William H. Thompson (Nebraska politician)

William H. Thompson
1933 photo by International News Service
United States Senator from Nebraska
In office May 24, 1933 – November 6, 1934
Appointed by	Charles W. Bryan
Preceded by	Robert B. Howell
Succeeded by	Richard C. Hunter
Personal details
Born	(1853-12-14)December 14, 1853 Perrysville, Ohio, U.S.
Died	June 6, 1937(1937-06-06) (aged 83) Grand Island, Nebraska, U.S.
Political party	Democratic

William Henry Thompson (December 14, 1853 – June 6, 1937) was a Nebraska Democratic Party politician.

Born in Perrysville, Ohio, Thompson attended Upper Iowa University in Fayette, Iowa, from 1872 to 1875, then graduated from the University of Iowa law school in 1877, being admitted to the bar the same year. He started practicing law in what was then known as Brush Creek, Iowa, but is now known as Arlington, Iowa. He moved to Grand Island, Nebraska, in 1881, practiced law and did some banking as well.

Thompson became Grand Island's city attorney from 1887 to 1888, then in 1890 lost an election for U.S. Representative to the 52nd Congress. He was a member of the board of trustees for Grand Island College in 1893, and served as mayor of Grand Island from 1895 to 1898. He was a member of the Democratic National Committee from 1896 to 1900 and again from 1920 to 1924.

In 1902, Thompson ran unsuccessfully for governor against John H. Mickey. He became a member of the Nebraska Capitol Commission, which oversaw the creation of a new capitol. Thompson served as an associate justice of the Nebraska Supreme Court from 1924 to 1931. In 1933, when Senator Robert B. Howell died in office, Governor Charles W. Bryan appointed Thompson to fill the vacant seat. He did not run in the subsequent special election, and fellow Democrat Richard C. Hunter was elected to succeed him.

Thompson died in Grand Island, Nebraska, on June 6, 1937, and was interred in Grand Island Cemetery.

• List of mayors of Grand Island, Nebraska

1. "Thompson, William Henry". The Political Graveyard. Retrieved January 13, 2006.
2. "Thompson, William Henry". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved January 13, 2006.

•  This article incorporates public domain material from the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress

• William H. Thompson at Find a Grave