San
Joaquin County
Biographies
WILLIAM HENRY THOMPSON
Among the prosperous and progressive
agriculturists and viticulturists of San Joaquin County, is William Henry
Thompson, now living retired, but still interested in that most attractive
industry, grape culture. He was born on
his father’s ranch in San Joaquin County, about two miles south of Lodi on
August 10, 1873, a son of James Edward and Angeline (Pope) Thompson. The father, James E. Thompson, was born in
Arkansas in 1839 and when he was twenty-one years old he started across the
plains with his parents. They came with
ox-team train consisting of twenty-eight wagons, arriving in California in 1861,
and their first stopping place was Woodbridge. The father mined at Copperopolis
in the early days; later coming to the Lodi district he bought a ranch three
and a half miles from Lodi in the Alpine School District and it was in this
school that our subject received his education; he is one of a family of five
children, namely: John, Katherine, Mrs.
Goodwin of Lodi; William Henry; Amelia, residing in Alameda; Bert died at the
age of thirteen. The father acquired 240
acres of land in the Lodi section and set five acres to vineyard and two acres
to an almond orchard. Before his death,
he sold his entire property and removed to Lodi where he passed away at the age
of seventy-seven years; the mother still lives in Lodi at the age of
seventy-five years.
William Henry Thompson was occupied assisting
his father in the management of the home ranch until he was twenty-eight years
old, then he bought fifteen acres on the Lockeford Road two and a half miles
east of Lodi; nine acres he set to Zinfandel grapes and five acres to Tokay
grapes and he built a comfortable house on the place with good farm
buildings. He was married in Stockton on
November 11, 1903, to Miss Lulu Beckman, born on the same
ranch and in the same house as her husband, a daughter of William and Sophie
(Fox) Beckman, born in Germany and Sonora, California, respectively. William Beckman came to California when about
sixteen years old, locating at Lodi, where he married Sophia Fox, a daughter of
John and Minnie (Hackie) Fox, pioneers of Sonora, California. William Beckman died on his farm and his
widow now resides in Lodi. They had six
children: Lulu, Mrs. Thompson; Mrs. Emma
Tucker of Fresno; Albert of Stockton; Edith resides with her mother; Charles
and Eugene of Lodi; the latter served overseas in the 91st Division.
Mr. and Mrs. Thompson lived on their
ranch for eight years after their marriage, then sold it and bought a house and
lot on Cherokee Lane east of Lodi. About
six years ago he purchased a residence in Lodi and moved to town and in 1920 he
bought six lots on the corner of Sargent Road and Quimby Avenue and has erected
an oil service station and store on the corner and has it leased. Mr. Thompson has an eight-year lease on a
twenty-five acre Tokay vineyard just north of the corner of Stockton and Almond
Avenue one and a half miles south of Lodi.
Mr. and Mrs. Thompson are the parents of three children: Verde Bernice, William Edward and Vernon
Henry, and in politics both are Republicans.
Mr. Thompson is a member of the Maccabees of Lodi and Mrs. Thompson is a
member of Lodi Parlor, N. D. G. W., and also of the auxiliary to the American
Legion and W. R. C., and both are members of the Lodi Methodist Episcopal
Church.
Transcribed by V. Gerald Iaquinta.
Source: Tinkham, George
H., History of San Joaquin County, California , Pages
1546-1547. Los Angeles, Calif.: Historic
Record Co., 1923.
© 2012 V. Gerald Iaquinta.
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