John Thompson - Biographical Information
John Thompson was one of the accomplices of bushranger Frederick Ward aka Captain Thunderbolt. He was a member of Thunderbolt's first gang, along with McIntosh and Thomas Hogan. The gang operated in the north-western plains in early 1865.
The following biographical information was discovered while undertaking research for the book Captain Thunderbolt and his Lady: the true story of bushrangers Frederick Ward and Mary Ann Bugg (Allen & Unwin, 2011).
For information about the gang's activities, see Timeline: 1865 - First Gang.
For narrative about Thompson that was left out of Captain Thunderbolt and his Lady because of space limitations, see the following blog posts:
John Thompson - Part 1
John Thompson - Part 2
John Thompson - Part 3
The adjacent photograph of John Thompson was taken in 1872 when he was re-admitted to Darlinghurst Gaol awaiting trial. The photo is included in Edgar Penzig's Bushrangers: - Heroes or Villains: the truth about Australia's wild colonial boys (Trantor Enterprises, Katoomba, 1988). Unfortunately this volume of Darlinghurst gaol photos has disappeared from State Records of NSW so the original photo can no longer be viewed.
Circa Feb 1865: Thunderbolt joined by John Massey Thompson: c1847/8: born London, one of 16 children born to William Thompson and his wife Eliza (nee Massey, daughter of Irish clergyman Andrew Creagh Massey); (NB. a John Massey Thompson was born on 17 Dec 1847 at London to William, a labourer, & Eliza Thompson however the occupation ‘labourer’ is confusing as Thompson Snr was clearly a middle-class clerical type – perhaps the occupation was an error); c.1852: family reportedly arrived in NSW (John Thompson later claimed to have arrived on the Surry but no such ship arrived around that time); 1857: father William Thompson, Inspector of Water Closets, appointed also to position of Assistant to Inspector of Nuisances (note: also had a brother Henry Thompson who resided in George Street, Waterloo, in 1873, and in the mid-1860s a brother who worked for the Sydney Morning Herald); 1859: John Thompson was an apprentice to John Brown, master of the brig Venus; 1864/5: employed on Terrehihi (Terri Hi-Hi) station by Mr Bowman’s superintendent, Mr Sullivan, until around Jan 1865 when he threatened to shoot the superintendent and left taking a horse with him, having frequently expressed a wish to join the bushrangers (NB. the newspaper claims that he had previously worked for Mr Cousins at Terriaro were later reported to be incorrect; also his mother’s claims that he had worked for a Mr James Harnett on the Culgoa River are questionable as no references to this man have been found in Police Gazettes, newspapers, directories &c.). General information: protestant; carpenter/labourer; reads & writes; description: variously recorded as 5’6-6¾” or 5’9”, slight build, fair complexion, light hair, no beard, bluish-grey eyes, mole on right arm, 2nd finger on right hand disjointed in middle, two small moles on right jaw; mole on left side of neck; one witness claimed Thompson was ‘stupid looking’ but other reports disputed this[1]
Jan-May 1865: See Timeline: 1865 - First Gang for details of the gang’s activities
