning in 1854 - when the first Tomlinson, a White woman, arrived - to 2007, when the last Tomlinson, LaDainian's father, left, the book unflinchingly explores the history of race and bigotry in Texas. Along the way, it also manages to disclose a great many untruths that are latent in the unsettling and complex story of America.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Biography, Race, Memoir, Civil War, African American

Audible Audio

First published July 22, 2014

About the author

Chris Tomlinson is the business columnist for the Houston Chronicle, focusing on energy, business and policy. Until April 2014, he was the supervisory correspondent for The Associated Press in Austin, responsible for state government and political reporting in Texas.

From 2007-2009, he was an international investigative reporter for the AP working in Iraq, Austin and Washington DC. He served as the AP’s East Africa bureau chief in Nairobi, Kenya from 2004 to 2007 and was responsible for text, photo and television coverage from14 countries. He was appointed East Africa correspondent in 2000 and before that served two years as an international editor at AP’s headquarters in New York from 1998-2000. He started with the AP in 1995 as the Central Africa correspondent based in Rwanda. Tomlinson covered the 1994 elections that ended Apartheid in South Africa for Asahi Shimbun, a Japanese newspaper.

Shortly after the 9/11 terror attacks, the AP assigned Tomlinson to work from the USS Theodore Roosevelt air craft carrier and later to cover operations in Afghanistan, including the Battle of Tora Bora. During the invasion of Iraq in 2003, the AP chose Tomlinson as their lead embedded reporter and he has spent two years in Iraq since then. Tomlinson has also reported from conflicts in Uganda, Burundi, Congo, Sudan and Somalia. Before becoming a journalist, he spent seven years in the U.S. Army. He graduated from the University of Texas at Austin in 1992 with special honours in humanities.

He was awarded the Military Reporters and Editors Association award for distinguished reporting and the Associated Press Managing Editors runner-up award for international feature writing for his work in Iraq. He received the New York Association of Black Journalists award for international reporting for his work from Africa. While based in Minneapolis, he won the AP staffer of the year award in 1997. The AP has nominated his international reporting for the Pulitzer Prize twice for Iraq and reporting on the 2004 tsunami from India.

Reviews

[Ruthie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very interesting read, however it was not the read I was led to believe it was going to be. Labelled the story of "two families who share the Tomlinson name-one White, one Black" "who trace their ancestry to the same Texas slave plantation", I was expecting a more intimate recounting of history. Instead, the author presents a scholarly book on the history of slavery, homesteading, civil rights and his own family in Marlin, Texas.

Now this does not mean it was not a great read, because it was. The author was fortunate in that there already existed books documenting the history of his family's settlement in Marlin, including letters written by his ancestors. James Kendrick Tomlinson followed his sister Susan Tomlinson Jones and brother-in-law Churchill Jones from Alabama plantations to Falls County, Texas 1849. There they established cotton plantations, and continued the slave traditions they had practiced in Alabama.

The book gives us a look into the day-to-day lives on the plantations based on information gained from census reports, letters, and other historical documents. There is information on the legal and practical issues surrounding slavery at the time. What there isn't is the emotional descriptions of abuse, cruelty, etc that we are accustomed to reading in books concerning slavery. This is a rather dispassionate accounting. The book gives rather long coverage to the Civil War as it took place in Texas, taking us away from the plantation and focusing mostly on the White family, Again the information is interesting but moves the focus away from the main premise.

There is information on the KKK in Texas, especially in Dallas, and the author struggles with his belief that his grandfather and great grandfather were probably involved in the organizations doings. Up until this point the personal info on the Black Tomlinson families is scanty and mostly limited to who lived where, how they were employed, what they owned, who married whom, etc. The family did not seem to pass down stories of their slavery experiences.

My least favorite part of the book was the author's own recounting. After being immersed in history I did not really care about his parents lives, which seemed a bit sordid and sad. His own experiences as a foreign reporter, his failed first marriage, even his High School experiences did not interest me at all. I was much more interested in LaDainian Tomlinson's (yes, the NFL player) story, as it did relate to the issues of racism and what the legacy of slavery did to his family.

