Summary Information
Thompson Family Papers and Photographs
1861-1988
WVM Mss 1553
0.5 linear ft. (1 archives box and one flat box) of papers and 0.2 linear ft. (1 folder, 5 tintype folders, and 7 cartes de visite folders) of photographs.
Wisconsin Veterans Museum (Map)
Papers and photographs pertaining to members of the Thompson family of Rubicon, Wisconsin who served in the Civil War. Papers include correspondence and biographical material about the family. The bulk of the correspondence includes letters written by Jackson Thompson to his future wife, Sarah Throne, while he was serving with the 7th Wisconsin Light Artillery. In the letters, Jackson describes daily life as a soldier, the general health of himself and fellow soldiers, and the daily activities associated with military life. He also writes frequently about his love for Sarah and his hope the war would end so he could return to her. Jackson also describes interactions with Southern civilians and freed slaves. In one letter (August 23, 1862), Jackson describes an incident in which he states his unit freed slaves that were white from a Southern home. Another letter (October 12, 1862) describes Jackson witnessing the transportation of Confederate prisoners, and provides details of their condition and health. He also relays general updates about the movement of his unit and about skirmishes and battles. One letter (August 24, 1864) describes in detail the Second Battle of Memphis, which was a Confederate cavalry raid on Union positions under the command of Nathan Bedford Forrest. The letter provides information about the raid and how Jackson escaped capture. In another interesting letter (April 28, 1865), he describes witnessing the explosion and sinking of the SS Sultana, a steamer that sunk when a boiler exploded. The ship had been transporting recently paroled Union prisoners of war, and it is estimated that 1600 passengers were killed in the accident. Jackson provides details of the accident, and how he assisted in rescuing survivors from the Mississippi River. Other correspondence includes letters written by Sarah to Jackson and letters written to Sarah by her brother, John Throne. The letters written by Sarah generally describe news from home, her desire for the war to end and Jackson to return home, and news she has heard about the war. One letter (December 25, 1864) includes a poem she wrote expressing her love for Jackson. The letters from John Throne include descriptions of his unit's movements, daily life in the military, and his desire for the war to end so he could return home. One letter (November 18, 1864) states that he was arrested for disobeying orders and could not leave his quarters. Additional manuscripts include photocopies of biographical material and service records for members of the Thompson family, as well as photocopies of magazine articles which contain transcriptions of letters wrote by Jackson and Sarah. Photographs are a mix of tintypes and carte-de-visite images of various members of the Thompson family. Tintypes include images for Jackson Thompson, Elisha Thompson, William Thompson, and Alfred Thompson, all brothers who served in the Civil War. Also included is a tintype of John Throne. All of the images show the men in their uniforms and have tint applied to their buttons and cheeks. Alfred, who served in the Iron Brigade, is seen wearing his Hardee hat. The carte-de-visites include images of Alfred Thompson, Elisha Thompson, Laura Thompson, and Stephen Thompson. Also included are images of Sarah Throne, and two fellow soldiers who served in the 7th Light Artillery, Charles A. J. Higgins and Charles E. Munn. Two additional black and white paper photographs show the tombstones of Jackson and Elisha, and a copy photograph of an original image of Elisha, Jackson, and Laura sometime after the Civil War are also part of the collection.
English
http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.wvm-mss01553
Biography/History
Jackson Thompson was born in 1835 in New York State. According the census records, his parents, Stephen and Patience Thompson, moved to Rubicon, Wisconsin sometime before 1850. Jackson was working as a farmer when he enlisted for service in the 7th Wisconsin Light Artillery in 1861. He was captured at the Battle of Parker's Cross Roads and spent time as a prisoner of war until being paroled in a prisoner exchange. Jackson returned to service with the 7th Light Artillery and later mustered out of service in 1865. After the war, Jackson married Sarah Throne and eventually settled in Seymour, Wisconsin, where he lived until his death in 1900.
Sarah Throne was born in Pennsylvania sometime around 1842. According to census records, her family moved to Oconomowoc, Wisconsin sometime before 1850. Sarah maintained correspondence with Jackson Thompson while he was serving in the Civil War. The two married in 1865 and the couple eventually settled in Seymour, Wisconsin.
