James Russell Tompkins, a lawyer and businessman who founded the First Suffolk Mortgage Company, died of cardiac and pulmonary failure on Aug. 18 at Stony Brook Southampton Hospital. The longtime East Hampton resident was 88.
Born on March 4, 1931, in Maplewood, N.J., to Albert and Beatrice Tompkins, he grew up in Bay Head and Mantoloking, N.J., and graduated from Blair Academy, a boarding school in Blairstown, N.J.
In 1953, after graduating from Williams College, he joined the Navy. He was stationed in Norfolk, Va., and served in a naval transport convoy that traveled to American bases in Europe. He was discharged with the rank of Lieutenant Junior Grade.
Mr. Tompkins then attended Columbia Law School, graduating with a J.D., and joined the New York firm of Breed, Abbott and Morgan.
He married Susan Griffin and the couple moved to Amagansett, buying a house across from the firehouse, where they raised two sons, and he established a law practice in East Hampton. The marriage ended in divorce.
In 1990, he married Sharon Murray. They lived in East Hampton and often spent the winter months in Jupiter, Fla.
Mr. Tompkins was a member of the Maidstone Club and a skilled golfer; his family said he also loved skiing, traveling, and dogs. He held several club championships at the Maidstone, as well as at Shinnecock Hills in Southampton and the Loxahatchee Country Club in Jupiter. He was also a member of the University Club in Manhattan.
After selling the mortgage company in 1997, he started a sailing school and sailboat chartering company in Sag Harbor. He launched the business with two boats, a 27-foot Islander and a 23-foot Ensign that his family said he had bought for $800. He retired in 2006, but remained a steward of the company, and his colleagues bestowed on him the honorary title of Commodore.
Mr. Tompkins is survived by his wife, who lives in East Hampton, and his sons, Derek Tompkins of Puerto Escondido, Mexico, and Mark Tompkins of East Hampton. A brother, George Tompkins of Buena Vista, Va., a sister, Ann Hewat of Ligonier, Pa., and four grandchildren also survive.
A memorial ceremony will be held at the Maidstone Club Tennis House in East Hampton from 5 to 7 p.m. on Saturday. His ashes will be dispersed during a ceremony on Noyac Bay, accessed from 51 Pine Neck Avenue in Noyac, at 5 p.m. on Sept. 22.
The family has suggested memorial donations to the Animal Rescue Fund, P.O. Box 901, Wainscott 11975, or the Frank Collins Caddie Scholarship Trust, c/o the Maidstone Club, P.O. Box 5110, East Hampton 11937.