I read an ARC copy so I can only hope that the published copy will include;
1) Family Trees
2) Map/maps
3) Photos - if any exist

I found the family history very confusing as the families intersected and the first names were repeated often. I do not have a clue where Marlin, Texas is, how far it was in relation to other places mentioned, and would have liked to see maps/drawings of the original plantations and where the Hill actually is!

I think this book stands as an strong accounting of the history of slavery and civil rights in Texas. It should be required reading in every Texas High School as part of their American History curriculum. The fact that this book narrows the focus to two families makes it more relatable to the average reader. It is a not a complete history of slavery, nor is it a complete history of either of the two Tomlinson families, but it is one important recounting of a very sad part of American History.

[Aishuu · Rating 1 out of 5]

I give up. I've spent more than a month trying to get through this, and I just can't. Since there are more books than I will ever have time to read, I'm going to stop my suffering and mark this as abandoned.

I really wanted to enjoy this - I heard an NPR interview with the author, and it sounded like a great concept. However, this book was boring.

The book suffers from a lack of focus. It's like the author couldn't decide if this was a biography of the families or a history of Texas' race relations. It never really connects to the people it's supposedly about and becomes a dry recitation of facts/events. That would be okay if it hadn't jumped back and forwards in time (usually covering thirty year periods). It became confusing and I couldn't keep track of who was who and after a while I stopped caring.

That said, this is written by someone who understands the journalistic method and has good ethics. I feel like it's been fact-checked and researched ten ways, but this may be why it's so dry.

There's just no life in this story, and at 54 percent complete, I gave up.

[Pamela Huxtable · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was tough going for me at the beginning - so many battles, so many acreages, so many names to process and keep straight.

I'm glad I stuck with it - the parallel history of the two Tomlinson families is a compelling story of race, privilege, and bloody Texan history. The final chapters detailing the author's experiences and LaDanian and LaVar Tomlinson's experiences are superb.

It took the black Tomlinson family 4 generations to get out of the racist manual labor culture of Texas. Their white counterparts - even the relatively unsuccessful and uneducated - never face the brutal poverty the black Tomlinsons did, even after declaring bankruptcy. This book is an indictment of Texan culture, which unbelievably, never elected an African American to statewide office until 1990. 1990!

Warning: The chapters dealing with the Ku Klux Klan are difficult.

More on my blog: Biblio-filia.com

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not quite what I expected, but interesting none the less. I thought it would focus more on the Tomlinson family, but what I really got was a history of race relations in Texas.

[BookSweetie · Rating 2 out of 5]

STOP! Are you aware there's an excellent interview on National Public Radio's Fresh Air program about TOMLINSON HILL? Two Tomlinsons (one white -- the author -- and one black) are expertly interviewed.

I highly recommend FIRST listening to the interview (or reading the transcript) before reading (or deciding to read) the book.

I didn't, but I wish I had, primarily because I think I may have been less confused and generally more interested than I was with this book group history pick about a completely unfamiliar-to-me place in Texas that was settled in the 1850s by relocated Alabama plantation owners and their slaves.

The book started in the nineteenth century and carried on into the twenty- first century, following people with a connection to a specific place called Tomlinson Hill.

The focus of the book seemed wobbly. Is this supposed to be informational, emotionally neutral style fact-based history or personally revealing memoir --or something else?

More problematic: I simply couldn't keep all the names straight, even with the photos and family trees for the two different Tomlinson families -- one white and one black -- both with the Tomlinson name.

The articulate and courageous journalist/author has important insights gathered from his international conflict-zone work, his particular heritage as a descendant of a slave owner, and his research for this book.

I hope the author writes essays, sharing those important insights because I can imagine readers -- especially those with no connection to Texas --- abandoning the book part-way through and missing the impact. Had it not been a book group selection, this book would have landed in my abandoned-before-finishing pile. That's a pretty weak recommendation.

