James Granville Johnson Jr. (December 3, 1855 – October 24, 1936) was a Democratic lawyer who was Mayor of Springfield, Ohio, and a justice of the

Ohio Supreme Court The Ohio Supreme Court, Officially known as The Supreme Court of the State of Ohio is the highest court in the U.S. state of Ohio, with final authority over interpretations of Ohio law and the Ohio Constitution. The court has seven members, a ...

Biography

Johnson was born December 3, 1855, in Springfield, Ohio, to James Granville Johnson Sr. and Catherine Eby Johnson. He was educated at public schools, and graduated from

Wittenberg College Wittenberg University is a private liberal arts college in Springfield, Ohio. It has 1,326 full-time students representing 33 states and 9 foreign countries. Wittenberg University is associated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Americ ...

in 1876.The Supreme Court of Ohio and The Ohio Judicial System - James Granville Johnson
/ref> He read law at a local office, and was the first court stenographer of Clark County. He graduated from

Cincinnati Law School The University of Cincinnati College of Law was founded in 1833 as the Cincinnati Law School. It is the fourth oldest continuously running law school in the United States — after Harvard, the University of Virginia, and Yale — and the first in ...

, and was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

in 1880. From 1880 to 1897, Johnson practiced law in Springfield with a local judge. Johnson ran 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 ...

for

Ohio House of Representatives The Ohio House of Representatives is the lower house of the Ohio General Assembly, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Ohio; the other house of the bicameral legislature being the Ohio Senate. The House of Representatives first met in Ch ...

in 1881, Clark County prosecuting attorney and District Court judge in 1886, losing each time in

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 ...

leaning Clark County. Johnson married Blanche Oberchain, December 4, 1888. They raised three children. He was Mayor of Springfield, Ohio, from 1893 to 1894. In 1910, Johnson ran for the

. He won, and assumed his seat January 1, 1911. In 1916, he received a doctor of laws from Wittenberg University, and won re-election in November. In 1922, Johnson sought the Democratic nomination for Ohio Governor. He resigned from the court August 3, 1922, to campaign. He lost the primary election to A. Victor Donahey. After the election, Johnson returned to Springfield, and resumed his law practice. In 1930, he retired after suffering a breakdown. Johnson died after a long illness October 24, 1936, in Springfield, Ohio. A

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...

pastor conducted the funeral services before burial in Ferncliff Cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, James G. Politicians from Springfield, Ohio Wittenberg University alumni University of Cincinnati College of Law alumni 1855 births 1936 deaths Mayors of places in Ohio Ohio Democrats Justices of the Ohio Supreme Court