Richard Wigginton Thompson
Richard Wigginton Thompson was born on
8 June 1809, in Culpepper County,
Virginia. He left Virginia in
1831 and lived briefly in
Louisville, Kentucky before finally settling in Lawrence County,
Indiana. There, he taught school, kept a store, and studied law at night. Admitted to the Bar in
1834, he practiced law in
Bedford, Indiana, and served four terms in the Indiana Legislature from
1834 to
1838. He served as President Pro Tempore of the Indiana Senate for a short time and briefly held the office of Acting Lieutenant Governor. In the
Presidential Election of
1840, he zealously advocated the election of
William Henry Harrison. Thompson then represented Indiana in the
United States Congress, serving in the
United States House of Representatives from
1841 to
1843 and again from
1847 to
1849.
Following the American Civil War, Thompson served as judge of the 18th Circuit Court of the state of Indiana from 1867 to 1869. In 1877, President of the United States Rutherford B. Hayes appointed him Secretary of the Navy; and he held that office until 1881.
Retiring to Indiana, Richard W. Thompson lived out the remainder of his days in his adopted state. He died on 9 February 1900, at Terre Haute, Indiana.
The United States Navy destroyer USS Thompson (DD-305) was named in his honor.