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Thomas Johnson (November 4, 1732 – October 26, 1819) was an 18th-century
American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...
lawyer, politician, and
patriot A patriot is a person with the quality of patriotism. Patriot may also refer to: Political and military groups United States * Patriot (American Revolution), those who supported the cause of independence in the American Revolution * Patriot m ...
. He was a delegate to the
First Continental Congress The First Continental Congress was a meeting of delegates from 12 of the 13 British colonies that became the United States. It met from September 5 to October 26, 1774, at Carpenters' Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, after the British Navy ...
in 1774, where he signed the
Continental Association The Continental Association, also known as the Articles of Association or simply the Association, was an agreement among the American colonies adopted by the First Continental Congress on October 20, 1774. It called for a trade boycott against ...
; commander of the
Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...
militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...
in 1776; and elected first (non-Colonial) governor of Maryland in 1777. Throughout his career, Johnson maintained a personal and political friendship with
George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...
, who gave him a
recess appointment In the United States, a recess appointment is an appointment by the president of a federal official when the U.S. Senate is in recess. Under the U.S. Constitution's Appointments Clause, the President is empowered to nominate, and with the advi ...
as an
associate justice Associate justice or associate judge (or simply associate) is a judicial panel member who is not the chief justice in some jurisdictions. The title "Associate Justice" is used for members of the Supreme Court of the United States and some state ...
of the
Supreme Court A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts in most legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, apex court, and high (or final) court of appeal. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...
in August 1791. He served only briefly, resigning in January 1793, citing health issues.


Life before the Revolution

Thomas Johnson was born in
Calvert County, Maryland Calvert County is located in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 census, the population was 92,783. Its county seat is Prince Frederick. The county's name is derived from the family name of the Barons of Baltimore, the proprietors of t ...
, on November 4, 1732, to Thomas and Dorcas Sedgwick Johnson. His grandfather, also named Thomas, was a lawyer in
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
who had emigrated to Maryland sometime before 1700. The younger Thomas was the fourth of ten children, some of whom later had large families of their own. (
Louisa Johnson Louisa Johnson (born 11 January 1998), also known mononymously as Louisa, is a British singer. In 2015, she won the twelfth series of ''The X Factor''. She subsequently released her winner's single " Forever Young", which peaked at number nin ...
, daughter of his brother
Joshua Joshua () or Yehoshua ( ''Yəhōšuaʿ'', Tiberian: ''Yŏhōšuaʿ,'' lit. 'Yahweh is salvation') ''Yēšūaʿ''; syr, ܝܫܘܥ ܒܪ ܢܘܢ ''Yəšūʿ bar Nōn''; el, Ἰησοῦς, ar , يُوشَعُ ٱبْنُ نُونٍ '' Yūšaʿ ...
, married
John Quincy Adams John Quincy Adams (; July 11, 1767 – February 23, 1848) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, and diarist who served as the sixth president of the United States, from 1825 to 1829. He previously served as the eighth United States S ...
.) Thomas and his siblings were educated at home. As a young man he was attracted to the law, studied it with an established firm, and was admitted to the Maryland bar in 1753. By 1760, he had moved his practice to Frederick County, and in 1761 he was elected to the Maryland provincial assembly for the first time. On February 16, 1766, Johnson married
Ann Jennings Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie. Anne is sometimes used as a male name in the ...
, the daughter of the judge under whom he apprenticed. They had eight children, including one who died in infancy and a second who died as a young adult.


