Sources: LWT Henry B. Thompson Jr., Probate Court, Greene County, Alabam a,
File Number 1887, Book Y, pgs. 346-356, January 8, 1869; Administrati on Bond,
Henry B. Thompson Estate, File 1887, September 21, 1864; Greene C ounty,
Alabama Marriage Records, Marriage Book C-1, pg. 77, May 29, 1852 b etween
J.A. Thompson and M.A. Wilson.

Information related to place of death provided by Diane Bingham . Other sources list place of death as Panola County. However, s he
appears to be a more appropriate source as a direct descendant. JCT 1/1 9/01

He was buried in Dickenson Township, Cumberland County, Pensylvania. Isabe lla
D. Thompson in 1926 said that John Carruthers Thompson died in Nebrask a, but
that "...his body was brought back and buried at Dickinson Presbyte rian
Church by his wife Magdalena..... If this is Magdeline Shaw, this wou ld be an
impossibility as she died shortly after the birth of her second c hild in
1873. He eitrher had a second wife named Magdelina or someone el se brtought
him from Nebraska to Pennisyvania. " Developed land in weste rn Nebraska (his
brothers had begun developing the farm in Steele City, Ne braska) and promoted
developments as far southwest as New Mexico.

Lydia McCulloch's notes show him as "Carruthers Thompson."

What data that does tie this group to the Thompson-McCoy family comes fr om
testimony before the Dawes Commission for enrollment as a Citizen by bl ood in
the Choctaw Nation. (William C. Thompson et al. vs. Choctaw Natio n) The
testimony from William C. Thompson (son of William Thompson) and Jo hn
Thurston Thompson (grandson of Archibald Thompson). Information provid ed by
Judith Welch-Schmidt of Magalia, California and Imogean McDona ld of Ardmore,
Alabama. JCT 7/5/00

Birth date estimated, was taken  from the 1850 Limestone County, Alabama c
ensus records, per Imogean McDonald.

From Imogean McDonald: John Duncan Jr. was born 1837-1838 and raised on t he
old Choctaw Reservation, Alabama. ? Started to the Choctaw Nation, Indi an
Territory in "latter 50's. Was detained in the state of Arkansas by fin ancial
straits, sickness, and the war. Then with sufficient means accumula ted,
continued to his brother's place (James Thompson) at Stony Point (lat er "Old
Boggy Depot") . John Duncan "held lands under the tribal laws of t he nation
at different times both in Chickasaw and Choctaw country"..."t ax never was
demanded of him as it was of non-citizens." (BIA Testimony)

He married Narcissis Susan Aaron, born NO abt 1843 (whose family was livi ng
in Union Co., AR at reporting of 1850 census) in Hempstead C o, AR on 1 Sep
1858. (CD-Rom#5, Pascagoula Public Library, 12/5/95.)

He was living at Spring Hill (post office) 1860, family # 773, with wife N
arcissis and their 11 month old daughter, Mary C., born Arkansas. Listed w ith
them was James Copeland, age 53. Also living in Spring Hill at that ti me was
brother A. B. Thompson age 23, born AL (family # 768), and his fami ly which
included the young couple, John Riley age 20, born MS and Mary E ., age 18,
born SC; Thomas Aaron age 66, born VA or GA, his wife, Susan a ge 52, born GA,
(family #783, Narcissis Thompson's parents), three daughte rs, two
sons-in-law, and three grandchildren. Within ten miles at Fult on on the Red
River was brother-in-law? Family # 441, A. S. Aaron age 2 3, born TN and wife
Mary, age 18, born TN. (Possible relative is James Cop eland).

He applied for Choctaw citizenship in 1885 at Tuskahoma. (BIA Testimony).