Alfred Thompson was born in 1840 in Pennsylvania. The Thompson family moved to Rubicon, Wisconsin sometime before 1850. Alfred enlisted with Company I, 6th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment in 1861. He was wounded during the Battle of Gettysburg, but he recovered and had returned to his unit by 1864. Alfred was taken prisoner during the Battle of the Wilderness (Virginia) and died of disease while being held at a prisoner of war camp in Charleston, South Carolina. Alfred was the brother of Jackson, William, and Elisha Thompson.
Elisha Thompson was born in 1839 in New York State. He moved with his family to Rubicon, Wisconsin sometime before 1850. In 1861, Elisha enlisted with the 7th Wisconsin Light Artillery along with his brother, Jackson. He was captured at the Battle of Parker's Cross Roads and was later released during a prisoner exchange. After mustering out in 1865, Elisha returned to Wisconsin and married his wife, Sarah. The couple eventually settled in Seymour, Wisconsin, where he lived until his death in 1930. Elisha is the brother of Alfred and William Thompson.
William Thompson was born in Pennsylvania in 1847. He moved with his family to Rubicon, Wisconsin sometime before 1850. William enlisted with Company I, 35th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment in 1864 and mustered out with the rest of the unit in 1866. After the war, William returned to Wisconsin and later married Sarah Shane. The couple would later divorce, and William would eventually settle in New Lisbon, Wisconsin and died in 1928.
John Throne was born in Pennsylvania in 1840. According to census records, his family moved to Oconomowoc, Wisconsin sometime before 1850. He was working as a farmer in Morton, Wisconsin when he enlisted in Company F, 28th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment. During the war, he maintained correspondence with his sister, Sarah Throne. After the war, John returned to Wisconsin and married his wife, Esther. The family eventually settled in Fairchild, Wisconsin.
Charles A. J. Higgins was born around 1843 in Racine, Wisconsin. He enlisted with the 7th Wisconsin Light Artillery Regiment in 1861 and served as the unit's bugler. He served with the unit until mustering out in 1865. After the war, Higgins moved to Missouri with his wife, Florida, where he worked as a farmer. He eventually settled in King City, Missouri, where he died in 1889. Higgins served in the same unit as Jackson and Elisha Thompson.
Charles E. Munn was born in New York State around 1837. According to census records, he was living in Wisconsin and working as a farmer by 1860. In 1861, Charles enlisted in the 7th Wisconsin Light Artillery and served with the unit until mustering out of service when his term expired in 1864. After the war, Munn married Auguletta Russell in Fairfield, Ohio. The couple eventually moved back to Wisconsin, where Munn entered a hospital in Winnebago, Wisconsin and died in 1878. Munn served in the same unit as Jackson and Elisha Thompson.
Scope and Content Note
The Thompson Family Collection is organized into two series: Papers and Photographs.
Papers (1862-1988) is comprised primarily of sixty-two original letters written by Jackson Thompson, Sarah Throne, and John Throne. The vast majority of the letters were written by Jackson Thompson to Sarah Throne and span the years 1862 through 1865. The letters are evenly spread between the dates, with the exception being only four letters from 1863. Jackson was taken prisoner at Parker's Cross Roads (December 31, 1862), and was later released in a prisoner exchange. He was sent to Camp Randall in Madison, Wisconsin after his release and before he rejoined his unit in Tennessee. A letter dated March 28, 1863 states that he was at Camp Randall and verifies that he and other released prisoners from his unit were waiting to rejoin the 7th Artillery. There are two letters in particular that describe historically significant events. The letter dated April 28, 1865 describes the sinking of the SS Sultana, the worst maritime disaster in American history, in great detail. His description of the Second Battle of Memphis (August 24, 1864) also provides a detailed account of the cavalry attack experienced by the 7th Wisconsin Light Artillery. Subsequent letters written after the attack describe the stress he felt from the surprise raid, with one letter (October 11, 1864) specifically stating he was on edge ever since. The letters from Jackson also express his growing love for Sarah. Each subsequent letter he writes includes more talk of his love for her, and of his desire for the war to end to return to her and his family. The letters written by Sarah to Jackson are from 1864 and 1865, with the majority dated from the latter year. They also center on her love of Jackson and