Born in Nottingham, England, Joseph H. Thompson received his early education in Saskatoon. Enlisting for service in the Great War, he joined the RAF overseas. Badly injured in a crash he lost the sight of one eye and the other was seriously impaired. He later became an accountant with his own practice in Saskatoon until 1938 when he became an accounting instructor at the university. Thompson became dean of the School of Accounting in May 1940 and also took over command of the COTC that same month. He continued as dean of the newly named College of Commerce from 1944-1951. Thompson’s command came to an end 21 March 1947 having served with the COTC since 1921 (with the exception of Active Service in Regina from 1939 to 1940). In addition to being Dean of Commerce he was chairman of the Board of Governors of Emmanuel College. He had retained his military affiliations as aide-de-camp to lieutenant governors J. M. Ulrich and William J. Patterson and was also Honorary Lieutenant-Colonel of the COTC. Thompson died suddenly on 9 March 1952 at 55 years of age.

In the summer of 1914, the Canadian militia leased a part of the Sarcee (now Tsuu T'ina Nation) Indian Reserve as a prospective training site for military personnel. Sarcee Camp, as the site came to be known, was the only area in Alberta set aside to train soldiers for battle during World War I. More than 45,000 men from 30 units across the province trained at the camp over the course of the war. It was one of the largest military training areas in Canada at the time. Sarcee Camp was abandoned in 1998.