In 1884 served four months "Pickens County, Chickasaw Nation, Indian Terri
tory under David Hardwick, a Chickasaw Sheriff of said county". (BIA Testi
mony)

He resided in Chocktaw Nation, Indian Territory late 1860's until dea th ca
1892-93, believed near Tuskahoma (Wade County, Apukshunnubbee Distri ct). (BIA
Testimony) at that time was either divorced or estranged from wi fe. Was
reported by a son-in-law (1905) to have died at Tushkohoma "just b efore lease
district payment was made in 1893."

Source: E-Mail 8/16/03 
According to papers I found at Floyd R. Cooper, Sr.
" John Thompson married Frances Thompson, his distant cousin who was 16. H er
mother was Frances Fowler.  Both migrated from GA to AL". "John w as an
overseer of big farms, managed slaves; he was so good to his slav es that many
stayed on with him after the war. When he was middle ag e, he died when Aunt
Maggie (Grandma's sister) was 13."
July, 2003

Marriage Records of Marengo County, AL, 1818 - 1860
Being transcribed and indexed from the original marriage books by Pauli ne
Jones Gandrud. page 114: Thompson, John F. and Frances E. Thompso n, 26 June
1841; 1 July by Joseph Saunders, J.P.; R.D. Gray, bdn.  (In 185 0, he was 35,
b. Ga; she was 24, b. Ala.  2-81

Mr. Thompson was a farmer near Tahlequah. He was affiliated with Cherok ee
Lodge No. 10 of Tahlequah on November 9, 1883 and was Master of the Mas onic
Lodge from 1896 to 1900 and was again chosen for that position in 190 2. He
was elected County Commissioner of Cherokee County, November 1916.

Sources: Capt. Daniel LIttle Web Site, GEDCOM file imported on 2 Jun 2001.
Author: L. David Roper, http://www.roperld.com/otherfam.htm#Little

Indian Pioneer History Project for Oklahoma
Date:  [none given]
Name: John F. Thompson
Post Office: Tahlequah, Oklahoma
Residence Address: R.R. #1
Date of Birth:  November 20, 1853
Place of Birth:  Union County, Georgia
Father:   Caleb (Coosa) Thompson
Place of Birth:  
Information on father:
Mother:  Matilda C. Thompson
Place of birth:   
Information on mother:
Field Worker: Frank J. Still
Interview #

John F. Thompson, who lives in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, R.R. #1, was born November
20th, 1853, in Union County, Georgia. He is a Cherokee Indian.

CIVIL WAR IN GEORGIA
My Grandfather, David Thompson, came to Indian Territory as an Old Settler,
1830 or 31. He came from Tennessee. His way of traveling was on a ferryboat,
which he made. He came down the Tennessee River to the Mississippi, then on
steamboat to the mouth of the Arkansas, then up the Arkansas to between Little
Rock and Fort Smith. The boat struck a snag and sank. All on the boat were
saved. 

David Thompson had his money in a wooden box (gold and silver). He knocked a
door off the boat, put the money on one end of the door, got on the other end,
and floated down the river until he was rescued. The family escaped in
rowboats to the river bank. He got an ox team and moved his family to Flint
District, what is now Adair County. He settled 1 ½ miles west of Evansville,
Arkansas. 

He built a two room log house in 1831 or 1832. The old house is still standing
that he built. He lost his wife and four children. They are buried at Honey
Hill Cemetery about three miles southwest. The graves are unmarked. He
returned to Georgia in about 1838. 

He married again and raised a large family. He was afraid to stay here because
there was so much sickness, especially malaria, and there were no doctors.
They did not know how to treat themselves. He died in July 1864 in Union
County, Georgia and was buried on the old homestead. His second wife was Mary
Carr who died October 7th, 1874. He went back to Georgia in a surrey or hack
drawn by horses.

My father, Caleb Starr Thompson, came to Oklahoma February 1882. I came in
1881 in March. I settled at Flint. I located my grandfather’s old home. I
moved to my present home in September 1883. There was a school and church at
Eureka. M. L. Butler was circuit rider for this church. Mrs. Jim Gourd was an
early teacher.

Reverend M. L. Butler started the first camp meeting at this place under a
brush arbor. Later a shed was built. It was built for a political meeting
place to elect officers.

