Michael Johnson (January 4, 1832 – 11 February 1908) was an American farmer from Springdale,

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

, who served as a member of the

Wisconsin State Assembly The Wisconsin State Assembly is the lower house of the Wisconsin Legislature. Together with the smaller Wisconsin Senate, the two constitute the legislative branch of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Representatives are elected for two-year terms, ...

from

Dane County Dane County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 561,504, making it the second-most populous county in Wisconsin. The county seat is Madison, which is also the state capital. Dane County is the ...

, as well as holding various local offices.

Background

Johnson was born on January 4, 1832, in

Sogn Sogn is a traditional district in Western Norway ''(Vestlandet)''. It is located in the county of Vestland, surrounding the Sognefjord, the largest/longest fjord in Norway. The district of Sogn consists of the municipalities of Aurland, Balestra ...

, in Bergen Stift,

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. He moved to

Windsor (town), Wisconsin Windsor is a village and former town in Dane County, Wisconsin, Dane County, Wisconsin. The population was 8,754 at the time of the 2020 census. The communities of Lake Windsor, Wisconsin, Lake Windsor, Morrisonville, Wisconsin, Morrisonville, and ...

, in 1853. In April 1853, he married Jone Nelson Hone, who died in June 1854. Johnson later moved to

Vienna, Wisconsin Vienna is a town in Dane County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,666 at the 2020 census. The unincorporated community of Norway Grove is located in the town. Geography According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a t ...

, before settling in Springdale in 1856, where he bought 148 acres of land. In May of that year, he married Brita Samsonsdatter, born in 1835 in Norway. Brita died 19 April 1864, leaving him with two children. He was married once more, in March 1865, to Betsey T. Lee. They had six children together.

Public office

When first elected to the Assembly in 1873 from the 4th Dane County Assembly district (towns of Blue Mounds, Fitchburg, Madison, Middleton, Montrose, Oregon, Perry, Primrose, Rutland, Springdale, and Verona), Johnson had been a

justice of the peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

for thirteen years and town treasurer for seven years. He had been elected town chairman in 1872 and re-elected in 1873 (as he would be through 1878; and again in 1881–82). As a town chairman, he was ''ex officio'' a member of the Dane County

Board of Supervisors A board of supervisors is a governmental body that oversees the operation of county government in the U.S. states of Arizona, California, Iowa, Mississippi, Virginia, and Wisconsin, as well as 16 counties in New York. There are equivalent agenc ...

; for the 1877-78 term, he was chairman of the Board. Johnson was elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

, with 1,135 votes to 786 for

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

former Assemblyman Carpus Loveland (Republican incumbent

Hiram Cornwell Hiram Henry Cornwell (sometimes known as Cornwall; November 23, 1828 – July 9, 1916) was a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly. Cornwell was born on November 23, 1828. Sources have differed on the exact location. Cornwell later resided in Ve ...

was not a candidate), and was assigned to the

standing committee A committee or commission is a body of one or more persons subordinate to a deliberative assembly. A committee is not itself considered to be a form of assembly. Usually, the assembly sends matters into a committee as a way to explore them more ...

roads A road is a linear way for the conveyance of traffic that mostly has an improved surface for use by vehicles (motorized and non-motorized) and pedestrians. Unlike streets, the main function of roads is transportation. There are many types of ...

and

bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...

s. He was re-elected in 1874 as part of the Reform Party (a

coalition A coalition is a group formed when two or more people or groups temporarily work together to achieve a common goal. The term is most frequently used to denote a formation of power in political or economical spaces. Formation According to ''A Gui ...

of Democrats,

reform Reform ( lat, reformo) means the improvement or amendment of what is wrong, corrupt, unsatisfactory, etc. The use of the word in this way emerges in the late 18th century and is believed to originate from Christopher Wyvill#The Yorkshire Associati ...

and

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

Republicans, and Grangers formed in 1873, which secured the election of one

Governor of Wisconsin The governor of Wisconsin is the head of government of Wisconsin and the commander-in-chief of the state's army and air forces. The governor has a duty to enforce state laws, and the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Wiscons ...

and a number of state legislators) with 1,191 votes to 987 for former Republican Assemblyman

Phineas Baldwin Phineas Baldwin (December 4, 1824 – April 25, 1901) was a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly. Biography Baldwin was born on December 4, 1824, in Orford, Canada West. In 1846, he married Mehitable Young. She died in 1853. Baldwin arrived i ...

, and moved to the committee on

assessment Assessment may refer to: Healthcare *Health assessment, identifies needs of the patient and how those needs will be addressed *Nursing assessment, gathering information about a patient's physiological, psychological, sociological, and spiritual s ...

and

collection Collection or Collections may refer to: * Cash collection, the function of an accounts receivable department * Collection (church), money donated by the congregation during a church service * Collection agency, agency to collect cash * Collectio ...

taxes A tax is a compulsory financial charge or some other type of levy imposed on a taxpayer (an individual or legal entity) by a governmental organization in order to fund government spending and various public expenditures (regional, local, or ...

. He was re-elected in 1875 as a Reformer, with 1,155 votes to 987 for Republican Halle Steensland; and moved to the committee on

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

affairs. After a

redistricting Redistribution (re-districting in the United States and in the Philippines) is the process by which electoral districts are added, removed, or otherwise changed. Redistribution is a form of boundary delimitation that changes electoral dist ...

