Thompson Family History

It’s not often that you see a town that bears a unusual family name. That explains the more than passing interest in visiting the town of Boyce, Virginia, located only a two-mile drive from Washington D.C.  Nevertheless, a trip to the former railroad town this weekend, though it satisfied my curiosity, left me with more questions than answers. A commemorative plaque in [...]

The Boyce Thompsoni hedgehog cactus, named after the great benefactor of the Boyce Thompson Arboretum in Superior, Ariz., allegedly grows glorious magenta flowers that emit an irresistibly fragrant aroma. It later sprouts showy red fruits, so tasty that early desert settlers raced to get them before animals could eat them. Unfortunately, repeated visits to the arboretum have yet to provide first-hand confirmation of [...]

Our January 2008 trip to Alder Manor, William Boyce Thompson’s Italian Renaissance Revival estate in Yonkers, N.Y., revealed many interesting bits of trivia. Did you know that a Victoria’s Secret catalog was shot there, or that this is the house where Russell Crowe, playing delusional John Nash, makes his secret letter drops? The juxtaposition seems oddly appropriate. We were treated to [...]