There have been great changes in the County since I came here in the way of
roads and homes. I affiliated with the Masonic Lodge No. 10 at Tahlequah on
November 9th, 1883. At the present time, I am the oldest member of the oldest
lodge, now living at Tahlequah. I am 83 years old.

My father "Coosa" Thompson was councilman. He served under Colonel Morgan and
Captain Mount during the Civil War. They march from Tennessee to Perryville,
Kentucky. There was a battle there. The rebel soldiers retreated to Atlanta,
Georgia. My father got sick and left them there and never went back to the
army. He scouted the rest of the war.

I can remember he was laying out in the field and the Home Guard ran up on the
camp where there were five men laying out. All the gun he had was an old
Flintlock rifle. Two of the men dodged them and got away; three were captured
in November 1864. I was eleven years old. I have the same old rifle in my
possession. The barrel is three feet ten inches long. It has a tallow box in
it. This gun is over 90 years old. It is a handmade gun. It is the first gun I
ever shot.

INDIAN MARRIAGE CUSTOMS IN GEORGIA IN THE EARLY DAYS
The man and woman wishing to be married, walked under a quilt held by the
others. When they passed under it, they were married. If they decided to
separate, they would walk back under the quilt and they were divorced.

Mr. John Thompson has several things of interest as follows:

Half-dollar dated 1827
One cent piece, large, dated 1831
An old Flintlock rifle over 100 years old

A picture of old man Tom Starr. He was a distant relative of C. S. Thompson
and a noted outlaw. The government made a Treaty with him if he would
surrender. 

A book, "Cherokee Land Lottery", published at Milbadgville, GA on April 19,
1838 by James F. Smith.

A Cherokee law book in Cherokee language, dated 1881

An Article of Agreement between F. A. Meeks and Caleb S. Thompson Dated March
4, 1882

A bill of sale from Frank Woods, Tahlequah District, Cherokee Nation Dated
October 27, 1877 to C. S. Thompson transferring land Rights

A silver certificate he received during the Strip Payment showing he Received
$2,000.00 in twenty dollar bills

A family record of births, marriages and deaths of his father’s family Kept
since 1829. It contains David Thompson’s (his Grandfather) own writing.

An early paper "Ulster County Gazette" published at Kingston, Ulster Co., New
York, January 4th, 1800. This paper has a record of George Washington’s death
and burial. This paper was Published by Samuel Freer and Son, Saturday,
January 4th, 1800, stating General Washington departed this life on the 14th
day of December 1799, between the hours of three and four o’clock.

A basket made of cane by the North Carolina Cherokees, which was Brought from
Georgia

He has a picture of his grandfather’s old home in Flint District, taken in
1934 by his son and himself. 

Submitted to OKGenWeb by Marylee Jones Boyd, August 2001. 

UPDATE: June 2003 LaVon Thompson Kuykendall tommyk@@mindspring.com I am a
fifth generation granddaughter of David Thompson and his second wife Mary
Carr.  My connection is through Jesse Claiborne Thompson, Allen Jasper
Thompson and Ralph Thompson.  The mother of John F. Thompson was Amanda
Caroline Little who was the daughter of Lewis and Catherine Little and was the
aunt of my maternal grandfather Thomas Gordon Little.  I recently visited the
gravesite of David Thompson and Mary Carr and made some decent pictures of his
tombstone.  It is my great desire to establish contact with some of my
relatives in Oklahoma.

Samuel Henry Families of East Tennesse genealogy lists his name as Malco lm but
with no support documentation. This is different from John Thomps on
descendants information.

