The Furniture of Robert “Mouseman” Thompson
In the village of Kiburn in the North Riding of Yorkshire, England, beside the Parish Church, there is a carpenter’s shop which is best known these days as a place where modern day “antique” furniture is made. This was the home of Robert Thompson, often known as “mousey” Thompson or as the “Mouseman” because of the trademark he created – a small mouse carved on almost every piece of furniture that he or his fellow craftsmen ever made.
Robert Thompson was born at Kilburn Old Hall on the 7th of May, 1876, the son of John Thompson, a carpenter of Kilburn and his wife, Dinah. Robert’s fater was the village joiner, carpenter and wheelwright. Little is known of Robert’s childhood but in his early working life, he was sent to a firm of engineers at Cleckheaton in West Riding, some 60 miles away to be apprenticed. When he reached the age of 20, he could no longer accept town life and mechanical engineering and joined his father in his carpenter’s shop. Along the way he discovered the craftsmanship of Wililam Bromflet of Ripon and about English oak – quercus robur – and its suitability for carving because of its fine grain.
It was in 1919 that he first met Father Paul Nevil of Ampleforth College nearby and it was through his commission that Thompson owed the work and reputation that followed by carving a large figure of Christ on a crucifix. This was seen by others and soon new work was to come his way, building gradually into a thriving woodcarving business. He became well known for his solid oak furniture that he made for churches, schools and similar institutions.
The origin of the mouse is said to have happened accidentally. Robert Thompson and another craftsman were carving a huge cornice for a screen and the other craftsman happened to say something about being as poor as a church mouse. Robert Thompson carved a mouse there and then at it struck him as a lovely trade mark. This was in 1919 and the mouse has stayed until the present day. The family business of Robert Thompson’s Craftsmen Limited was to be continued through Thompson’s two grandsons.
Robert “Mouseman” Thompson died on the 8th of December 1955 and was buried in the churchyard next to his business on the grounds of the Kilburn Parish Church.