These are the names of the first state senators, with their counties:
Adams, Franklin, and Okanagan County, F. H. Luce
Asotin and Garfield County, C. G. Austin
Chehalis County, C. T. Wooding
Clallam County, Jefferson, and San Juan, Henry Landes
Clarke County, L. B. Clough
Columbia County, H. H. Wolfe
Cowlitz County, C. E. Forsythe
Douglas and Yakima County, J. M. Snow
Island and Skagit County, Thomas Paine
King County, W. D. Wood, J. H. Jones, 0. D. Gilfoil, John R. Kinnear, W. V. Rinehart
Kitsap and Mason County, W. H. Kneeland
Kittitas County, E. T. Wilson
Klickitat and Skamania County, Jacob Huusaker
Lincoln County, J. H. Long, Lewis; H. W. Fairweather
Pacific and Walikiakum County, B. A. Seaborg
Pierce County, John S. Baker, L. F. Thompson, Henry Drum (Drum was the one democrat in the senate)
Snohomish County, Henry Vestal
Spokane County, Alexander Watt, E. B. Hyde, B. C. Van Houton
Spokane and Stevens County, H. E. Houghton
Thurston County, N. H. Owings
Walla Walla County, Platt A. Preston, Geo. T. Thompson
Whatcom County, W. J. Parkinson
Whitman County, John C. Lawrence, J. T. Whaley, A. T. Farris
First Representatives of Washington
Adams County, W. K. Kennedy
Asotin County, William Farrish
Chehalis County, R. L. Nims, J. D. Medcalf
Clallam County, Amos F. Shaw, John D. Geoghegan, S. S. Cook, Clarke; A. B. Luce
Columbia County, A. H. Weatherford, H. B. Day
Cowlitz County, Chandler Huntington, Jr.
Douglas County, E. D. Nash
Franklin County, C. H. Flummcrfell
Garfield County, W. S. Oliphant
Island County, George W. Morse
Jefferson County, Joseph Kuhn
King County, J. T. Blackburn, W. C. Rutter, W. II. Hughes, Alex. Allen, W. J. Shinn, George Bothwell, F. W. Bird, F. B. Grant
Kitsap County, M. S. Drew
Kittitas County, J. N. Power, J. P. Sharp
Klickitat County, Bruce F. Purdy, R. H. Blair
Lewis County, S. C. Herren, Charles Gilchrist
Lincoln County, P. R. Spencer, T. C. Blackfan
Mason County, John McReavy
Okanagan County, Barry Hamilton
Pacific County, Charles Foster
Pierce County, George Browne, A. Hewitt, George B. Kandle, Oliff Peterson, James Knox, Stephen Judson
San Juan County, J. E. Tucker
Skagit County, J. E. Edens, B. D. Minkler
Skamania County, George IT. Stevenson
Snohomish County, Alexander Robertson, A. H. Eddy
Spokane County, J. W. Feighan, J. E. Gandy, S. G. Grubb, J. S. Brown, A. K. Clarke, E. B. Dean
Stevens County, M. A. Randall
Thurston County, W. G. Bush, Francis Rotch
Walikiakum County, Joseph G. Megler
Walla Walla County, Joseph Painter, Z. K. Straight, James Cornwall
Whatcom County, R. W. Montray, George Judson
Whitman County, J. C. Turner, E. R. Pickerell, J. T. Peterson, R. H. Hutchinson, B. R. Ostrander
Yakima County, John Cleman
The democrats in the house were Weatherford, Nash, Flummerfell, McReavy, Judson, and Stephenson, and Seattle, Ex-gov. Watson C. Squire. These were the principal aspirants, although Ex-congressman Voorhees of Colfax was in the field, with Chauncey W. Griggs of Tacoma. S. C. Hyde of Spokane Falls withdrew before the election.
Thompson was the youngest man in the race. He was born in Wisconsin in 1853, was educated in the common schools of Burlington, and learned the trade of carpentry. At 18 years of age he began to go west, living a few months in Iowa, in Hebron, Nebraska, 2 years, where he was deputy county treasurer. On attaining his majority in 1873, he formed a law partnership, and in 1875 was admitted to practice. He also organized a bank, and engaged in stock raising and various undertakings, in which he was successful. In 1883 he removed to Washington, locating in Tacoma, where he purchased the bank of A. J. Baker, organizing the Merchants’ National Bank, of which he became president. From a capital of $50,000 it has increased to $250,000. Out of his wealth he donated $20,000 to establish a training school of manual skill at Tacoma. He served in the legislature in 1886, and was elected to the senate in 1887-8.