Thompson, John S. 1804-1891

THOMPSON, APPLEMAN, CLIFT

Posted By: Sharyl Ferrall - IAGenWeb volunteer
Date: 3/18/2020 at 16:08:32

It becomes our painful, but faithful duty to announce to the Argus readers the death of this worthy and useful man, and at the same time to give a short sketch of his life and career among us for the last half century.

Mr. Thompson was born in Scott county, Kentucky, on January 20th, 1804. His parents, Gilbert and Jane Thompson - the former Scotch and the latter Irish - after residing a few years in Maryland, emigrated to Kentucky, and after the subject of this sketch was nearly at manhood, the family emigrated to Pike county, Missouri in 1821.

As soon as Mr. Thompson was of full age, he embarked in the mercantile business, followed it for a short time, sold out his interest, and embarked in the stock business, and in both of these enterprises he made some money. He then came to Dubuque in 1836, with a large stock of groceries and provision store, making it a success, afterwards adding to this a large stock of dry goods. It was here that nearly fifty years ago the author of this sketch first made his acquaintance which continued uninterrupted until his death.

In 1844, Mr. Thompson came to Clayton county, entered some land, took a general look over the country, when his business capacity and his quick, perceptive mind saw that in no distant day the rich prairies of the county would soon be taken up by the actual settler, and converted into valuable and fertile farms.

Having on this trip formed the acquaintance of Elisha Boardman, he soon discovered that Mr. Boardman held a claim on one of the most valuable water powers in the whole state, and in his mind linking the rich land through the country with this power he saw in both a mine of wealth, and in 1846, he formed a partnership with Chester Sage and Timothy Davis; together they purchased the interest of Mr. Boardman in the power, as well as in a tract of land surrounding it, employed the then county surveyor, John M. Gay, to lay it out into lots.

Soon after the company came and began the work of erecting the mill. It is here that the history of Elkader begins, and whatever has been her prosperity from that hour to the present, it has been due to these three enterprising men.

In addition to the erection of the mill, the company built the stone store house now occupied by Wilke & Gossman, and stocked it with a large assortment of merchandise and by the income of the mill and this store the company made a large amount of money, which enabled its members in after years to embark in other enterprises with more or less success.

Mr. Thompson was not only the head of this firm, but he was its manager, and in this capacity he was known to every settler in the county, and to these early and first settlers he was always kind, obliging and accommodating, and no one in these early times ever asked a favor or a trust from him that he did not comply with, and in all of his dealings with these pioneers of a new country, he was strictly honest and honorable to the last cent, and he demanded the same punctual honesty upon all others in their dealings with him.

The settlers of those early days are nearly all gone now, but those of their children, who are alive to-day, have no doubt heard their fathers tell how in the work of making a new farm, and in getting their first crop, they were indebted to Mr. Thompson for their supply of everything necessary to live upon, until they could afterwards pay him with a first crop, and if that was a failure, he would patiently wait upon them for another season. Many of these trusts ran for years in this manner without being pushed or distressed for payment.

In 1858 his mill was burned down, but no pecuniary misfortune could befall him that would for a moment discourage him. In 1861, we find him again rebuilding his mill. During its completion he sold it, and built the mill at Clermont.

After having a complete success in all of his former enterprises, he in 1864, in connection with James O. Crosby and A.P. Dickenson built the Motor mill at a cost of over $50,000, but this has proved to have been an unprofitable enterprise for all parties concerned, and is now out of use and is still owned by Mr. Crosby and the heirs of John Thompson.

In 1859 a company was organized at McGregor under the name and style of the McGregor, St. Peters and Missouri Rail Road company, and Mr. Thompson was chosen as its president With out much means except such as Mr. Thompson furnished, the company broke ground, started a grade up the valley of Bloody run and continued it here and there in places beyond Monona.

As the company had not counted the cost, the enterprise became a complete failure, and the men, who had performed the manual labor, became clamorous for their pay, and while Mr. Thompson was making one of his usual trips from Clermont to McGregor, he was seized at Monona by a band of desperate men, conducted to McGregor, there placed under an armed guard, and required to pay them in full or forfeit his life.

By the advice of his friends he called in all the money he could get and paid the men in full, all of which was a dead loss and from which he never realized a single dollar.

Jed Brown, one of the company, afterwards sold the old grade to the McGregor Western Rail Road company, of which George Green was president, and realized a handsome sum of money, but I afterwards learned from Mr. Thompson that Mr. Brown never gave him a single dollar of the money.

About the same time another company was organized at McGregor called the Giard Land company, purchased the Spanish grant of about 6,000 acres, and began the sale of lots. From time to time large sums of money were received from these sales, but none of the company ever received a dollar of it, and what became of it is a mystery that will never be solved.

Mr. Thompson was largely interested in this company, having furnished the largest share of the purchase money, and we do not believe that he ever realized from it a single dollar. Why such a business man, as Mr. Thompson surely was, should leave Mr. Brown, and those who were handling the money from the sale of lots, to run on in such a loose manner year after year, without ever calling them to account, is beyond our comprehension. In that rail road, in the Spanish grant, and in the Motor mill, Mr. Thompson must have sunk a large fortune, and still he died leaving to his heirs quite a property.

The author of this has often seen John Lawler, John Thompson and Joseph Reynolds in close conversation together, when they were all looked upon as the three greatest and most skillful financiers and money kings of Iowa, and it would have been hard to have matched them in any country. Three better men never lived in any land, and it seems like a singular coincidence, that all three of them should vanish from among us for ever within a few weeks of each other.

To Mr. Thompson Clayton county owes a debt of gratitude for the enterprises he has both projected and completed within her limits which she can never pay.

Mr. Thompson was twice married, and leaves behind him two amiable and accomplished daughters, Mrs. Jane Appleman and Mrs. Nettie Clift, and it is due to these noble ladies to say that through both of their lives so far, they have clung to their kind old and indulgent father with a devotion and a care that was never for a single moment abated.

Mr. Thompson passed quietly away, seemingly without pain, on the 23rd, and at the ripe old age of 87 years. A fit, a neat and an appropriate ceremony was pronounced over his bier by the Rev. Mr. Perry, and his body was followed to its tomb chiefly by old men who had known and respected him in his life time.

Thus has passed away a man, who for nearly half a century has been an honorable and a conspicuous figure among us, and one whose memory will be cherished by those who loved and knew him best in life; one too, whose social qualities to all were of a high order, and whose long life among us is ended without a storm.
S. Murdock

~Elkader Argus, Wednesday, April 29, 1891

Note: burial is in the East Side cemetery, Elkader with his first wife Mary Jane who died in 1847. He was divorced from his 2nd wife Hannah M. in 1867.