William Preston Johnston (January 5, 1831 – July 16, 1899) was a lawyer, scholar, poet, and

Confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...

soldier. He was the son and biographer of Confederate General

Albert Sidney Johnston Albert Sidney Johnston (February 2, 1803 – April 6, 1862) served as a general in three different armies: the Texian Army, the United States Army, and the Confederate States Army. He saw extensive combat during his 34-year military career, figh ...

. He was a president of

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 nea ...

and the first president of

Tulane University Tulane University, officially the Tulane University of Louisiana, is a private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by seven young medical doctors, it turned into a comprehensive pub ...

from 1884(Tulane being renamed from the University of Louisiana that year).

Biography

Johnston was born in

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

, to

and Henrietta Preston Johnston. When he was four years old, his mother died; he was then reared by members of her family. Johnston attended several local schools, including the academy of Samuel Venable Womack in Shelbyville,

Centre College Centre College is a private liberal arts college in Danville, Kentucky. It is an undergraduate college with an enrollment of approximately 1,400 students. Centre was officially chartered by the Kentucky General Assembly in 1819. The college is a ...

in Danville,

Western Military Institute The Western Military Institute was a preparatory school and college located first in Kentucky, then in Tennessee. It was founded in 1847 in Georgetown, Kentucky, and it later moved to Nashville, Tennessee, where it merged with Montgomery Bell Academ ...

in Georgetown, and

Yale College Yale College is the undergraduate college of Yale University. Founded in 1701, it is the original school of the university. Although other Yale schools were founded as early as 1810, all of Yale was officially known as Yale College until 1887, ...

. In March 1853, he received his law degree from the Louisville School of Law. On July 6, 1853, he married his first wife, Rosa Elizabeth Duncan, the daughter of John N. Duncan of

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

. During the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...

, Johnston served as an '' aide-de-camp'' to Jefferson Davis, president of the

Confederate States The Confederate States of America (CSA), commonly referred to as the Confederate States or the Confederacy was an unrecognized breakaway republic in the Southern United States that existed from February 8, 1861, to May 9, 1865. The Confeder ...

. Johnston was a

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge o ...

in the Confederate Army. Johnston was captured with Jefferson Davis at

Irwinville, Georgia Irwinville is an unincorporated community in Irwin County, Georgia, United States. Irwinville was founded as "Irwinsville" in 1831 as the seat for the newly formed Irwin County. The community was named for Georgia governor Jared Irwin. It was ...

, at the end of the war, and was imprisoned for several months at

Fort Delaware Fort Delaware is a former harbor defense facility, designed by chief engineer Joseph Gilbert Totten and located on Pea Patch Island in the Delaware River.Dobbs, Kelli W., et al. During the American Civil War, the Union used Fort Delaware as ...

. After the war (at the invitation of Robert E. Lee), he became a professor at

Washington College Washington College is a private liberal arts college in Chestertown, Maryland. Maryland granted Washington College its charter in 1782. George Washington supported the founding of the college by consenting to have the "College at Chester" name ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

. In 1880, he became president of

, but resigned four years later to become the first president of the new

in 1884. Johnston wrote two books of poetry, ''My Garden Walk'' (1894) and ''Pictures of the Patriarchs and Other Poems'' (1895). He also wrote ''The Prototype of Hamlet and Other Shakespearean Problems'' (1890) as well as a biography of his father, ''The Life of General Albert Sidney Johnston'' (1878), a "most valuable and exhaustive biography". Johnston was elected a member of the

American Antiquarian Society The American Antiquarian Society (AAS), located in Worcester, Massachusetts, is both a learned society and a national research library of pre-twentieth-century American history and culture. Founded in 1812, it is the oldest historical society i ...

in 1893.American Antiquarian Society Members Directory
/ref> His first wife died on October 19, 1885, and he married Margaret Henshaw Avery of

Avery Island, Louisiana Avery Island (historically french: Île Petite Anse) is a salt dome best known as the source of Tabasco sauce. Located in Iberia Parish, Louisiana, United States, it is approximately inland from Vermilion Bay, which in turn opens onto the Gulf ...

, in April 1888. At the age of 67 on July 16, 1899, he died at the home of his son-in-law, Congressman Henry St. George Tucker in Lexington, Virginia.

References

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge o ...

William Preston Johnston, ''The Life of General Albert Sidney Johnston: His Service in the Armies of the United States, the Republic of Texas, and the Confederate States''. *Reviewed work(s): ''William Preston Johnston: A Transitional Figure of the Confederacy''. by Arthur Marvin Shaw *"Col. Wm. Preston Johnston, The Gallant Son of the Great Southern Chieftan," New Orleans, La. ''Daily Picayune'' (July 17, 1899). http://www.csawardept.com/history/Cabinet/WPJohnston/index.html ;Specific

External links

* * as 'University of Louisiana' {{DEFAULTSORT:Johnston, William Preston 1831 births 1899 deaths Centre College alumni William Preston Confederate States Army officers Writers from Louisville, Kentucky Tulane University faculty Presidents of Tulane University Yale College alumni Washington and Lee University people People of Kentucky in the American Civil War Members of the American Antiquarian Society Preston family of Virginia Southern Historical Society