Henry Johnson (Kenosha politician)
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Henry Johnson | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Wisconsin State Assembly from the Kenosha 1st district | |
| In office January 7, 1856 – January 5, 1857 | |
| Preceded by | Charles C. Sholes |
| Succeeded by | Frederick S. Lovell |
| In office January 6, 1851 – January 5, 1852 | |
| Preceded by | Samuel Hale Jr. (Racine 4th) |
| Succeeded by | C. Latham Sholes |
| Member of the New York State Assembly from the Erie County district | |
| In office January 1, 1839 – January 1, 1840 Serving with Jacob A. Barker and Truman Cary | |
| Preceded by | Lewis F. Allen, Asa Warren, and Cyrenus Wilbur |
| Succeeded by | Seth C. Hawley, Stephen Osborn, and Aaron Salisbury |
| Personal details | |
| Born | September 3, 1794 Williamstown, Vermont, U.S. |
| Died | February 27, 1868 (aged 73) Somers, Wisconsin, U.S. |
| Resting place | Vale Cemetery, Kenosha, Wisconsin |
| Party |
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| Spouse | Violata Peckham born 1793; died 1855 |
| Children |
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Henry Johnson (September 3, 1794[1] – February 27, 1868[2]) was an American farmer, Republican politician, and Wisconsin pioneer. He was instrumental in the founding of the Wisconsin State Agricultural Society, and served two terms in the Wisconsin State Assembly, representing eastern Kenosha County. Earlier in his life, he was a member of the New York State Legislature.
Henry Johnson was born in Williamstown, Vermont, in 1794[1] and moved to Niagara County, New York in 1810, where he became established and started a family. By 1821 Johnson had become a prominent citizen in the newly formed Erie County, New York and was elected on the Whig Party ticket to the New York State Assembly for the 1839 session.[3] In 1844 the family relocated to Southport (now the city of Kenosha, incorporated in 1850) in the Wisconsin Territory and then settled on a farm in the town of Pike (now the village of Somers in Kenosha County). At the time, this was part of a larger Racine County, since Kenosha County was established from part of Racine County as a separate entity by an act of the Wisconsin Legislature in January 1850. On April 28, 1848 Johnson attended the Whig Assembly District Convention where he was nominated for Assemblyman for the 1st Wisconsin Legislature[4] but later lost the election to the Democratic candidate Julius L. Gilbert.[5][6] The very next day April 29, 1848 Johnson attended the Whig Senatorial Convention in the Town of Salem.[7] On October 26, 1850 Johnson was again nominated for assemblyman[8][9] this time winning his election[10] for the Whig Party ticket as one of the first two assemblymen for the newly formed Kenosha County and serving, for the first of two sessions, on the Wisconsin State Assembly for the 1851 session. On October 24, 1851 Johnson was nominated for Senator by the Whig Party at their county convention at Dutton's Tavern in the Town of Paris,[11] this election he lost to the Democratic candidate John R. Sharpstein.[12]
Johnson became prominent in his new state through his farming community. On January 3, 1850 he helped bring together a number of Kenosha County farmers to create the "Farmer's Club of Southport, Pleasant Prairie, Pike, Bristol and vicinity"[13]—believed to be the first agricultural association in Wisconsin.[14]: 107 Five months later, on June 3, 1850, the club was formalized as the Kenosha County Agricultural Society with a constitution and bylaws.[15] Johnson was selected as the first president of the organization and later also served as corresponding secretary.[14]: 107 [16]: 543 As President of the Kenosha County Agricultural Society, Johnson attended a meeting in the State Assembly hall in Madison, Wisconsin, on March 8, 1851, which recommended the formation of a State Agricultural Society. Johnson took an active part in the meeting, and was appointed to a committee to draft a constitution for the State Agricultural Society. On March 12, the convention met again and approved the constitution drafted by Johnson's committee.[14]: 9–11
Between the establishment of the Kenosha Agricultural Society in Spring 1850 and the State Agricultural Society in Spring 1851, Johnson served on the 1851 session of the Wisconsin State Assembly representing Kenosha County's eastern district representing the towns of Pike (Somers), Pleasant Prairie, and Southport (Kenosha).[17] Johnson remained a Whig until the creation of the Republican Party in 1854, and on October 26, 1955 was nominated[18] and elected[19] to another term in the Assembly for the 1856 session, running on the Republican ticket.[20]