John served as a Texas State Legislator
Information regarding Trinity County:
WOODLAKE, TEXAS (Trinity County). Woodlake is on U.S. Highway 287 four mil es
southeast of Groveton in southeastern Trinity County. The area was sett led
around the time of the Civil War, but a community did not begin to gr ow up
until the early 1880s, when John Martin Thompson and Henry Tucker fo unded the
Thompson and Tucker Lumber Company. In 1889 a post office open ed under the
name Willard, and during the next two decades the community w as known
variously as Willard, Old Willard, and Jason. By 1896 the town h ad
Presbyterian and Methodist churches, the lumberyard and mill, a gener al
store, and a population of 250. But by World War I most of the timb er in the
region had been cut, the mill was closed, and the plant dismantl ed. Many of
the residents moved to other sawmill towns in the region. T he post office was
closed in 1910 but reopened in 1920 as Jason, accordi ng to one source named
for Jason Hawthorne, a distinguished black residen t. In 1925 the name was
changed to Woodlake, after the small reservoir th at had supplied the mill.
During the 1920s Helen Kerr Thompson, a relati ve (daughter-in-law) of the
original mill owner, organized a model far m. A trading post, a community
center, and a number of houses were constru cted, but the project failed in
the late 1920s because of the combined eff ects of the Great Depression and
the demise of the Waco, Beaumont, Trini ty and Sabine Railway. In 1934 the
United States government took over t he project to aid farmers on relief
rolls. Many new houses were constructe d, as well as a new eleven-grade
school, but the project failed agai n. By the late 1930s many of the residents
had moved away. Most of the com munity buildings and much of the equipment was
sold to the Baptist Chur ch of East Texas, which erected a youth camp. In 1990
Woodlake was a dispe rsed community with a population of 301.

BIBLIOGRAPHY: Patricia B. and Joseph W. Hensley, eds., Trinity County Begi
nnings (Groveton, Texas: Trinity County Book Committee, 1986).

Christopher Long
The Handbook of Texas Online is a joint project of The General Librari es at
the University of Texas at Austin and the Texas State Historical Ass ociation.

The Thompson Collection:
Carol Riggs
Director, Texas Forestry Museum
Stephen F. Austin University, Nacogdoches, Texas

Early settlers to East Texas found vast expanses of virgin pines, the west
ernmost extension of the great southern forests they left behind when th ey
came to Texas. In the beginning the trees were felled for log cabins, b ut in
many ways the timber was considered a hindrance to the agricultur al lifestyle
the settlers knew and preferred. They simply wanted to cle ar the land so that
they could plant the crops necessary for their existen ce. Prior to the Civil
War, East Texas was dominated by a subsistence agri cultural economy. Very
little trade occurred with the outside world.

Some of the first recorded history of the forest industry in Texas begi ns in
the early 1800's with a water-powered sawmill near San Augustine, re ported to
have originated in 1819. After that time, sporadic mills, most ly
water-powered sash mills, dotted the East Texas landscape. In 1830 wh at was
apparently the first steam powered mill in Texas began to opera te at
Harrisburg. Most early mills produced from 500 to 2000 board fe et of lumber
daily. Mills employing circular saws were not in general u se until the
beginning of the Civil War. In 1860 there were about 200 sawm ills in Texas,
employing 1,200 people. Most of these were small mills, eas ily moved to new
locations when the resource was exhausted.

The early lumber industry in Texas struggled for several reasons, but t he
primary problem was transportation. By the Civil War, railroads skirt ed the
Pineywoods on all sides, but most lumber products from the interi or had to be
hauled to market by wagon over poorly maintained roads. So me timbermen along
rivers were able to raft their logs to mills downstrea m, and then transport
the finished product to the Gulf Coast for shipmen t. But most East Texas
rivers were ill-suited for dependable rafting. It w asn't until the 1880's
when railways began to crisscross East Texas, and l umber companies could
build tramways into their holdings, that the fore st industry really began to
boom.

Against this sketchy backdrop of the early history of forestry in Texas, o ne
of the major lumber dynasties of the Pineywoods stands out. An excelle nt
collection of photographs, taken in 1907 and 1908 for a special editi on of
the American Lumberman, documents the extensive interests of the Tho mpson
family throughout East Texas.