25 Apr 1865: John Thompson reported to be lying in a serious condition at Millie Inn; 28/29 Apr: telegrams sent from Tamworth & Sydney report that Thompson was dead, but information incorrect; Apr/May: committed for trial by Wee Waa Bench on two charges of robbery under arms and initially allowed to bail as police made no objection, but offer revoked two hours later by magistrate (questions about the bail offer were raised in Parliament and the Magistrate was ultimately rebuked but not fired); pre-13 May: conveyed to Gunnedah then to Tamworth where lodged in gaol; 10 Jun: escaped from Tamworth Gaol but recaptured the same day; 27 Jun: pleaded guilty at Tamworth Quarter Sessions and sentenced to two concurrent terms of 15 years on the roads; additional description: gunshot wound on left cheek/jaw and on left side of neck, gunshot wound on right side of the back and on the right side of the front of his body, several bullet wounds on rump, several scars on legs, bullet wounds right leg; 9 Jul: received at Maitland Gaol; 10 Jul: forwarded to Darlinghurst Gaol and received there: 4 Dec: his mother petitions Prince Alfred for a mitigation of his sentence; 28 Jul 1868: admitted to Cockatoo Island; 7 Oct 1869: transferred to Darlinghurst Gaol; 11 Nov 1869: transferred to Parramatta Gaol; 1 Aug 1870: found with skeleton key and hook in his possession; 5 Aug: incarcerated in dark cells on bread & water for 28 days; 13 Sep: transferred to Berrima Gaol; 12 Oct: incarcerated in dark cells for three days for communicating with fellow prisoners contrary to regulations; 24 Apr 1871: readmitted to Parramatta Gaol with sentence commuted to 7 years; 3 Feb 1872: Attorney-General James Martin authorises his release from gaol on 25 Jun on the grounds of his extreme youth at the time of the crimes and the term already served; 26 Jun: discharged from Parramatta Gaol; 11 Dec: with two other men broke into dwelling-house in Sydney – they were captured but Thompson fired at the police and escaped; 22 Dec: ‘John Thompson alias Thunderbolt’ was spotted in court watching his partners’ hearing and was caught and admitted to Darlinghurst Gaol: 23 & 31 Dec: appeared before the Water Police Court and committed for trial; 27 Feb 1873: tried before Justice Hargrave at Sydney Criminal Court and sentenced to 10 years hard labour on the roads; 24 Mar: forwarded to Berrima Gaol and later transferred to Parramatta Gaol; Feb 1881: released from Parramatta Gaol (according to Police Gazette but not listed in Parramatta Gaol Discharge Book); 16 Aug 1882: ‘James Jamieson alias Thompson alias Thunderbolt’ with two others attempted to rob the Australian Mutual Provident society on corner of George and Campbell Streets, Sydney; 23 Aug: appeared before Central Police Court on that and other charges and committed for trial; 7 Nov 1882: convicted of a shop robbery committed on 24 July; 8 Nov 1882: sentenced to ten years on the roads for same crime; 7 Nov 1882: also tried for shooting Constable Chapman with intent to murder him on 16 Aug but when jury hadn’t reached a verdict after 36 hours, he was acquitted; 10 Nov 1882: charged with having broken into a shop on 12 Aug, and found not guilty; gaol records missing making his movements thereafter difficult to trace however Truth included an article about his activities in 1892[2]
Sources