However...

I recently became aware that a film has been made as a follow-up to this book. Now, that's an idea I can get behind fully. I haven't seen the film myself, but the substance of the book provides plenty of material for a plenty-interesting documentary.

[Cindy Pipkin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Five stars from me for many reasons. I admire Chris Tomlinson for his journalistic integrity. I admire him for choosing to be woke. It is not easy in Texas to challenge the white establishment. I will be quoting Chris and his research from the oral history’s from Tomlinson slaves and other Texas slaves.

[Abram Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a yankee who first stepped foot in Falls County in 2013 and moved here in the spring of 2014 I've grown to like this weird and interesting sliver of Texas culture. Pat Conroy has unlike any other author I've read portrayed what is like to grow up in the south and both love it deeply and hate aspects of it.
This book has brought to life the landmarks I see every day as I work in EMS in the County seat of Marlin and serve my community as the Assistant Fire chief of the Lott fire department. Southern culture is unlike anything you'll find anywhere else while in ways it's similar to the rest of humanity.
One thing that stood out to me while reading this book is the power of narrative history. People in the segregated south didn't think they were racist. They were just being logical. In the narratives they told themselves and their children, it was in black people's best interest to not mix to much with white people.
As someone who grew up in a religious sect (Mennonite) with a very strong historical narrative that dominated our culture and way of life. In many ways my life was a sheltered, idyllic and privileged childhood. And while I cherish my heritage I was given I with time have recognized that it also isn't without is baggage.
I like how the author weaved these two stories together to show why civil rights didn't make systematic racism disappear overnight and how the skeletons are still haunting our current American culture today. And I'm encouraged that the books and projects like this maybe can play a small role in healing division in our churches, communities, and nation. But that won't happen until we are willing to acknowledge the past no matter how uncomfortable that makes the narratives we've told ourselves.

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Serendipity brought me to this book. I heard the author interviewed on NPR a few weeks ago and I was fascinated by the story of how the stories of these two Tomlinson families, one white and one black, were intertwined. I walked into the library later that day and the book was sitting out as a "recent acquisition".

I was not disappointed. This is a very good book covering Texas history, US history, race relations, and self-discovery. I learned a lot about Texas and US history that I did not know. In addition to being well-researched; I appreciated the author's willingness to explore both the facts and the feelings that come with discovering your relatives "owned other people". (I have trouble typing those words; how can it be that this was ever so and justified as part of a Divine plan.)

[PDXReader · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this book was very interesting, well-written and well-researched. However, it did disappoint me from the standpoint that there really wasn't very much about Tomlinson families until the middle of the 20th century; the author really didn't provide more about the earlier generations than what he was able to glean from the odd newspaper story or tax record. I think from the description I was expecting a different view of racism in America - one which included more personal viewpoints, both from victims and perpetrators of racism. As it was, the book was really more of a broad history of the subject.

[Nana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tomlinson Hill was chosen as a selection for our book club. I had read numerous glowing reviews of the book, but found myself waiting for something to happen. The book is more of a history book that tells a lot of small details about each family, one black, the other white. I was expecting much more from the book, and ended up skimming through portions until the last several chapters which still didn't impress me. I wanted to like this book so much, but it wasn't what I was hoping for.

[Susan Schuler · Rating 4 out of 5]

a great read for history and genealogy fans.

[Missy LeBlanc Ivey · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought this would be more of a personal history type of read. But, it quickly turned political and more about racism. I did not enjoy this at all. It was long and dry reading.

[Bob Gustafson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I became aware of this book through the "In Depth" program on BookTV. Usually that program serves a teaser function by telling the viewer something about the book, which may compel him to buy the book in order to read all the details. If one sees that show, he can skip buying the book. There isn't much else.

The story begins in the early nineteenth century, when an in-law of the Tomlinsons buys land in Falls County, Texas and moves his slaves and cotton production from Alabama to Texas. It continues through the present day.