The Thompson lumber interests across East Texas, including lumbering pract
ices, millsites, timber holdings, and the people who made it all work a re
documented in the photo collection.

John Martin Thompson, born in Georgia in 1829, came to Texas with his fath er
and mother in about 1844 when he was 15 years old. The elder Thompso n,
Benjamin Franklin Thompson, eventually amassed over 10,000 acres in t he
vicinity of Kilgore. Thompson's plan was to grow cotton on this propert y. The
vast stands of shortleaf yellow pine on the land probably had a gre at
influence on the future direction of the Thompson fortunes.

When young Thompson was 20 years old, he and his younger brother, Willi am
Wirt, were sent to school at the Western Military Institute in Georgeto wn
Kentucky. In 1852, after two years at school, the brothers return ed to
Kilgore and were set up with a combination flour and sash sawmi ll in
partnership with their father. This was the home near Kilgore into w hich John
Martin Thompson moved his bride. They eventually had six childre n.

The brothers had a series of sawmills that were destroyed by fires. With e ach
disaster they built a larger and more modern mill. In 1881 all of t he
Thompson lumbering interests were moved to what was to become Willa rd in
Trinity County. From Trinity, the Thompsons and partner Henry Tuck er had
ridden down the right-of-way of the coming Missouri, Kansas and Tex as
Railroad, or Katy. Six hundred forty acres of land were selected. Th ey
thought this would be enough acreage to supply the mill for its lifetim e. The
mill they erected there produced from 12,000 to 13,000 board fe et of lumber a
day.

The mill at Willard was completed in 1881 before the railroad reached t he
site. In 1887 Thompson & Tucker bought a tram steam locomotive, and ste el
crews built tramways into the areas that were to be cut. Working ahe ad of the
spurs, flatheads or sawyers, as the loggers were called, fell ed the massive
trees with crosscut saws.

Then buckers and choppers came in to trim the limbs and cut the timber in to
proper lengths. Unlike many other lumber concerns, the Thompsons ma de it a
policy to use as much of the log as possible, often hauling the en tire tree
to the mill.

Logs were skidded to the tramway with the aid of horses, mules or oxen. Av
erage-sized logs could be skidded with a pair of mules. Larger logs, or th ose
that needed to be moved some distance, were skidded with a high-wheel ed slip
tongue cart pulled by mules or oxen. Others were collected with fo ur- or
eight-wheeled wagons. At railside, they were piled into ramps.

Before steam loading equipment became readily available, the common meth od of
loading logs onto a wagon or rail car was known as a "cross-haul ". A chair or
cable was attached to the wagon, passed around the log and t hen back over the
wagon to a horse or mule team on the other side. Two m en steadied the log
while it was eased up a pair of poles to the wagon.

The steam loader was introduced just before 1900. The loader, in conjuncti on
with the steam skidder increased greatly the volume of board feet of lo gs
that could be loaded by a crew. This woods operation at Grayburg utiliz ed
both the steam skidder and loader. The skidder and loader crews ma de up an
important part of the workforce at the "front" or logging locatio n. The woods
crew was about 20% of the entire mill workforce.

Because the Thompson interests had grown dramatically since 1881, the offi ces
were moved to the Commercial National Bank building in Houston in 190 6. The
local operations were managed primarily by trusted family member s, but a
major portion of the growing business was handled from Houston.

The Thompson family was well known for philanthropic efforts. This Presbyt
erian church, erected in 1886 in Kilgore, was built through Thompson suppo rt.
The Thompson's were also major benefactors of Austin College in Sherma n, and
of the YMCA in Houston, among many other projects.

There are some interesting sidelights to the story of the Thompson family.

Back in Kilgore, the elder John Martin Thompson had a daughter, Lou Dell a,
who married W.R. Crim, a merchant in town. On December 28, 1930, when t he
second major oil well in the Kilgore area came in, it was on Crim prope rty.
Mrs. Crim had been deeded the land as her "worthless" portion of t he family
assets. This store, managed by Lou Della Crim's husband, was bui lt as a
general store at one of the original Thompson millsites in Kilgor e, and moved
to town in 1874.

