From: Mercer County History 1984 submitted by Susan Thompson
Raleigh Ballard Thompson
Born August 9, 1885, Raleigh Ballard Thompson was the third of nine children born to George Washington Thompson (January 21, 1858) and Susan Frances Thompson (b. February 3, 1959) daughter of Sampson G. Meadows and Mary Skeens Meadows. Their other children were Buren Grant, Vergia Delaney, Sarah Elizabeth, Delphia Florence, Beulah Estaline, Mary Gertrude, Nina Winifred and Porter Thompson. The family resided on a farm near Elgood, West, Virginia, where George's parents Eli Thompson (b) 1829) and Sarah Shrewsberry Thompson ( b. 1833), daughter of Phillip Shrewsberry and Elizabeth Bailey Shrewsberry, had lived. Eli Thompson was a descendant of James O. Thompson, the Revolutionary War soldier. James was a lieutenant under Captain Matthew Arbuckle and was
stationed at the Fort at Point Pleasant, Virginia, in 1775. He was Captain of the Militia of Monroe County, Virginia, prior to 1784. George Washington Thompson was robbed and killed September 28, 1916. He
is buried in the family cemetery on the farm. His wife, Susan, continued to reside on the farm unti her death February 3, 1935,. She is also buried in the family cemetery.