William A. Thompson (born December 16, 1864, in Greenwich, New York – 1925) was an engineer with the

United States Army Corps of Engineers , colors = , anniversaries = 16 June (Organization Day) , battles = , battles_label = Wars , website = , commander1 = ...

who managed improvements on the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it f ...

Thompson's career

Thompson attended high school in Greenwich, and college at the

University of Vermont The University of Vermont (UVM), officially the University of Vermont and State Agricultural College, is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Burlington, Vermont. It was founded in 1791 and is amon ...

with a degree in

civil engineering Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads, bridges, canals, dams, airports, sewage ...

in 1878.USACE document on William A. Thompson
WARNING: .pdf file He joined the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers that year. He worked at

Rock Island, Illinois Rock Island is a city in and the county seat of Rock Island County, Illinois, Rock Island County, Illinois, United States. The original Rock Island, from which the city name is derived, is now called Rock Island Arsenal, Arsenal Island. The popul ...

, until 1885. He was then placed in charge of the suboffice in

La Crosse, Wisconsin La Crosse is a city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of La Crosse County. Positioned alongside the Mississippi River, La Crosse is the largest city on Wisconsin's western border. La Crosse's population as of the 2020 census w ...

. In 1896 he moved to La Crosse, and was appointed the Assistant Engineer in charge of the improvements on the

from

Winona, Minnesota Winona is a city in and the county seat of Winona County, in the state of Minnesota. Located in bluff country on the Mississippi River, its most noticeable physical landmark is Sugar Loaf. The city is named after legendary figure Winona, who ...

, to

Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin Prairie du Chien () is a city in and the county seat of Crawford County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 5,506 at the 2020 census. Its ZIP Code is 53821. Often referred to as Wisconsin's second oldest city, Prairie du Chien was esta ...

. He held that post until his death in 1925.

Dredge named after Thompson

A USACE dredge is named after him was designed in 1935. The dredge was built by

Dravo Corporation Dravo Corporation was a shipbuilding company with shipyards in Pittsburgh and Wilmington, Delaware. It was founded by Frank and Ralph Dravo in Pittsburgh in 1891. The corporation went public in 1936 and in 1998 it was bought out by Carmeuse for $1 ...

, and christened in 1937 by Thompson's granddaughter. The dredge arrived in its home in

Fountain City, Wisconsin Fountain City is a small city bordering the Mississippi River in Buffalo County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 859 at the 2010 census. History Fountain City was originally called Holmes' Landing, after Thomas Holmes, who settled ...

, on May 22, 1937. It worked on the upper

, St. Croix River, and

Illinois River The Illinois River ( mia, Inoka Siipiiwi) is a principal tributary of the Mississippi River and is approximately long. Located in the U.S. state of Illinois, it has a drainage basin of . The Illinois River begins at the confluence of the D ...

until 2006.

References

1864 births 1925 deaths American marine engineers Engineers from New York (state) People from Greenwich (town), New York People from La Crosse, Wisconsin {{US-engineer-stub