Thomas Wesson

Thomas C. Wesson, age 85, formerly of Bartlesville, Oklahoma, passed away in Portland, Oregon, on September 30, 2025.

Thomas C. Wesson was born February 24, 1940 San Diego, California to Thomas P. And Nell Hobbs Wesson. The son of a career Naval officer, he moved with his family many times and had 17 addresses by the time he graduated from Plainview High School, Plainview, Texas and New Mexico State University in Las Cruces, New Mexico.

Tom and Carol Sue Jordan were married October 14, 1961 in Springer, New Mexico. They made their home in California and New Mexico before moving, in 1966, to Bartlesville, Oklahoma. Tom had vowed that, once he found a place he liked, he would not move again, and Bartlesville remained their home for 56 years.

Following his service in the US Navy, he began his three-decade career in federal oil research at the Bureau of Mines Petroleum Research Center in Bartlesville. He coordinated research in geoscience and oil extraction and served on the National Petroleum Council study of enhanced oil recovery. At time of his retirement, Tom was director of the US Department of Energy’s National Petroleum Technology Office in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Tom was an active member and deacon of First Baptist Church of Bartlesville and a member of the choir for 40 years. He especially enjoyed the years of singing bass in a local gospel quartet with Tom Simon, Glenn Epperly, and Noel Kaiser. He volunteered and served as a member of the board of Jane Phillips Hospital volunteers for 14 years.

Tom is survived by his wife of 64 years, Carol; two sons, Michael (Jackie) of Portland, Oregon and Stephen (Lara) of Washington D.C.; one grandson, Hector; his sister, Judy (Gene) Welch of Albuquerque, New Mexico. He was preceded in death by his parents and his brother, Terry.

Burial will be at Santa Fe Memorial Cemetery, Santa Fe, NM

At the request of his family, donations in his memory may be made to Oklahoma Baptist Children’s Home, 3800 N. May Avenue, Oklahoma City, OK 73112