John Lewis Thompson, son of John Martin Thompson, eventually became presid ent
of several of the family business concerns, including the Thompson a nd Tucker
Lumber Co. in Willard. When he left to serve in World W ar 1, he deeded 12,000
acres of land around the Willard millsite to his wi fe, Helen Kerr Thompson,
in the event he should not return. The mill had c losed in 1911 when the
available timber was cut over.

During Thompson's absence, Mrs. Thompson determined to develop a model agr
icultural and stock farm as a demonstration that land denuded of its timb er
could be made profitable. She renamed the area Woodlake, moved into wh at had
been the sawmill office, and went to work. Mrs. Thompson began wi th a high
grade of white-faced herefords, the first to come to Texas. Fr om there she
ventured into vegetables, notable tomatoes, as well as cotto n. At one time
she had one of the largest poultry operations in the sta te of Texas.

In 1933 a portion of Mrs. Thompson's land was sold to the U.S. Governme nt for
a New Deal rehabilitation plan, the Texas Rural Communities Projec t. The
experiment, operated much like a commune farm, provided housing a nd food for
100 relief families. Thompson lumber interests in Texas contin ued for many
years. Seven of John Martin Thompson's sons were active in t he business at
one time or another.

Of special note was J. Lewis Thompson - one of the staunch supporters a nd
forces behind the origination of what was to become the Texas Forest Se rvice.
He was also an important influence in the beginning of the reforest ation
movement in Texas.

(From Willard, the Thompson interests expanded to several millsites, the m ost
important being the Thompson Bros. Lumber Company at Doucette, a seco nd
Thompson and Tucker mill at New Willard, Thompson and Ford Lumber C o. at
Grayburg (Sour Lake), and the Rock Creek Lumber Company at Trinity.

Also see:  University of Houston Libraries, Thompson and Tucker Lumber Com
pany Collection 1898-1926

1851 Drennan roll: Delaware District, 1047

Sources: Starr's History of the Cherokee Indians, by Dr. Emmet Starr, Gra nt
Family 1-1-3-10-1-4

Listed on 1896 Choctaw Census # 327 "Choctaw in Chickasaw Nation"
Rejected on Choctaw Roll due to residence: Choctaw census card 6058, Rol l#
16073 pg. 196

In 1922 his wife, Anna, said he was born 09 Sep 1860. But this is question able
as it would put his birth after that of young John Joseph and John Ne wton
claims he remembers the death of the latter. John Newton also said hi mself
that "...don't remember my date of birth and that has always embarra sed me."
According to the source was married and living in Los Angel es in the 1920's.

His brother Archibald provided security for "John H. Thompson" in Greene C
ounty, Alabama on February 5, 1830. Noted as purchasing land in Greene Cou
nty, Alabama on 01 Dec 1823  Fed. Land Rec’d

Some sources list him as John Wiley Thompson

The Samuel Henry Families of East Tennessee genealogy lists him as Wiley.

John Thompson made the move to Whiteside County, Illinois along with his b
rother Hugh, ca. 1837. They were accompanied by other families from the Ne
wville area of Pennsylvania.

Enrolled in Company D. 14th Texas Infantry CSA in Rusk County, Texas on March
15, 1862. Killed in the battle of Jenkins Ferry in Arkansas.

Census: 1860 Smith County, Texas - Canton Beat - Troup Post Office - Pa ge 5B
Family #904-899; Mary E. O'Quin, affidavit, Muskogee, Creek Nation, Indian
Territory, March 19. 1903, MCR File 7124, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Muskogee,
Oklahoma; William C. Thompson, et al. vs. Choctaw Nation, M CR File 341,
Bureau of Indian Affairs, Muskogee, Oklahoma; Smith County, Texas marriage
records J-278; Mary Jane (Kerr) Thompson family bible in possession of Minnie
(O'Quinn) Leddy.

