Jack T. Tomlinson, 80, died peacefully on Tuesday, Nov. 10 at his Oakdale home.
He was born in Bakersfield to Harry and Edna Tomlinson and grew up on a 40-acre ranch at Lamont (Weed Patch).
He attended elementary school at Lamont and high school in Bakersfield, graduating in 1946. He continued his education at Bakersfield College and then UC Berkeley where he received BA and MA degrees, and a Ph.D. in Zoology in 1956.
Mr. Tomlinson was a teaching assistant at UC Berkeley while a graduate student. He taught at Oakland Junior College from 1954-57, then at San Francisco State University from 1957 until he suffered a stroke in September 1986. He also taught summer school at UC Santa Barbara and Stanford University’s Hopkins Marine Station during the 1960s, and taught at Moss Landing Marine Lab from 1968-71. He retired in 1988 and moved to Oakdale in 1989.
He was a life member of the California Scholarship Federation, a Fellow of California Academy of Sciences, a full member of Society of Sigma Xi, past president of Western Society of Naturalists, and past chairman of the Biology Department at San Francisco State University. He initiated and sealed the world’s largest time capsule in the Mojave Desert in the 1960s, which was cited in Guinness but not by name. He was recognized as the world authority on the order Acrothoricacia (Burrowing Barnacles, the topic of his dissertation).
He enjoyed doing research and received grants from the National Institutes of Health, a one-year grant to study Breathing of Birds in Flight, and a five-year grant for Reproduction in the Cirripedia (barnacles). The five-year grant allowed him to travel extensively in the Pacific and Atlantic areas to research the barnacle. He always had a research project in progress, which resulted in about 135 professional publications.
Reading was his favorite hobby. He enjoyed table tennis, fishing, camping, and traveling across the U.S. After retirement, he took several cruises, spent time in Hawaii and dude ranches and family reunions. He also enjoyed time with family and friends.
He is survived by his wife of 46 years, Regina ‘Jean’ Hoefler Tomlinson; son, James (Mary) Tomlinson, daughters, Susan Mitchell and Linda (Steve) Lawson; sister, Ruth Thrasher of Bakersfield; grandchildren, Jessica (Jerry) Quillen, C.J. Coffee, Bryan and Kira Tomlinson, Stephanie Lawson; two step-grandchildren; one great-grandson; three step great-grandchildren; and numerous nieces and nephews.
The family thanks Optimal Hospice for wonderful care during the last two months of his life and to Oakdale Fire Department for their assistance when needed.
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Nov. 21 at St. Matthias Anglican Church, Oakdale.
Remembrances may be made to California Academy of Sciences, Golden Gate Park, 55 Music Concourse Dr., San Francisco, CA 94118; or to St. Matthias Anglican Church, P.O. Box 26, Oakdale, CA 95361; or to Stroke Resources, Inc., P.O. Box 577321, Modesto, CA 95357.
The Oakdale (Calif.) Leader
Nov. 18, 2009
