Will Thompson

Born in the state of Georgia, Will Thompson was educated at the Georgia Military Institute and at the age of sixteen enlisted in the Confederate army for service in the American Civil War. He was in the campaign of the Wilderness, the battles of Spottsylvania Court House, Cold Harbor and Petersburg and served through to the end of the war. He was a civil engineer, working in railroad and canal construction before being called to the bar in 1872.

He practiced law, firstly in a partnership with his brother Maurice, and later as personal attorney for the railroad tycoon James J. Hill. Supposedly inspired by his friend and neighbour, Lew Wallace, the author of “Ben Hur”, he took up writing and was a regular contributor to literary magazines for the rest of his life. His most famous poem “The High Tide at Gettysburg” is considered one of the finest works of Civil War poetry. In 1907 two strands of his life came together when, quoting from “High Tide at Gettysburg” in a closing address which was reported as having both judge and jury in tears, he defended his own son on a charge of first degree murder. The case ended in an acquittal on the grounds of insanity. Along with his brother Maurice, he was one of the founders of The American Archery Association in 1878 and was to win the national championship on five occasions between 1879 and 1908.