Henry W. Thompson

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Henry William Thompson (2 March 1839 – 21 September 1906) was an English-born sailor, ship’s chandler, and politician in South Australia. He was born in Rotherhithe, London, the son of a shipbuilder, and went to sea at an early age. He served in the Royal Navy during the Crimean War, mainly in the Black Sea aboard HMS Queen. After the navy, he worked at sea briefly before moving to South Australia in 1860, where he joined the coastwise service. He later worked for Clarke, McKenzie & Co., ship’s chandlers at Port Adelaide, until the business was sold in 1871. He married Mary Maguire on 16 May 1863.

Thompson was active in local government, serving many years on the Port Adelaide Council and as mayor from 1881 to 1882. In the early 1880s he helped form the Naval Reserve and held the first commission granted in South Australia, retiring as a commander after about eight and a half years of service. He became a Justice of the Peace in 1880, served on the Destitute Commission (1883–1885), and was a charter member and the second president of the State Children’s Council. He was a member of St. Bede’s Church in Semaphore.

Although he unsuccessfully sought a seat in the House of Assembly, Thompson was elected to the South Australian Legislative Council for the Central district on 3 May 1902 and served until his death in 1906 from throat cancer. He was buried at Woodville cemetery. Henry and Mary had two sons and four daughters.