Walter N. Thompson Obituary
December 20, 1901
Death of Walter N. Thompson
Take a minute to appreciate how obituaries were written in the early 20th century.
Transcription
BANK VILLAGE.
Death of Walter N. Thompson
Walter Newton Thompson, a well known and highly esteemed resident, was called home at an early hour, Christmas morning. His friends have known for some time that he was failing, but none realized the end was so near. With all the possibilities and anticipations of life before him he bore, his protracted illness manfully.
He was born, July 17, 1867, and came to Bank Village from West Townsend, where his father, Rev. William R. Thompson, was for some time pastor of the Baptist church. He attended our public schools and academy, making many friends in the years of his w school life, who were not confined to his own age, for older people noticed and admired his quiet, courteous and fr respectful deportment.
On June 16, be 1896, he married Miss Bessie M., eldest daughter of Postmaster C. L. Tarbell, and herself postmistress at Center village. He has since been called to positions of trust, which his good judgment and fidelity to duty have enabled him to fill with ability and success. One of his latest efforts was directed towards having his ward placed in a suitable and comfortable home for the winter. Deceased was the last of his generation on the maternal side. from
He leaves a wife and two little sons, Philip M., four years, and William T. not yet three, besides his father. The full sympathy of the townspeople is with the bereaved family, to whom his presence has brought cheer and sunshine.
"There is no death! What seems so
is transition;
This life of mortal breath
is but a suburb of the life elysian, Whose portal we call death."James Roger diary entry
March 8, 1909 (Monday)
Frosty fine day wind west to north David and Hamish put sawdust in Hall. I filled lamps and kept up fires in Church & Hall. David, Hh Dan & W. Hardy drove to Greenville in afternoon. Got notes for Henry S. Royce. Masonic meeting tonight. Mrs. Bucknam called in afternoon, also Misses Wilbur & Letlow
The writer of this obit seems to have researched and put deliberation and imagination into the piece. You often don’t see such quality in contemporary published obits. I wonder why nowadays capable people sometimes don’t bother to write a decent obituary for a loved one. Yet I’ve also known situations where one sends a nicely home-written obit to a funeral home only to have their staff butcher it and forward a dumbed-down version to the newspapers as part of their “service” to the surviving family. Learning to write obituaries that honor long-deceased relatives or notable townsfolk would be an interesting assignment for high-school English students.
What relation if any was the deceased to Pearl Steele Thompson, educator extraordinaire, who taught generations of New Ipswich kids?
My nephew's headstone has a QR code on it that leads to photos displayed at his funeral and parts of the ceremony. He is buried in the Greenville cemetery off of Rt. 31.