Revolutionary years

In 1774 and 1775, the Maryland assembly sent him as a delegate to the
Continental Congress The Continental Congress was a series of legislative bodies, with some executive function, for thirteen of Britain's colonies in North America, and the newly declared United States just before, during, and after the American Revolutionary War. ...
. In the Congress Johnson was allied with those who favored separation from
Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It is ...
. In November 1775, Congress created a Committee of ecretCorrespondence that was to seek foreign support for the war. Thomas Johnson, along with
Benjamin Franklin Benjamin Franklin ( April 17, 1790) was an American polymath who was active as a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher, and political philosopher. Encyclopædia Britannica, Wood, 2021 Among the leading inte ...
, and
Benjamin Harrison V Benjamin Harrison V (April 5, 1726April 24, 1791) was an American planter, merchant, and politician who served as a legislator in colonial Virginia, following his namesakes’ tradition of public service. He was a signer of the Continental Ass ...
, were initially named to the committee. Johnson returned to Maryland and continued his work in the state's Assembly when the
United States Declaration of Independence The United States Declaration of Independence, formally The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen States of America, is the pronouncement and founding document adopted by the Second Continental Congress meeting at Pennsylvania State House ...
was signed. In 1775 he drafted the declaration of rights adopted by the Maryland assembly and later included as the first part of the state's first constitution. It was adopted for Maryland by the state's constitutional convention at Annapolis in 1776. He also served as brigadier general in the Maryland militia. Thomas Johnson and his brothers supported the revolution by manufacturing ammunition and possibly cannon. Their former factory, Catoctin Furnace, is now part of a state park near
Camp David Camp David is the country retreat for the president of the United States of America. It is located in the wooded hills of Catoctin Mountain Park, in Frederick County, Maryland, near the towns of Thurmont and Emmitsburg, about north-northwe ...
, just north of
Frederick, Maryland Frederick is a city in and the county seat of Frederick County, Maryland. It is part of the Baltimore–Washington Metropolitan Area. Frederick has long been an important crossroads, located at the intersection of a major north–south Native ...
. In the winter of 1777, Johnson delivered supplies to the
Continental Army The Continental Army was the army of the United Colonies (the Thirteen Colonies) in the Revolutionary-era United States. It was formed by the Second Continental Congress after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War, and was establis ...
encampment at
Valley Forge Valley Forge functioned as the third of eight winter encampments for the Continental Army's main body, commanded by General George Washington, during the American Revolutionary War. In September 1777, Congress fled Philadelphia to escape the B ...
. Earlier in 1777, the state legislature elected Johnson as the new state's first Governor. He served in that capacity until 1779. In the 1780s he held a number of judicial posts in Maryland, as well as serving in the assembly in 1780, 1786, and 1787. He pushed a bill through the Maryland Assembly naming commissioners to meet with Virginia's commissioners to "…frame such liberal and equitable regulations concerning he Potomacriver as may be mutually advantageous to the two states and that they make report thereon to the General assembly." Although Johnson was not a commissioner, the resulting conference agreed to regulate and settle the jurisdiction and navigation on their mutual border of the Potomac River. Their process served as a predecessor to the Constitutional Convention of 1787. Johnson attended the Maryland Convention in 1788, where he successfully urged the state's ratification of the
United States Constitution The Constitution of the United States is the Supremacy Clause, supreme law of the United States, United States of America. It superseded the Articles of Confederation, the nation's first constitution, in 1789. Originally comprising seven ar ...
.


Federal years

In September 1789,
President George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of ...
nominated Johnson to be the first federal judge for the District of Maryland, but he declined the appointment. In 1790 and 1791, Johnson was the senior justice in the Maryland General Court system. In January 1791, President Washington appointed Johnson, with David Stuart and
Daniel Carroll Daniel Carroll (July 22, 1730May 7, 1796) was an American politician and plantation owner from Maryland and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. He supported the American Revolution, served in the Confederation Congress, was a de ...
, to the commission that would lay out the federal capital in accordance with the
Residence Act The Residence Act of 1790, officially titled An Act for establishing the temporary and permanent seat of the Government of the United States (), is a United States federal statute adopted during the second session of the First United States Co ...
of 1790. In September 1791 the commissioners named the federal city "The City of Washington" and the federal district "The Territory of Columbia". On August 5, 1791, Johnson received a
recess appointment In the United States, a recess appointment is an appointment by the president of a federal official when the U.S. Senate is in recess. Under the U.S. Constitution's Appointments Clause, the President is empowered to nominate, and with the advi ...
from Washington as an
associate justice of the United States Supreme Court An associate justice of the Supreme Court of the United States is any member of the Supreme Court of the United States other than the chief justice of the United States. The number of associate justices is eight, as set by the Judiciary Act of 1 ...
, to the seat vacated by
John Rutledge John Rutledge (September 17, 1739 – June 21, 1800) was an American Founding Father, politician, and jurist who served as one of the original associate justices of the Supreme Court and the second chief justice of the United States. Additiona ...
, and was sworn into office on September 19, 1791. Formally
nominated A candidate, or nominee, is the prospective recipient of an award or honor, or a person seeking or being considered for some kind of position; for example: * to be elected to an office — in this case a candidate selection procedure occurs. * ...
to the position on October 31, 1791, his appointment was confirmed by the
United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...
on November 7, 1791. Johnson was the author of the Court's first written opinion, '' Georgia v. Brailsford'', in 1792. He served on the court until resigning on January 16, 1793, citing his poor health. Johnson suffered very poor health for many years, and cited it in declining Washington's 1795 offer to nominate him for Secretary of State, as
Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 18 ...
had recommended. He managed to deliver a eulogy for his friend George Washington at a birthday memorial service on February 22, 1800. On February 28, 1801, President
John Adams John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, attorney, diplomat, writer, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Befor ...
named Johnson chief judge for the
District of Columbia ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
; he was confirmed for the post, but declined the appointment.


