William George Thompson

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William George Thompson (January 17, 1830 – April 2, 1911) was a politician from the U.S. state of Iowa.

Thompson was born and raised in Butler, Pennsylvania, the brother of John McCandless Thompson. In 1853, he was admitted to the bar and moved to Marion, Iowa. He became the prosecuting attorney for Linn County, Iowa in 1854, then left in 1856 to serve in the Iowa Senate, serving until 1860. When the Civil War broke out he became a Major in the Twentieth Regiment, Iowa Volunteer Infantry. He was district attorney for Iowa's eighth judicial district for six years and was Chief Justice of the Territory of Idaho, serving from January to April of 1879.

Thompson resigned as Chief Justice to be elected as a Republican to represent Iowa's fifth district in the Forty-sixth Congress, filling the vacancy caused by the death of Rush Clark. He was re-elected to the Forty-seventh Congress in 1881, but chose not to run for the Forty-eighth. Instead, he served in the city council for Marion. Thompson also served in the Iowa House of Representatives from 1885 to 1887 and was judge of Iowa's eighteenth judicial district from 1894 to 1906. He retired to Kenwood Park, Iowa where he died April 2, 1911. He is interred at Oak Shade Cemetery in Marion.

[edit] References

• William George Thompson at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress Retrieved on 2008-02-15
• William George Thompson at Find A Grave Retrieved on 2008-02-15

Preceded by Rush Clark

Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Iowa's 5th congressional district December 1, 1879–March 3, 1883

Succeeded by James Wilson