Hugh French Thomason

Hugh French Thomason
Hugh French Thomason
Member of the; Arkansas House of Representatives; from Crawford County
	In office; January 10, 1887 – January 14, 1889
Preceded by	J. H. Huckleberry
Succeeded by	Lee Neal
Member of the Arkansas Senate; from the 25th district
	In office; January 10, 1881 – January 12, 1885
Preceded by	E. P. Watson
Succeeded by	J. M. Pettigrew
Delegate from Arkansas; to the Provisional Congress; of the Confederate States
	In office; May 18, 1861 – February 17, 1862
Preceded by	New constituency
Succeeded by	Constituency abolished
Personal details
Born	February 22, 1826; Smith County, Tennessee, U.S.
Died	July 30, 1893 (aged 67); Van Buren, Arkansas, U.S.
Resting place	Fairview Cemetery,; Van Buren, Arkansas, U.S.; 35°26′28.3″N 94°21′01.7″W / 35.441194°N 94.350472°W
Political party	Democratic
Profession	Lawyer

Hugh French Thomason (February 22, 1826 – July 30, 1893) was an American politician who served as Arkansas state representative from Crawford County from 1887 to 1889 and as Arkansas state senator from 1881 to 1885. He previously served in the Provisional Congress of the Confederate States representing Arkansas from 1861 to 1862.^[1]

Early life

Thomason was born in Smith County, Tennessee, on February 22, 1826. His father moved to Washington County, Arkansas, when he was three years old. He was educated principally at Cane Hill, Arkansas, and studied law at Fayetteville, in the office of W. D. Reagan. He afterwards removed to Van Buren and engaged in the practice of law.^[1]

Thomason first came into prominence as a politician as presidential elector when he canvassed the state against the celebrated Thomas C. Hindman. He was prosecuting attorney of the 4th Judicial Circuit from 1853 to 1854 and a member of the secession convention in 1861. In 1868, he was elected to the lower house of the legislature.^[1]

He was a candidate for congress in 1872, and was defeated by Judge W. W. Wilshire. He was one of the delegates to the congress of the Confederate States at Montgomery, Alabama, with Robert W. Johnson, Albert Rust, William W. Watkins, and Augustus H. Garland from May 18, 1861, to February 17, 1862. He represented Crawford County in the constitutional convention in 1874. he was elected State Senator in 1881, and attended two sessions of the state senate. He was returned to the lower house in 1886.^[1]

Thomason was elected judge of the 15th judicial circuit in September 1890,^[2] which position he held at the time of his death.^[1] He was buried at Fairview Cemetery (Van Buren, Arkansas), on July 31, 1893, with Masonic honors.^[3]

"A Judge Dies from Heat and Overwork". Vicksburg Evening Post. Vol. XI, no. 274. Vicksburg, Mississippi. August 2, 1893.
Eno, Miss Clara B. (1951). History of Crawford County, Arkansas. Van Buren, Arkansas: The Press-Argus. LCCN 51028426. OCLC 3621784.
"H. F. Thomason". The Indian Methodist. Vol. XII, no. 31. Muskogee, Indian Territory. August 3, 1893.