Later years, death and legacy

His daughter Ann had married John Colin Grahame in 1788, and in his later years Johnson lived with them in a home they had built in
Frederick, Maryland Frederick is a city in and the county seat of Frederick County, Maryland. It is part of the Baltimore–Washington Metropolitan Area. Frederick has long been an important crossroads, located at the intersection of a major north–south Native ...
. The home, called Rose Hill Manor, is now a county park and open to the public.
Governor Thomas Johnson High School Governor Thomas Johnson High School (GTJHS) is a four-year public high school in Frederick, Maryland, United States. The school is home to the Academy of Fine Arts, an auditioned-only visual and performing arts program for talented students in Fre ...
is on half of the Rose Hill property. He died at Rose Hill on October 26, 1819, and was originally buried in All Saints churchyard. His remains were removed and re-interred at Mount Olivet Cemetery in Frederick. Johnson was one of the first investors in the
Illinois-Wabash Company The Illinois-Wabash Company, formally known as the United Illinois and Wabash Land Company, was a company formed in {{start date and age, 1779, p=y from the merger of the Illinois Company and the Wabash Company. The two companies had been establi ...
, which acquired a vast swath of land in Illinois directly from several Indian tribes. Soon after his death in 1819 his son Joshua Johnson and grandson Thomas Graham sued
William M'Intosh William Carmichael M'Intosh LLD (also spelt McIntosh; 10 October 1838, St Andrews – 1 April 1931, St Andrews) was a Scottish physician and marine zoologist. He served as president of the Ray Society, as vice-president of the Royal So ...
in the landmark Supreme Court case ''
Johnson v. M'Intosh ''Johnson v. M'Intosh'', 21 U.S. (7 Wheat.) 543 (1823), is a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court that held that private citizens could not purchase lands from Native Americans. As the facts were recited by Chief Justice John Marshall, t ...
''. The case, which remains one of the most important
property Property is a system of rights that gives people legal control of valuable things, and also refers to the valuable things themselves. Depending on the nature of the property, an owner of property may have the right to consume, alter, share, r ...
decisions in American history, determined that only the federal government could acquire Indian land, so Johnson's descendants did not have good title to the property. Other schools named after Thomas Johnson include Governor Thomas Johnson Middle School in Frederick, Maryland, Thomas Johnson Middle School in
Lanham, Maryland Lanham is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in Prince George's County, Maryland. As of the 2020 United States Census it had a population of 11,282. The New Carrollton station (the terminus of the Washington Metro's Orange Li ...
and Thomas Johnson Elementary School in
Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...
. In 1978, the Governor Thomas Johnson Bridge was opened to traffic. The bridge crosses the
Patuxent River The Patuxent River is a tributary of the Chesapeake Bay in the state of Maryland. There are three main river drainages for central Maryland: the Potomac River to the west passing through Washington, D.C., the Patapsco River to the northeast ...
and connects Calvert with St. Mary's Counties. As Johnson was a slave owner, the naming of schools for him has become controversial.


See also

* Catoctin Furnace *
List of justices of the Supreme Court of the United States The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest-ranking judicial body in the United States. Its membership, as set by the Judiciary Act of 1869, consists of the chief justice of the United States and eight Associate Justice of the Supreme ...
*
List of United States Supreme Court justices by time in office A total of 116 people have served on the Supreme Court of the United States, the highest judicial body in the United States, since it was established in 1789. Supreme Court justices have life tenure, and so they serve until they die, resign, retir ...
* United States Supreme Court cases during the Jay Court


References


Further reading

* * * * Flanders, Henry
''The Lives and Times of the Chief Justices of the United States Supreme Court''
Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott & Co., 1874 at
Google Books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical c ...
. * * * *


External links

* *
Johnson gravesite
in Frederick, Maryland




Thomas Johnson letters – C. Burr Artz Public Library
, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Thomas 1732 births 1819 deaths 18th-century American Episcopalians 18th-century American politicians 18th-century American judges 19th-century American Episcopalians 19th-century American judges American people of English descent Burials at Mount Olivet Cemetery (Frederick, Maryland) Continental Congressmen from Maryland Governors of Maryland Maryland Federalists Maryland lawyers Maryland militiamen in the American Revolution Militia generals in the American Revolution People from Calvert County, Maryland People of Maryland in the American Revolution Politicians from Frederick, Maryland United States federal judges appointed by George Washington Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States Recess appointments People of colonial Maryland Thomas Johnson family American slave owners Signers of the Continental Association