William Townsend Thompson (May 23, 1860 – June 20, 1939) was an American lawyer who served as Nebraska Attorney General and Solicitor of the United States Treasury.
Biography William Thompson was born near Fennimore, Wisconsin, on May 23, 1860. After being orphaned at age 11 he was raised first by a family friend, and later by an older, married sister in Pottawattamie County, Iowa. At age 19 he began attending Simpson College in Indianola, Iowa, teaching school to pay his tuition, and also studying law.Lincoln: The Capital City and Lancaster County, Nebraska, edited by Andrew J. Sawyer, Volume 2, 1916, pages 167 to 169
In 1884 Thompson was admitted to the bar in Des Moines. He practiced for a year in Indianola, and then relocated to Central City, Nebraska.Herringshaw's American Statesman and Public Official Yearbook: 1907/08, edited by Thomas William Herringshaw, page 531
A Republican, Thompson served a term as Merrick County Attorney (1889 to 1901) before serving two terms in the Nebraska House of Representatives, 1899 to 1901 and 1903 to 1905.Portrait and biographical album of the state officers and members of the, edited by Daniel M. Carr, 1903, page 157
In 1905 he moved to Lincoln and from 1905 to 1907 Thompson served as Nebraska's Deputy Attorney General.Nebraska Blue Book, published by Nebraska Legislative Reference Bureau, 1918, page 12
In 1906 Thompson was elected state Attorney General. He served until October, 1910, when he resigned to accept appointment as Solicitor of the Treasury. He served until 1913, when he resigned and returned to Lincoln, and the position was filled by Felix A. Reeve as acting solicitor of the treasury. Thompson continued to practice law in Lincoln.Miscellaneous, The Green Bag: A Useless but Entertaining Magazine for Lawyers, February, 1911, page 110
Thompson died in Lincoln on June 20, 1939.Newspaper article, William T. Thompson; Nebraskan Once Solicitor of the United States Treasury, New York Times, June 21, 1939
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