Robert Thompson III ’71

Tommy died Feb. 6, 2014, in his hometown of Clearwater, Florida. 

He came to Princeton from Clearwater High School in Clearwater, where his family had deep roots. On campus Tommy majored in history, graduated magna cum laude, and worked at The Daily Princetonian. Tommy went on to study philosophy at the University of California, San Diego. He was attracted to Herbert Marcuse’s politics and Karl Popper’s philosophy of science. 

Inspired by his work with Richard Rorty at Princeton, Tommy was always consumed by epistemology and the philosophy of language, frequently quoting Wittgenstein, Quine, and Sellars. Following his stint in academia, Tommy returned to Clearwater and founded a successful landscaping company, Thompson Tropicals. A lifelong learner, Tommy became a creative landscape architect where his study of Latin came in handy as he specified different plant species. 

Later in life Tommy dealt with medical problems and chemical reliance related to head injuries from a fall. Tommy lived with passion and a deep sense of curiosity about the metaphysical, politics, science and love. He will be missed. The class extends belated condolences to his family.