John Ernest Thompson (1869-1954) & Jane Bosomworth (1871-1944)

John Ernest Thompson

Biography of John Ernest Thompson by his granddaughter Karen Seely
A Brief Resume of the Lives of John Ernest Thompson and Jane Bosomworth Thompson by their daughter Jennie L. Thompson. Version with additional information.
Brief life sketch of John Ernest Thompson by Clarence E. Barrett
John Ernest Thompson family photos.
John Ernest Thompson and His Family, book compiled and edited by Kenneth Joseph Goates
Very brief summary of the family.
See news articles and obituary.
Thompson articles.
Picture of gravestone and life sketch.

The John Ernst Thompson family in front of their home in Borrowby, England. (left to right, Jane Bosomworth, John Henry, Edward Alva, Grace Emily, John Ernest, Jenny Louisa

John Ernest Thompson & Jane Bosomworth had 6 children: John Henry Thompson (often referred to as “J. Henry” or “Harry;” see his life sketch; see the obituary of his wife Lora Harmon), Caroline Mary Thompson, Jennie Louisa Thompson (also called Jen), Grace Emily Thompson (who married Francis Leland Seely, known as Jim), Edward Alva Thompson (also called Ted), and William Bosomworth Thompson (also called Bill).

John Ernest Thompson was born in Harrogate, England. He grew up in an affluent family. His father was John Thompson (see section below) a proper English gentleman, a successful businessman, and respected city councilman. As a young man, John Ernest traveled for his father’s company and saw much of the world, including Australia, India, the USA, and Canada. He was fluent in three languages, and could get by in four more.

He moved to Canada in 1894 and then to the United States. It was in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1894, that he married Jane Bosomworth, whose birthplace was only 30 miles from Harrogate, England.

Jane was born of the working class, very different from the aristocracy that John Ernest was born into. Although she didn’t earn any degrees, she was a smart woman and learned the fundamentals of nursing and became the most sought-after midwife around.

John and Jane didn’t want to live in England because of the criticism they received for marrying out of their class. But, when her mother got sick in 1908, they moved back to Barrowby, England. It was there that missionaries called at their home. They accepted the gospel in 1908 and moved to Utah in 1910.

This is the ship the family took from Liverpool, England to Boston, Mass. in May 1910. They arrived in Murray, Utah on May 31, 1910. John Ernest Thompson, Jane Bosomworth, John Henry, Jennie Louisa, Grace Emily, and Edward Alva.

John Ernest Thompson family in Murray, Utah in 1912. Left to right (front row: John Henry (age 16), Jane Bosomworth (age 41), William Bosomworth (10 months), John Ernest Thompson (age 45); (back row): Jennie Louisa (age 12), Edward Alva (age 8), Grace Emily (age 10).

After living a few years in Murray, he bought a farm in Almo, Idaho in 1914, and then was called by the Church to settle in Malta, Idaho. These were difficult years, eking out an existence in the barren sagebrush. He died in 1954.

John Ernest Thompson family at Reid Springs near Almo, Idaho in 1918. Left to right (front row): Grace Emily (age 16), William “Bill” Bosomworth (age 6), John Ernest (age 49), Jane Bosomworth (age 47); (back row): Sam Malmberg, John Henry (age 22), Edward Alva “Ted” Thompson (age 14)

John Ernest Thompson

Jane Bosomworth before her marriage

Jane Bosomworth in 1922

John Thompson (1824-1901) & Caroline Knapton (1824-1894)

They had 14 children: Caroline Louisa Thompson, John Ernest Thompson, George Arthur Thompson, Sarah Henrietta Thompson, Mary Eliza Thompson, William Edward Thompson, John Albert Thompson, Samuel Henry Thompson, Margaret Emily Thompson, (Daughter) Thompson, Sarah Eva Thompson, John Ernest Thompson, and James William Thompson.

John was a successful businessman and respected city councilman (carrying the title “Alderman”). He owned and operated John Thompson & Sons Fine Furniture Manufacturers in Harrogate and his family lived in a stately home. John was one of the founders of the United Free Methodists church. John entertained the King of England at his Kursel, a beautiful opera house where he had his own box in the center balcony. (Read more information about the Kursel or Kurssal.)

Home of Alderman John Thompson and Caroline Knapton

John Thompson

Caroline Knapton