Walter Thompson

In his active days, the Rev. Walter Thompson was a familiar and neighborly figure in the club. For several years he appeared among the faithful band of daily lunchers at the club. Open-hearted by nature, he made warm friends especially among those Centurions who shared his long association with the Hudson River Valley. In his calm, happy way he led a singularly rich and varied life. His major service as an Episcopal rector was from 1883 to 1898 at St. Philip’s in the Highlands, at Garrison-on-Hudson. Thereafter he traveled widely, in America, Europe, Asia and Africa. He found time, incidentally, to serve as vice-rector of St. Paul’s Church in Rome and as chaplain of the American Church in Luzerne, Switzerland. In addition, he wrote two books of travel and published a volume of “Sermons and Addresses.” His activities ranged over many fields. Early America interested him and among other posts, he served as trustee of the Putnam County Historical Society. A number of business corporations—in Troy, New York, where he was born, and elsewhere—counted him as a director. But the Hudson Valley became his home and was the center of his mature career. There he served in such posts as Chairman of the Putnam County Child Welfare Commission and there, at Garrison-on-Hudson, he passed his declining years.

Geoffrey Parsons
1939 Century Memorials