, he was once again re-elected in 1876 as a Reformer from the new 1st Dane County district (Towns of Berry, Black Earth, Blue Mounds, Cross Plains, Dane, Fitchburg, Mazomanie, Middleton, Montrose, Perry, Primrose, Roxbury, Springdale, Springfield, Verona, Vermont and Westport), with 2,681 votes to 1481 for Republican R. Cowdrey. He moved to the committee on state

lands Land is the solid surface of the Earth that is not covered by water. Land, lands, The Land, or the Lands may also refer to: Entertainment and media Film * ''Land'' (1987 film), a British television film by Barry Collins * ''Land'' (2018 film), ...

. With the Reform Party in dissolution, he did not seek re-election in 1877, and was succeeded by Democrat John Lyle.

Personal life and later years

As of 1880, Johnson's farm in Springdale was 336 acres, with a two-story

frame A frame is often a structural system that supports other components of a physical construction and/or steel frame that limits the construction's extent. Frame and FRAME may also refer to: Physical objects In building construction *Framing (con ...

house and various improvements. In addition to farming, he raised

livestock Livestock are the domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to provide labor and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The term is sometimes used to refer solely to animals ...

. In 1881, he was the Democratic nominee for

Secretary of State of Wisconsin The Secretary of State of Wisconsin is a constitutional officer in the executive branch of the government of the U.S. state of Wisconsin, and is second (behind the Lieutenant Governor) in the line of succession to the office of Governor of Wiscon ...

, coming in second in the

general election A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

to Ernst Timme, with 70,141 votes to Timme's 83,071, 11,643 for

Prohibitionist Prohibitionism is a legal philosophy and political theory often used in lobbying which holds that citizens will abstain from actions if the actions are typed as unlawful (i.e. prohibited) and the prohibitions are enforced by law enforcement.C Canty ...

Edmund Bartlett, and 6,747 for Greenbacker Wilson Hopkins. When it was proposed that Dane County create a separate

insane asylum The lunatic asylum (or insane asylum) was an early precursor of the modern psychiatric hospital. The fall of the lunatic asylum and its eventual replacement by modern psychiatric hospitals explains the rise of organized, institutional psychiatry ...

apart from the county's

poor farm A poorhouse or workhouse is a government-run (usually by a county or municipality) facility to support and provide housing for the dependent or needy. Workhouses In England, Wales and Ireland (but not in Scotland), ‘workhouse’ has been the ...

, Johnson was appointed as part of the commission which oversaw its construction (it opened in 1883) and became one of its

trustee Trustee (or the holding of a trusteeship) is a legal term which, in its broadest sense, is a synonym for anyone in a position of trust and so can refer to any individual who holds property, authority, or a position of trust or responsibility to t ...

s. In 1891-1892, he spent some time doing

land appraisal Land, also known as dry land, ground, or earth, is the solid terrestrial surface of the planet Earth that is not submerged by the ocean or other bodies of water. It makes up 29% of Earth's surface and includes the continents and various isla ...

swampland A swamp is a forested wetland.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p. Swamps are considered to be transition zones because both land and water play a role in ...

Crawford County Crawford County is the name of eleven counties in the United States: * Crawford County, Arkansas * Crawford County, Georgia * Crawford County, Illinois * Crawford County, Indiana * Crawford County, Iowa * Crawford County, Kansas * Crawford County, ...

which belonged to the state's

school lands The Land Ordinance of 1785 was adopted by the United States Congress of the Confederation on May 20, 1785. It set up a standardized system whereby settlers could purchase title to farmland in the undeveloped west. Congress at the time did not have ...

. He was a

presidential elector The United States Electoral College is the group of presidential electors required by the Constitution to form every four years for the sole purpose of appointing the president and vice president. Each state and the District of Columbia appo ...

in 1892, voting for the successful Democratic ticket of

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and Stevenson. In October 1893 the new President appointed Johnson assistant revenue collector for the second district of Wisconsin; he continued in that job until the end of January 1900. Johnson was an active member of the Norwegian Evangelical Lutheran Church, repeatedly representing his home congregation in the

synod A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word ''wikt:synod, synod'' comes from the meaning "assembly" or "meeting" and is analogous with the Latin ...

; he was elected to the synod's governing council twice, serving for six years. By the time he retired from farming in March 1893, selling his farm in Springdale and moving to

Mount Horeb Mount Horeb (Hebrew: ''Har Ḥōrēḇ''; Greek in the Septuagint: ; Latin in the Vulgate: ') is the mountain at which the Ten Commandments were given to Moses by Yahweh, according to the Book of Deuteronomy in the Hebrew Bible. It is described ...

, he had been a justice of the peace for 26 years. He died 11 February 1908 in Mount Horeb."Honor Dead Solons: Memorial for Members Who Died Since Last Session to be Held April 28" '' Eau Claire Leader'' April 18, 1909; p. 8, col. 2

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Michael 1832 births 1908 deaths County supervisors in Wisconsin Farmers from Wisconsin American justices of the peace Democratic Party members of the Wisconsin State Assembly Norwegian emigrants to the United States People from Windsor, Wisconsin Wisconsin Reformers (19th century) 19th-century American politicians 1892 United States presidential electors Mayors of places in Wisconsin People from Mount Horeb, Wisconsin People from Dane County, Wisconsin 19th-century American judges