Frederick Taylor Thompson was born in England in 1898. In 1925, he went to Kenya, where he worked for the Railway Service for 27 years until his retirement in 1952. On retiring, Thompson returned to England and became actively engaged in public service. He became the London Regional Organiser to the Voice of Kenya (a public relations organisation sponsored by the European Elected Members of the Kenya Legislative Council) and also acted as liaison officer with the Labour Party and the Trades Union Congress.

In 1954, Thompson returned to Kenya, where he became a foundation member of the United Country Party under Michael Blundell; he served on the Executive Committee until the party's dissolution in Jan 1957. When the Convention of Associations was revived in 1958, he became a member of the Steering Committee and eventually Secretary until he finally left Kenya in 1960.

Thompson acted as a City Councillor in Nairobi and twice as an Acting Alderman, as well as serving on the councils of the Rugby Union, the Football Association, and the Hockey Union. His involvement with the Railway Service included being a foundation member of the European Staff Association and also being Honorary Secretary, later Secretary-Manager, of the Nairobi Railway Club.