[1] Maitland Gaol - Description Book: John Thompson, 1865 [SRNSW ref: 5/758 Year 1865 No.235; Reel 2371]; Darlinghurst Gaol - Description Book: John Thompson, 1865 [SRNSW ref: 4/6310 Year 1865 No.1689; Reel 861]; Cockatoo Island – Transportation Register (Colonial): John Thompson, 1868 [SRNSW ref: 4/6575 p.7; Reel 607]; Parramatta Gaol – Entrance Book: John Thompson, 1869 [SRNSW ref: 4/6537, Year 1869 No.782; Reel 804]; Sydney Morning Herald 4 Jul 1859 p.5 3 May 1865 p.8 (from Tamworth Examiner 29 Apr), 17 May p.5 (from Tamworth Examiner 13 May); Maitland Ensign 29 Apr 1865 p.4; Maitland Mercury 2 May 1865 p.3; NSW Police Gazette 1865 No.17 (26 Apr 1865) p.156; CSIL [SRNSW ref: 1/2159 No.71/7325]; Sydney Morning Herald 28 Feb 1873 p.2; Clerk of the Peace – Depositions for Sydney Circuit: John Thompson alias Thunderbolt, Feb 1873 [SRNSW ref: 9/6559 No.951 Deposition 16]. Re father William Thompson: Probate Packet [SRNSW ref: 14/3395 No.6877], Sydney Morning Herald 19 May 1857 p.5, 9 Jun p.4, 6 Jul p.3, 14 May 1863 p.7; Cox’s Australian Almanac 1857 p.182; Sand’s Sydney Directory 1858 p.15; Waugh’s Australian Almanac 1859 p.219. Re mother Eliza Massey Thompson: Death Certificate [RBDM 1870/373], Sydney Morning Herald 21 Jul 1859 p.1, 17 Feb 1870 p.1; Re John Thompson’s London birth in 1847 [www.Ancestry.com]
[2] NSW Police Gazette 1865 No.18 (3 May 1865) p.169, No.20 (17 May 1865) p.185, No.30 (26 Jul 1865) p.271, No.46 (15 Nov 1865) p.401, 1872 No.27 (3 Jul 1872) p.184, No.51 (18 Dec 1872) pp.332 & 337, 1873 No.2 (8 Jan 1873) p.16, No.12 (10 Mar 1873) p.90, 1881 No.5 (2 Feb 1881) p.41; Brisbane Courier 1 May 1865 p.2, 1 Jan 1873 p.2; Argus 1 May 1865 p.5, 6 Jun p.6, 4 Jul p.5; Maitland Mercury 13 May 1865 p.3, 20 Dec 1866 p.4, 19 Aug 1882 p.3, 9 Nov p.5, 14 Nov. p.11; Armidale Express 13 May 1865 p.4 (from Tamworth Examiner 6 May), 8 Jul 1865 p.3; Sydney Morning Herald 10 May 1865 p.5 (from Tamworth Examiner), 17 May p.5 (from Tamworth Examiner 13 May ), 24 May p.4, 7 Jun p.3, 20 Jun (from Tamworth Examiner 17 Jun), 5 Aug p.5, 24 Dec 1872 pp.3 & 5, 28 Feb 1873 p.2, 25 Aug 1882 p.7, 8 Nov p.10, 9 Nov p.7, 11 Nov. pp.7 & 12; CSIL: Re John Thompson’s escape from Tamworth Gaol [SRNSW ref: 4/522 No.65/2711]; CSIL: Re Wee Waa magistrate, 1865 [SRNSW ref: 5/554 No. 65/3590]; Maitland Gaol - Entrance Book: John Thompson, 1865 [SRNSW ref: 5/747 p.169 No.235; Reel 2368] & Maitland Gaol - Entrance Book [SRNSW ref: 5/758 Year 1865 No.235; Reel 2371]; Darlinghurst Gaol - Entrance Book: John Thompson, 1865 [SRNSW ref: 5/1897, Year 1865 No.1689; Reel 2338] & 1869 [SRNSW ref: 5/1899, Year 1869 No.3201; Reel 2340] & Darlinghurst Gaol - Description Book, 1865 [SRNSW ref: 4/6310 Year 1865 No.1689; Reel 861] & 1869 [SRNSW ref: 4/6312, Year 1869 No.3201; Reel 863]; Cockatoo Island – Transportation Register (Colonial): John Thompson, 1868 [SRNSW ref: 4/6575 p.7; Reel 607]; Parramatta Gaol – Entrance Book: John Thompson, 1869 [SRNSW ref: 4/6537 p.186 No.782 & p.217 No.1137; Reel 804] & Description Book [SRNSW ref: 4/6560, p.124 No.782 & p.186 No.1137; Reel 812]; Darlinghurst Gaol - Entrance Book: John Thompson alias Thunderbolt, 1872 [SRNSW ref: 5/1902 Year 1872 No.4993; Reel 2341]; CSIL: Petitions for mercy [SRNSW ref: 1/2159 No.71/7325] & Re John Thompson’s transfers [SRNSW ref: 1/2140 Item 71/1896]; Clerk of the Peace – Depositions for Sydney Circuit: John Thompson alias Thunderbolt, Feb 1873 [SRNSW ref: 9/6559 No.951 Deposition 16]; Notebook of Justice Hargrave, 27 Feb 1873 [SRNSW ref: 2/4396 pp.3-15]; Truth 21 Feb 1892
Jan-May 1865: See Timeline: 1865 - First Gang for details of the gang’s activities
