Andrew Thorburn Thompson
Encyclopedia
Andrew Thorburn Thompson (May 27, 1870 - April 20, 1939) was a military officer, editor, lawyer and a third generation political figure in Canada.
Thompson was born in Seneca Township and raised at Ruthven Park Estate
, now designated as Ruthven Park National Historic Site; located just north of Cayuga, Ontario
. His father, David Thompson was a businessman and political figure who sat in the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada
and then the Canadian House of Commons
. His grandfather, also named David, had sat in the 1st
and 2nd Legislative Assemblies
for the United Province of Canada
representing Haldimand County
.
A lawyer and editor, he was elected to the House of Commons as the Liberal
Member of Parliament
for Haldimand and Monck
in the 1900 federal election
defeating former Conservative cabinet minister Walter Humphries Montague
by less than 150 votes.
Due to redistribution
, Thompson's riding was abolished and in the 1904 federal election
, he ran for re-election in the redrawn district of Haldimand
but was defeated by his Conservative opponent by less than 300 votes.
During World War I
, Thompson was lieutenant colonel
of the 114th Regiment composed of white and First Nations
soldiers from Thompson's home region of the Haldimand County area.
In 1923, he was chosen by the deputy superintendent general of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police
to lead a one-man inquiry into the disturbances on a Six Nations
reserve and the demands by Cayuga nation
hereditary chief Deskaheh
for recognition of the rights of his people after he threatened to take his complaints to the League of Nations
along with demands for an independent state under Article 17 of the League's Covenant
. As Thompson had commanded Iroquois
soldiers during World War I he was seen as a mediator who could be trusted by both sides. However, Thompson's Commission to Investigate and Report upon the Affairs of the Six Nations Indians issued a report that recommended that the hereditary council that governed the reserve be replaced by an elected council thus depriving Deskaheh of his right to speak for the Six Nations. The new council was elected in October 1924.
Thompson was born in Seneca Township and raised at Ruthven Park Estate
Indiana, Ontario
Indiana is an old village site—a ghost town -- now within the precincts of the Ruthven Park National Historic Site, 1 km north of Cayuga, in Haldimand County, Ontario, Canada. The site was also referred to as "Deans" as late as 1940-1951, when it was marked on a map published by C. Tarling & Co...
, now designated as Ruthven Park National Historic Site; located just north of Cayuga, Ontario
Cayuga, Ontario
Cayuga is an unincorporated community and county seat in the province of Ontario, Canada located at the intersection of Highway 3 and Munsee Street and along the Grand River in Haldimand County. Cayuga is about a 20 minute drive from Lake Erie and 30 minutes south of Hamilton and 115 minutes south...
. His father, David Thompson was a businessman and political figure who sat in the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada
Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada
The Legislative Assembly of the Province of Canada was the lower house of the legislature for the Province of Canada, which consisted of the former provinces of Lower Canada, then known as Canada East and later the province of Quebec, and Upper Canada, then known as Canada West and later the...
and then the Canadian House of Commons
Canadian House of Commons
The House of Commons of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign and the Senate. The House of Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 308 members known as Members of Parliament...
. His grandfather, also named David, had sat in the 1st
1st Parliament of the Province of Canada
The 1st Parliament of the Province of Canada was in session from June 15, 1841 to 1843. Elections were held in the Province of Canada in April 1841. All sessions were held at Kingston, Canada West....
and 2nd Legislative Assemblies
2nd Parliament of the Province of Canada
The 2nd Parliament of the Province of Canada was in session from November 28, 1844 to December 1847. Elections were held in the Province of Canada in October 1844...
for the United Province of Canada
Province of Canada
The Province of Canada, United Province of Canada, or the United Canadas was a British colony in North America from 1841 to 1867. Its formation reflected recommendations made by John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham in the Report on the Affairs of British North America following the Rebellions of...
representing Haldimand County
Haldimand County, Ontario
Haldimand is a rural city-status single-tier municipality on the Niagara Peninsula in Southern Ontario, Canada, on the north shore of Lake Erie, and on the Grand River. Municipal offices are located in Cayuga....
.
A lawyer and editor, he was elected to the House of Commons as the Liberal
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...
Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
for Haldimand and Monck
Haldimand and Monck
Haldimand and Monck was a federal electoral district represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1892 to 1904. It was located in the province of Ontario.It was created in 1892 from parts of Haldimand and Monck ridings....
in the 1900 federal election
Canadian federal election, 1900
The Canadian federal election of 1900 was held on November 7 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 9th Parliament of Canada. As a result of the election, the Liberal Party, led by Prime Minister Wilfrid Laurier, was re-elected to a second majority government, defeating the...
defeating former Conservative cabinet minister Walter Humphries Montague
Walter Humphries Montague
Walter Humphries Montague, PC was a Canadian politician. He was a federal cabinet minister in the governments of Mackenzie Bowell and Charles Tupper, and subsequently a provincial cabinet minister in the Manitoba government of Rodmond Palen Roblin...
by less than 150 votes.
Due to redistribution
Redistribution (election)
Redistribution , called redistricting in the United States, is the process of changing of political borders. This is a form of boundary delimitation that changes electoral district boundaries, usually in response to periodic census results that cause malportionment of representation...
, Thompson's riding was abolished and in the 1904 federal election
Canadian federal election, 1904
The Canadian federal election of 1904 was held on November 3 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 10th Parliament of Canada...
, he ran for re-election in the redrawn district of Haldimand
Haldimand (electoral district)
Haldimand was a federal electoral district in the province of Ontario, Canada, that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1867 to 1892 and from 1904 to 1953. It was created by the British North America Act of 1867....
but was defeated by his Conservative opponent by less than 300 votes.
During World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, Thompson was lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
of the 114th Regiment composed of white and First Nations
First Nations
First Nations is a term that collectively refers to various Aboriginal peoples in Canada who are neither Inuit nor Métis. There are currently over 630 recognised First Nations governments or bands spread across Canada, roughly half of which are in the provinces of Ontario and British Columbia. The...
soldiers from Thompson's home region of the Haldimand County area.
In 1923, he was chosen by the deputy superintendent general of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police
Royal Canadian Mounted Police
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police , literally ‘Royal Gendarmerie of Canada’; colloquially known as The Mounties, and internally as ‘The Force’) is the national police force of Canada, and one of the most recognized of its kind in the world. It is unique in the world as a national, federal,...
to lead a one-man inquiry into the disturbances on a Six Nations
Iroquois
The Iroquois , also known as the Haudenosaunee or the "People of the Longhouse", are an association of several tribes of indigenous people of North America...
reserve and the demands by Cayuga nation
Cayuga nation
The Cayuga people was one of the five original constituents of the Haudenosaunee , a confederacy of American Indians in New York. The Cayuga homeland lay in the Finger Lakes region along Cayuga Lake, between their league neighbors, the Onondaga to the east and the Seneca to the west...
hereditary chief Deskaheh
Deskaheh
Levi General, commonly known as Deskaheh, , was a Haudenosaunee statesman noted for his persistent efforts to get recognition for his people. Raised and educated as a traditional Cayuga, he became hereditary chief of the Cayuga with the title "'Deskaheh'"...
for recognition of the rights of his people after he threatened to take his complaints to the League of Nations
League of Nations
The League of Nations was an intergovernmental organization founded as a result of the Paris Peace Conference that ended the First World War. It was the first permanent international organization whose principal mission was to maintain world peace...
along with demands for an independent state under Article 17 of the League's Covenant
Covenant of the League of Nations
-Creation:Early drafts for a possible League of Nations began even before the end of the First World War. A London-based study group led by James Bryce and G. Lowes Dickinson made proposals adopted by the British League of Nations Society, founded in 1915. Another group in the United States—which...
. As Thompson had commanded Iroquois
Iroquois
The Iroquois , also known as the Haudenosaunee or the "People of the Longhouse", are an association of several tribes of indigenous people of North America...
soldiers during World War I he was seen as a mediator who could be trusted by both sides. However, Thompson's Commission to Investigate and Report upon the Affairs of the Six Nations Indians issued a report that recommended that the hereditary council that governed the reserve be replaced by an elected council thus depriving Deskaheh of his right to speak for the Six Nations. The new council was elected in October 1924.