James H. Thompson, a pioneer of Oklahoma, is numbered among the successful agriculturists of Washington county, his home being on the Bartlesville-Nowata road. He was born at Lawrence, Kansas, October 20, 1867, and when but a year old he was brought to Indian Territory by his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Thompson, the mother passing away during his infancy. Lizzie Curleyhead, whose Delaware name is Pawnaquah, is an aunt of the subject of this review, and has reached the age of sixty-eight years. He also had three sisters Lily and Amanda, both deceased; and Lizzie, who is now Mrs. Whiteturkey and resides in Dewey.
Mr. Thompson is of the Delaware tribe and enjoys the rights extended by the government to his people. He engages in farming and stock raising and he and his family own two hundred and eighty acres of land, upon which there is some oil. His long residence in the state has made him thoroughly familiar with soil and climatic conditions here and he employs the most practical and progressive methods in the cultivation of his land, which he has brought to a high state of development and improvement.
In October, 1893, Mr. Thompson was united in marriage to Mrs. Sarah Wilson, a widow, who-by a former marriage has a son, James Buffalo. Mr. and Mrs. Thompson have become the parents of two children: Edward Leonard and Nora Bertha, both of whom are attending the Dewey high school. Edward received an allotment of 50 acres from the government.
Mr. Thompson’s farm is situated eleven miles east of Bartlesville and when he came here the region was wild and undeveloped, there being but one store on Turkey creek, and the town of Bartlesville had not then been founded. He has experienced all of the conditions of frontier life and has ever taken a deep and helpful interest in the welfare and progress of his community, his influence being at all times on the side of advancement and improvement. His life has been an active and useful one and he is numbered among the best known and most highly respected residents of this part of the state.