James Frederick Thompson (5 October 1884 – 28 April 1966), often referred to as J. F. Thompson, was a New Zealand solicitor and politician for the National Party.

Early life

Thompson was born in 1884 in Westport. His parents, Selina "Lena" Junker and Thomas Fraser Thompson had married in 1882; his father was the first engineer for the Buller County. After his father's retirement, his parents moved from Westport to Greytown in the

Wairarapa The Wairarapa (; ), a geographical region of New Zealand, lies in the south-eastern corner of the North Island, east of metropolitan Wellington and south-west of the Hawke's Bay Region. It is lightly populated, having several rural service ...

to live with his brother Sinclair Thompson who farmed in the area.

Professional life and community involvement

Thompson worked for the Lands and Deeds Department in

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

. After part time study, Thompson graduated

LLB Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the China, People's Republic ...

from Victoria College in Wellington in April 1912 having majored in jurisprudence, property law, criminal law, and torts. The degree was conferred by the

University of New Zealand The University of New Zealand was New Zealand's sole degree-granting university from 1874 to 1961. It was a collegiate university embracing several constituent institutions at various locations around New Zealand. After it was dissolved in 196 ...

. In December 1912, he resigned from the Lands and Deeds Department to become a solicitor in the firm of Robert Ward Tate in Greytown. He also resigned his membership on the Athletics Council, where he had held positions since 1907. In early 1913, Thompson moved to Greytown. In 1918, he was admitted as a barrister of the

Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

. In February 1916, Thompson was elected as one of the stewards of the Wairarapa Trotting Club. In February 1919, he was elected the club's president. Decades later, in 1964, he was made a patron of the club. By 1919, Thompson was the president of the Greytown Chamber of Commerce.

Political career

Thompson was a member of the Wairarapa Hospital Board from 1919, representing the combined Greytown and Carterton boroughs. In April 1925, Thompson responded to a deputation that he would not want to stand for the Greytown mayoralty. In March 1938, it became known that Thompson was one of five candidates for the National Party nomination for the electorate. He was successful over

Jimmy Maher James Patrick Maher (born 27 February 1974) is an Australian former cricketer, who played One Day Internationals. He is "an attractive left-handed batsman with a clumping cover-drive". Maher competed in the Gladiator Team Sports Challenge i ...

(who became an MP in 1946) and Henry Featherston Toogood (father of

Selwyn Toogood Selwyn Featherston Toogood (4 April 1916 – 27 February 2001) was a New Zealand radio and television personality. Early life and family Born in Wellington on 4 April 1916, Toogood was the son of Henry Featherston Toogood and Ethel Lois Co ...

). At the general election in October 1938, Thompson was beaten by the incumbent from the Labour Party, Ben Roberts. He was appointed a member of the

New Zealand Legislative Council The New Zealand Legislative Council was the upper house of the General Assembly of New Zealand between 1853 and 1951. An earlier arrangement of legislative councils for the colony and provinces existed from 1841 when New Zealand became a co ...

on 22 June 1950. He was appointed as a member of the

suicide squad The Suicide Squad is an antihero/supervillain team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The first version of the Suicide Squad debuted in ''The Brave and the Bold'' #25 (September 1959) and the second and modern version, cre ...

nominated by the

First National Government The Anniversary of the First National Government ( es, Primer gobierno patrio) is a public holiday of Argentina, commemorating the May Revolution and the creation of the Primera Junta on May 25, 1810, which is considered the first patriotic govern ...

in 1950 to vote for the abolition of the Council. Most of the new members (like Thompson) were appointed on 22 June 1950, and served until 31 December 1950 when the Council was abolished. Abolition was voted for on 15 August 1950.

Family and death

In December 1912, he became engaged to Ryda Thornton, the daughter of a solicitor from

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; mi, Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from , the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Th ...

. Thornton and Thompson married on 19 February 1914 at St Peter's Church in Wellington. In 1916, the Thompsons bought a large Victorian house at 40 Kuratawhiti Street. The house had been built by the solicitor and former mayor of Greytown, Henry Stratton Izard, in the early 1890s (Izard was the younger brother of Charles Hayward Izard and son of

Charles Beard Izard Charles Beard Izard (4 December 1829 – 23 October 1904) was a 19th-century Member of Parliament and lawyer in Wellington, New Zealand. Biography Early life Izard was born in Brighton, England, and educated at King's College London and Magdale ...

). Izard sold the house in 1906 to a Mr White following his bankruptcy, and White sold the house in 1916 to Thompson. The Thompsons would live at the house for the rest of their lives. In 1919, a 20-ha woodland was put up for sale opposite Thompson's house. He suggested to the borough council that the land be bought as a memorial park for fallen soldiers, which was acted on. After WWII, a memorial swimming pool was built in the park and the site developed into a sportsground. In 1932, Thompson was ill for a long time. Upon medical advice, he went to

Rarotonga Rarotonga is the largest and most populous of the Cook Islands. The island is volcanic, with an area of , and is home to almost 75% of the country's population, with 13,007 of a total population of 17,434. The Cook Islands' Parliament buildings a ...

for recuperation. Initially, he was due to leave in June but was too sick to travel. He returned in November 1932. Thompson's father died in Blenheim during a family visit in 1924; his body was found in the Omaka River. Thompson's brother Sinclair died suddenly in his sleep in 1929 aged 40 in Carterton. Their mother died in 1938 at

Masterton Masterton ( mi, Whakaoriori), a large town in the Greater Wellington Region of New Zealand, operates as the seat of the Masterton District (a territorial authority or local-government district). It is the largest town in the Wairarapa, a r ...

Hospital. Thompson died on 28 April 1966. His wife had died in 1962.

Honours

In the 1956 Queen's Birthday Honours, Thompson was appointed a

Member of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

, in recognition of his services as president of the Greytown Chamber of Commerce.

References