25 Apr 1865: John Thompson reported to be lying in a serious condition at Millie Inn; 28/29 Apr: telegrams sent from Tamworth & Sydney report that Thompson was dead, but information incorrect; Apr/May: committed for trial by Wee Waa Bench on two charges of robbery under arms and initially allowed to bail as police made no objection, but offer revoked two hours later by magistrate (questions about the bail offer were raised in Parliament and the Magistrate was ultimately rebuked but not fired); pre-13 May: conveyed to Gunnedah then to Tamworth where lodged in gaol; 10 Jun: escaped from Tamworth Gaol but recaptured the same day; 27 Jun: pleaded guilty at Tamworth Quarter Sessions and sentenced to two concurrent terms of 15 years on the roads; additional description: gunshot wound on left cheek/jaw and on left side of neck, gunshot wound on right side of the back and on the right side of the front of his body, several bullet wounds on rump, several scars on legs, bullet wounds right leg; 9 Jul: received at Maitland Gaol; 10 Jul: forwarded to Darlinghurst Gaol and received there: 4 Dec: his mother petitions Prince Alfred for a mitigation of his sentence; 28 Jul 1868: admitted to Cockatoo Island; 7 Oct 1869: transferred to Darlinghurst Gaol; 11 Nov 1869: transferred to Parramatta Gaol; 1 Aug 1870: found with skeleton key and hook in his possession; 5 Aug: incarcerated in dark cells on bread & water for 28 days; 13 Sep: transferred to Berrima Gaol; 12 Oct: incarcerated in dark cells for three days for communicating with fellow prisoners contrary to regulations; 24 Apr 1871: readmitted to Parramatta Gaol with sentence commuted to 7 years; 3 Feb 1872: Attorney-General James Martin authorises his release from gaol on 25 Jun on the grounds of his extreme youth at the time of the crimes and the term already served; 26 Jun: discharged from Parramatta Gaol; 11 Dec: with two other men broke into dwelling-house in Sydney – they were captured but Thompson fired at the police and escaped; 22 Dec: ‘John Thompson alias Thunderbolt’ was spotted in court watching his partners’ hearing and was caught and admitted to Darlinghurst Gaol: 23 & 31 Dec: appeared before the Water Police Court and committed for trial; 27 Feb 1873: tried before Justice Hargrave at Sydney Criminal Court and sentenced to 10 years hard labour on the roads; 24 Mar: forwarded to Berrima Gaol and later transferred to Parramatta Gaol; Feb 1881: released from Parramatta Gaol (according to Police Gazette but not listed in Parramatta Gaol Discharge Book); 16 Aug 1882: ‘James Jamieson alias Thompson alias Thunderbolt’ with two others attempted to rob the Australian Mutual Provident society on corner of George and Campbell Streets, Sydney; 23 Aug: appeared before Central Police Court on that and other charges and committed for trial; 7 Nov 1882: convicted of a shop robbery committed on 24 July; 8 Nov 1882: sentenced to ten years on the roads for same crime; 7 Nov 1882: also tried for shooting Constable Chapman with intent to murder him on 16 Aug but when jury hadn’t reached a verdict after 36 hours, he was acquitted; 10 Nov 1882: charged with having broken into a shop on 12 Aug, and found not guilty; gaol records missing making his movements thereafter difficult to trace however Truth included an article about his activities in 1892[2]
Sources
