[2] It is suggested alternatively that his name 'Tom Jenkins' was his attempt as a child on the 1803 voyage to pronounce the name of his sponsor Swanson, or a variant of his African title.
Continuing his education including studying Greek and Latin languages, Jenkins was later tutored by Christopher Armstrong (d. 1820), school master of the Hawick Parish Church, to help prepare for entry to the University.
As an adult, he travelled to Borough Road, London in 1818[3] where he trained and worked as a teacher at the British and Foreign School Society.
By 1823, he was chosen to lead the newly established free Government "Model School" in Port Louis.
[3] He served the remainder of his teaching career in Mauritius and died on 16 June 1859,[5] leaving a widow, Augustine Laurencia Jenkins, and four children.