her own desire that the war end soon. The also provide insight into the life of a young woman living in Wisconsin during the Civil War. Sarah includes information about socializing with other town members, engaging in dances and social clubs, and how Sarah and her sister, Maggie, made a life in Wisconsin by running a boarding house for migrant workers. The letters from John Throne to Sarah do not provide the details that Jackson included in his letters. John's letters generally discuss military life and his desire for the war to end soon, but do not provide in depth discussion of battles or other events. He does provide an account of how he was arrested for disobeying orders (November 18, 1864), which gives a look into military police practices during the Civil War. Some of the letters are addressed to the family instead of just to Sarah, but the information he writes about remains the same. The miscellaneous correspondence folder includes a letter written by Sarah to her sister, Maggie, a letter written by P. Darlington to someone that was her schoolmate, and two other unidentified manuscripts written around the time of the Civil War. The identity of the recipient of the P. Darlington letter is unclear and at the time, Darlington was living in Detroit, Michigan. The two other manuscripts are small notes that do not appear to be the handwriting of Jackson, Sarah, or John. Biographical material includes photocopies of records of various service records and pension documents, along with census data, handwritten accounts, and a newspaper article describing the descendants of Elisha Thompson. Biographical material is included pertaining to Charles A. J. Higgins and Charles E. Munn. It is likely that the images for both men were friends of either Jackson or Elisha, and their images were kept in the collection by decedents of the Thompson brothers. Also included are articles wrote for New Month magazine by Stephen Tomski, that feature transcriptions of a selection of letters by Sarah and Jackson. Researchers should note, however, that these transcriptions may not be perfectly accurate.
Photographs (1861-1985) are comprised primarily of tintypes and carte-de-visite of members of the Thompson Family. Tintypes include images of only the Thompson brothers and John Throne, and show the men in their uniforms. Carte-de-visite images include those of Alfred, Elisha, Charles Higgins, and Charles Munn in uniform, along with an image of Sarah Throne. Also included is an image of Stephen Thompson, father of the brothers, and Laura Thompson, sister of the brothers.
Administrative/Restriction Information
Presented by Steven Hartzheim, Appleton, WI, 2012. Accession Number: Mss 2012.17.
Processed by Andrew J. Baraniak in 2012.
Contents List
|
Series: Papers
|
|
|
Subseries: Biographical Information
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
1
|
Alfred Thompson
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
2
|
Elisha Thompson
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
3
|
Jackson Thompson
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
4
|
William Thompson
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
5
|
Thompson Family
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
6
|
John Throne
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
7
|
Charles A. J. Higgins
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
8
|
Charles Munn
|
|
|
Subseries: Correspondence
|
|
|
Box
2
Folder
1-5
|
Jackson Thompson to Sarah Throne [35] , 1862-1865
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
9
|
John Throne to family [10] , 1862-1865
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
10
|
Sarah Throne to Jackson Thompson [13] , 1864-1865
|
|
|
Box
2
Folder
6
|
Miscellaneous [4] , 1865, undated
|
|
|
Box
1
Folder
11
|
New Month Magazine article transcriptions, 1986-1988
|
|
|
Series: Photographs
|
|
|
Subseries: Alfred Thompson
|
|
|
PhOv
39
Folder
14
|
Carte de visite , [between 1861-1864]
|
|
|
PhTt
3
Folder
5
|
Tintype , [between 1861-1864]
|
|
|
Subseries: Elisha Thompson
|
|
|
PhOv
39
Folder
15
|
Carte de visite , [between 1861-1865]
|
|
|
PhTt
3
Folder
1
|
Tintype , [between 1861-1865]
|
|
|
Ph
25
Folder
7
|
Tombstone, circa 1985
|
|
|
Subseries: Jackson Thompson
|
|
|
PhTt
3
Folder
2
|
Tintype , [between 1861-1865]
|
|
|
Ph
25
Folder
7
|
Tombsone , circa 1985
|
|
|
PhOv
39
Folder
16
|
Laura Thompson , circa 1865
|
|
|
PhOv
39
Folder
17
|
Stephen Thompson , circa 1865
|
|
|
PhTt
3
Folder
3
|
William Thompson , [between 1864-1865]
|
|
|
Ph
25
Folder
7
|
Thompson family copy photograph, undated
|
|
|
PhTt
3
Folder
4
|
John Throne , [between 1862-1865]
|
|
|
PhOv
39
Folder
18
|
Sarah Throne, circa 1865
|
|
|
PhOv
39
Folder
19
|
Charles Higgins , [between 1861-1865]
|
|
|
PhOv
39
Folder
20
|
Charles Munn , [between 1861-1864]
|
|
|
