Date Original
1861-1864
Description
This collection contains correspondence between William G. Thompson and his wife related to Civil War action in Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas, and Alabama. A number of letters were written from Springfield, Missouri, and Fayetteville, Arkansas, and contain information on the Battle of Prairie Grove, Arkansas, December 1862.
Biographical/Historical Note
William George Thompson (1830-1911) was born in Butler County, Pennsylvania, son of William H. and Jane McCandless Thompson. In 1853, after being admitted to the bar, he moved to Marion, Linn County, Iowa. Before the Civil War he was active in local Republican politics and held several public offices. In 1862 he helped raise the Twentieth Iowa Infantry for the Union Army, and went to the front as its major. During the war he served in Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas, and Alabama, and was severely wounded during the Battle of Prairie Grove in 1862. After the war he returned to Iowa and was elected district attorney. Thompson was appointed chief justice of Idaho Territory by President Rutherford P. Hayes. Upon his return to Iowa in 1879 he was elected to the United States Congress, where he served for two terms. He later served in the Iowa General Assembly, and as a judge in the Eighteenth Judicial District. In 1856 Thompson married Harriet J. (Jane) Parsons (1836-1897. They had one son, John M. Thompson.
Physical Description
Document, 8.5" x 11"
Geographical Area
Fayetteville and Prairie Grove, Washington County (Ark.); Missouri
Language
English
Identifier
MG.00193
Resource Type
Text
Collection
William G. Thompson Civil War letters, MG.00193
Publisher
Arkansas State Archives
Contributing Entity
Arkansas State Archives
Recommended Citation
William G. Thompson Civil War letters, Arkansas State Archives, Little Rock, Arkansas.
Rights
Use and reproduction of images held by the Arkansas State Archives without prior written permission is prohibited. For information on reproducing images held by the Arkansas State Archives, please call 501-682-6900 or email at state.archives@arkansas.gov.
Disciplines
United States History