One thing that would have been very helpful would be detailed family trees of both the "white" Tomlinsons and the "black" Tomlinsons.

The book is very lean. More information would have made the book better. Much more analysis would be very useful. If Chris Tomlinson wrote this collectively with another journalist, maybe someone not from the U.S., the reader would have a more interesting book.

The book reinvigorated interest in the Reconstruction Era and I find myself reading Wikipedia articles.

The autobiographical aspect of this book is interesting. The author's life trajectory is like a pinball bouncing off bumpers and being slammed by the lever in a pinball machine. Scenes from the family life of earlier generations might have come from "Cat On a Hot Tin Roof".

The bottom line is that there are a lot of good pieces, but the whole seems to be less than the sum of its parts.

[Cindy Leighton · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ugh. Such potential - a history of two Texas families - one slave, one slaveowner (or "slaveholder" as the author prefers - just holding them). One of the slave Tomlinsons grows up to be a star running back for the Chargers. But geeez this book is hard to read - hard for many reasons.

The author spends 90% of the book reciting the history of the slave"holders" - so that was disappointing right away. Although he tries to be enlightened and knows that slavery was bad. . . he can't seem to help glorifying the white Tomlinsons endlessly. But the book is also hard to read because it is BORING. Another case of someone who may be an excellent journalist and is obviously an excellent researcher thinking they can write a book. Books are different than articles or research papers. This book is an endless list of random facts - another case of "I did a ton of research - look at all this cool info I found about my ancestors - aren't they fascinating to everyone?" Maybe if you had never read anything about slavery or segregation in the US ever this might be interesting - but there is not really any new ground covered, no enlightenment. I kept waiting for some new information, some insight, or more information about the slave families. . . but ugh no. This should be a book Tomlinson gives his grandchildren, but shouldn't impose on the rest of us. This is not a case of the particular shedding light on the universal, as it should have been.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this story of two families to be extremely well written and very informative. Although most of the emphasis is definitely on the white family. As a Canadian on a quest to understand racism this book gives a very good overview of the history of black slavery and the perception of whites in being slaveholders. There was much that I did not know and I think what surprised me the most was that it was the Republicans that were anti-slavers and the Democrats that were confederates. It also shows how racism permeates society and carries over to present day. Of course racism is not just in the United States, however many other countries in the world including black countries who are racist against each other because of appearances such as the genocide in Rwanda. Even though the story took place in Texas and I’m sure each state has its own history, it gives a good overview of how history transpired. The thing that I think Chris could’ve done better would’ve been in some of the flow charts of the history of the people. I found some of the names challenging to keep straight. Even if he would re-refer to the history of a name it would’ve been helpful.

[Angie Fehl · Rating 2 out of 5]

Full disclosure, I mainly picked this up because of LaDanian Tomlinson's tie to this story and I'm an OG Chargers girl (fan, not cheerleader, I mean ;-) ). LaDanian writes the foreword and the book looks at the history between two sides of one family, LaDanian's black ancestors, and the white ancestors of Chris Tomlinson, the journalist who authors the book itself.

While the historical story is an interesting one, I got lost with all of Chris' tangents about other topics and after a few chapters I realized I found his writing style too dry and uncompelling for me. Unfortunately ended up a slog read for me.

[Shauna · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book explores the life and history of two families, one white and one black, that share the same last name rooted in a slave plantation. It also digs into the history of slavery and race relations in Texas. I had added this book to my list after hearing about it on NPR a long time ago. I listened to the audiobook and sometimes had trouble keeping up with the different names and storylines but I still found the book interesting. I have done quite a bit of genealogy research into my own family and have a similar history rooted in the south. I would love to learn more about the families that came from slavery.

[Jacqueline A Kane · Rating 4 out of 5]

I tend to be a little academic so keeping up with book and the families as they intersect I was confident from the beginning that part of the author’s experience as a journalist would serve the story well. I particularly appreciated his observation early on that the behavior of the enslaved people which was described pejoratively should be seen as acts of civil disobedience under the most horrific circumstances! I also appreciated his recognition of white privilege and the micro aggressions that grow out of racist beliefs (conscious or unconscious.)