[1] Maitland Gaol - Description Book: John Thompson, 1865 [SRNSW ref: 5/758 Year 1865 No.235; Reel 2371]; Darlinghurst Gaol - Description Book: John Thompson, 1865 [SRNSW ref: 4/6310 Year 1865 No.1689; Reel 861]; Cockatoo Island – Transportation Register (Colonial): John Thompson, 1868 [SRNSW ref: 4/6575 p.7; Reel 607]; Parramatta Gaol – Entrance Book: John Thompson, 1869 [SRNSW ref: 4/6537, Year 1869 No.782; Reel 804]; Sydney Morning Herald 4 Jul 1859 p.5 3 May 1865 p.8 (from Tamworth Examiner 29 Apr), 17 May p.5 (from Tamworth Examiner 13 May); Maitland Ensign 29 Apr 1865 p.4; Maitland Mercury 2 May 1865 p.3; NSW Police Gazette 1865 No.17 (26 Apr 1865) p.156; CSIL [SRNSW ref: 1/2159 No.71/7325]; Sydney Morning Herald 28 Feb 1873 p.2; Clerk of the Peace – Depositions for Sydney Circuit: John Thompson alias Thunderbolt, Feb 1873 [SRNSW ref: 9/6559 No.951 Deposition 16]. Re father William Thompson: Probate Packet [SRNSW ref: 14/3395 No.6877], Sydney Morning Herald 19 May 1857 p.5, 9 Jun p.4, 6 Jul p.3, 14 May 1863 p.7; Cox’s Australian Almanac 1857 p.182; Sand’s Sydney Directory 1858 p.15; Waugh’s Australian Almanac 1859 p.219. Re mother Eliza Massey Thompson: Death Certificate [RBDM 1870/373], Sydney Morning Herald 21 Jul 1859 p.1, 17 Feb 1870 p.1; Re John Thompson’s London birth in 1847 [www.Ancestry.com]
[2] NSW Police Gazette 1865 No.18 (3 May 1865) p.169, No.20 (17 May 1865) p.185, No.30 (26 Jul 1865) p.271, No.46 (15 Nov 1865) p.401, 1872 No.27 (3 Jul 1872) p.184, No.51 (18 Dec 1872) pp.332 & 337, 1873 No.2 (8 Jan 1873) p.16, No.12 (10 Mar 1873) p.90, 1881 No.5 (2 Feb 1881) p.41; Brisbane Courier 1 May 1865 p.2, 1 Jan 1873 p.2; Argus 1 May 1865 p.5, 6 Jun p.6, 4 Jul p.5; Maitland Mercury 13 May 1865 p.3, 20 Dec 1866 p.4, 19 Aug 1882 p.3, 9 Nov p.5, 14 Nov. p.11; Armidale Express 13 May 1865 p.4 (from Tamworth Examiner 6 May), 8 Jul 1865 p.3; Sydney Morning Herald 10 May 1865 p.5 (from Tamworth Examiner), 17 May p.5 (from Tamworth Examiner 13 May ), 24 May p.4, 7 Jun p.3, 20 Jun (from Tamworth Examiner 17 Jun), 5 Aug p.5, 24 Dec 1872 pp.3 & 5, 28 Feb 1873 p.2, 25 Aug 1882 p.7, 8 Nov p.10, 9 Nov p.7, 11 Nov. pp.7 & 12; CSIL: Re John Thompson’s escape from Tamworth Gaol [SRNSW ref: 4/522 No.65/2711]; CSIL: Re Wee Waa magistrate, 1865 [SRNSW ref: 5/554 No. 65/3590]; Maitland Gaol - Entrance Book: John Thompson, 1865 [SRNSW ref: 5/747 p.169 No.235; Reel 2368] & Maitland Gaol - Entrance Book [SRNSW ref: 5/758 Year 1865 No.235; Reel 2371]; Darlinghurst Gaol - Entrance Book: John Thompson, 1865 [SRNSW ref: 5/1897, Year 1865 No.1689; Reel 2338] & 1869 [SRNSW ref: 5/1899, Year 1869 No.3201; Reel 2340] & Darlinghurst Gaol - Description Book, 1865 [SRNSW ref: 4/6310 Year 1865 No.1689; Reel 861] & 1869 [SRNSW ref: 4/6312, Year 1869 No.3201; Reel 863]; Cockatoo Island – Transportation Register (Colonial): John Thompson, 1868 [SRNSW ref: 4/6575 p.7; Reel 607]; Parramatta Gaol – Entrance Book: John Thompson, 1869 [SRNSW ref: 4/6537 p.186 No.782 & p.217 No.1137; Reel 804] & Description Book [SRNSW ref: 4/6560, p.124 No.782 & p.186 No.1137; Reel 812]; Darlinghurst Gaol - Entrance Book: John Thompson alias Thunderbolt, 1872 [SRNSW ref: 5/1902 Year 1872 No.4993; Reel 2341]; CSIL: Petitions for mercy [SRNSW ref: 1/2159 No.71/7325] & Re John Thompson’s transfers [SRNSW ref: 1/2140 Item 71/1896]; Clerk of the Peace – Depositions for Sydney Circuit: John Thompson alias Thunderbolt, Feb 1873 [SRNSW ref: 9/6559 No.951 Deposition 16]; Notebook of Justice Hargrave, 27 Feb 1873 [SRNSW ref: 2/4396 pp.3-15]; Truth 21 Feb 1892