Battle of Jenkins Ferry, April 30, 1864:  Maj. Gen. Fred Steele's forces
retreated from Camden after being mauled at Marks' Mills and Poison Spring. On
the afternoon of April 29, the Union forces reached Jenkins' Ferry and began
crossing the Saline River, which was swollen by heavy rain. Rebel forces
arrived on the 30th and attacked repeatedly. The Federals repulsed the attacks
and finally crossed with all their men and supply wagons, many of which they
were compelled to abandon in the swamp north of Saline. The Confederates
bungled a good chance to destroy Steele's army, which after crossing the
river, regrouped at Little Rock.

Source: http://americancivilwar.com/statepic/ar/ar016.html

"East Texas Family Records" - Summer 1993 Vol. 17 #2 - Rusk County - Company
"D", 14th Regiment, Texas Infantry. Muster roll of Robert F. Wyly Co. in
Clark's Regiment, Texas Volunteers, commanded by Edward Clark, called into
service of Confederate States from 15th March 1862 for 12 months.
Place if muster - Bellview, Rusk Co., TX
Officers: A. A. Thompson - 5th Sergeant age 38 yrs
J. T. Thompson - 3rd Corporal age 33 yrs
Privates: J. L. Blackwell - 27 years

Sources:  MCR File 7124, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Muskogee, Oklahoma; Wil liam
C. Thompson, et al. vs. Choctaw Nation, MCR File 341, Bureau of Indi an
Affairs, Muskogee, Oklahoma; Choctaw Census Card 6058; Enrollment Numb er
16069; Listed on 1896 Choctaw Census # 327 "Choctaw in Chickasaw Nation "

[easterly.FTW]
BURIED AT FIELDERS CEMETERY BETWEEN HOMER AND BALD HILL COMMUNITIES

1851 Drennan roll: Tahlequah, 263
Clan: Long-Haired Clan (Mary Grant)
Starr's Notes: H293

The Thompson House History
In 1882, the Thompson House was built in Tahlequah, Oklahoma, by Johnson T
hompson. The house's architectural style is a blend of Queen Anne and Carp
enter Gothic. Johnson Thompson was a member of the Cherokee tribe, a merch
ant, and a member of the board responsible for building the Cherokee Fema le
Seminary. He built the house for his son, Dr. Joseph M. Thompson.

Joseph Thompson was a physician and a health officer for the Cherokee Nati on
and his duties included supervising the Cherokee Nation Orphanage and t he
Cherokee Nation Hospital for the mentally ill. The Thompson family liv ed in
the home until the 1930's.

The entire house is constructed with ten-foot ceilings. The layout of t he
first floor includes a kitchen, living room, parlor, dining room, sun p orch
and bathroom. The second floor has three bedrooms and a loom room. T he
original kitchen was located in the basement and a dumb waiter was us ed to
bring the food up to the dining room. In the 1930's, a porch was enc losed and
the area was later renovated into a modern kitchen. The indoor b athroom was
added in the early 1920's and the pedestal sink is dated 1917.

Following Dr. Thompson's death, the house was used as a boarding home f or
girls, the County Health Department, Fraternal Order of Police, and t he Job
Corps facility. The house was vacant from the late 1970's until res toration
was begun in the fall of 1985. It is on the state and national Re gister of
Historical Places.

The Cherokee County Civic Cultural Center (CCCCC) was formed to oversee t he
restoration efforts and activities of the Thompson House. It is a non-p rofit,
incorporated, 501(c) (3) organization. The county owns the house a nd the
CCCCC has a 99 year lease option for $1.00.

The Thompson House is currently used for weddings, receptions, art show s,
meetings, etc. In order to continue restoring and furnishing the hous e, the
CCCCC holds fundraisers each year, such as the July yard sale and t he
Victorian Christmas event the first weekend of December. The fees fr om
rentals and house tours also help raise funds for continuing restoratio n.

Quartermaster, 1st. Cherokee Regiment CSA