[Jason Stacy · Rating 2 out of 5]

The premise of the book is fantastic; however, the execution is borderline abysmal and, 200 pages in, I’ve had to give up on it. Relatively little space is dedicated to the inter-twined histories of the Tomlinson’s: this is more a book about the history and fortunes of a small town in Central Texas than anything else. That part is fairly interesting, and when I get the hankering to read Texas history I guess I’ll pick the book up again… but that’s not what this book is supposed to be about. I’m disappointed :-(

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was chosen for my Texas book club and it is unique in terms of how the author can approach slavery, reconstruction and race relations in Texas. It is exactly as portrayed on the cover of the book, “the story of two families who share the Tomlinson name—one white, one black. Chris Tomlinson brings to fruition Dr Martin Luther King’s wish, “that one day .....the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave-owners will be able to sit down together at a table of brotherhood.” Chris and LaDainian have fulfill Dr. Martin Luther King’s dream.

[Bobcat · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book traces the entire history of a populated rural area in Texas called Tomlinson Hill. It starts with the settling of the area by a plantation owner, his family, and his enslaved workers in the early 1800s. Then it traces the history of all those who live there through the civil war, reconstruction, sharecropping, etc, all the way up to the present.

Lots of detail and a bit academic, so you have to like history to enjoy this book. If you do, you'll learn much about race relations, attitudes, the cotton economy, and more. Fascinating and worthwhile for the right audience.

[Rev David Bush · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would have preferred to read this book, but our library only had this as an audio book.

Chris Tomlinson writes with total openness and honesty about his family and its past as a Slave holding family in Texas. It lays bare the damage and danger of racism. What Tomlinson uncovers is relevant for nearly every nation where one group of people has rules over another because of some external characteristic.

[Edward Gray · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like this book as it provides a dichotomy of Texas history in black and white. The bitter facts of slavery unite two families that share the name Tomlinson, and we see how this as affected both families throughout the years. The interesting fact is that through this history of oppression and that one Tomlinson rose above it all, his legacy is still tarnished by being called that dreaded name of nigger as he made millions. A Black man in America is only as free as his Soul.

[Diane · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is an interesting story describing the different lives the families lived based on the color of their skin. A little dense in places. The author did a lot of research and it shows. Having family in this area added to the genealogical interest. I hadn't realized the extent of slaveholders that existed in Texas.

[Bec · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to really get into this book, not least because it was all I had with me on a 12 hour train journey. But I found it dry, hard to follow & just difficult to get into. Details, too many unimportant details to the ignorant reader. Assume your reader knows nothing, I was constantly lost just trying to keep union republicans & democrat confederates straight in the first part.

[David Szatkowski · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an interesting look at Texas history, using two families as a microcosm of that history. It is by looking at the history that we can honestly start to heal from the past and move together toward a new future together. This is a very readable book, that allows you to invest in the book and the time it takes to read it.

[Jimi-carol Benton · Rating 3 out of 5]

The title is definitely misleading but still a great book with lots of interesting facts about the towns that surround me and how racism affected them and the people there. A real eye opener; I really had no idea.

[Dina Mcbride · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a good book. If you're not into history or genealogy, hearing the truth about slavery or racism, then likely not the book for you. I appreciated the author's attention to detail and commitment to telling even the uncomfortable truth.

[Sara Scraps · Rating 2 out of 5]

Things I liked- the first person accounts and all the primary source material.
But..the writing style is very academic. I wanted to get more of the families character I guess. The writing felt antiseptic and dry.

[Ryan Miller · Rating 3 out of 5]

The parts of this book that retold the Texas history of slave holders, Klan members and racist power-grabbers from the state’s inception to the present-day were fascinating. The parts that focused on specific family histories were fairly uninteresting.