St. Clair County People of Interest



THOMAS BENTON JOHNSON (1835 – 1873)

For further information, see Waldo P. Johnson and William Tell Johnson.

St. Clair County Democrat December 5, 1940:

Thomas Benton Johnson, fourth son of Col. William Johnson and his first wife, Olive Waldo was born May 9, 1835 in Harrison county, VA and died November 1, 1873 in Whitesboro, Texas.
About 1857, without the knowledge of his family, he was married in Baltimore, MD to Mary Jane (Mollie) Utterback, of Harrison County and with his bride, took the cars for Clarksburg, VA.
His father was ticket agent for the Baltimore and Ohio railroad at the Bridgeport station in Harrison county at the time and the baggage man on the express train on which the couple were riding, finding a new trunk with “Mrs. Thomas B. Johnson” on it, thought he was doing the owner a great favor by tossing it off at the Bridgeport platform as the train slowed, without stopping, on its way to Clarksburg.
This served as announcement to Col. Johnson of his son’s marriage, which he disapproved and without a word, took a paint brush and crossed out the name on the trunk. Owing to the opposition, the bride returned to her family and the erring bridegroom was sent, with his sister, to relatives in Missouri.
At Osceola, Thomas B. Johnson clerked in the store of William L. Vaughn and Co., and with other young employees, had sleeping quarters in the loft of the establishment.
He read law in the office of his brother, Judge Johnson and was admitted to the bar September 3, 1860.
Thomas B. Johnson was one of the signers of the appeal to the citizens of St. Clair County to keep the peace May 18, 1861. When Governor Jackson called for troops to repel the Federal invasion of Missouri, he volunteered for six months and was commissioned June 8, 1861, Captain of C Company, 2nd Division of Cavalry of the 8th Division of the Missouri State Guard and served with all his energy and enthusiasm.
His company was in Col. James McCoun’s 1st battalion of 250 men, also known as Independent Cavalry, with Gen. Rains as division commander. They were in the engagement July 5 at Coon Creek, ten miles north of
Carthage against the Federals under Sigel. In the action at Dry Wood Creek September 2, 1861, against the Kansas Troops of Lane, Montgomery and Weir, and in all engagements of this outfit until it was absorbed
into the Confederate service.
In the summer of 1862, Johnson was on recruiting duty in Missouri with Col. Sidney Jackman and with his brother, Col. W. P. Johnson. Then, he seems to have resigned his Captaincy while the Missouri troops were at Tupelo and Saltila, Mississippi in September that year and to have served the Confederate Commissary, being employed by Thomas Shirley of San Antonio to procure cotton for the government. He remained in Texas until after the war. He and his friend, Captain Richardson, secured positions with a St. Louis firm as drummers.
He seemed to have had no communication with his wife. One night while he was having dinner in a St. Louis hotel, he was informed there was a gentleman to see him. He asked that the visitor be requested to wait
but was told the person could not wait. So, leaving his dinner unfinished, he went into the lobby to find himself confronted by his wife, her brother, now a resident of St. Louis, and the Chief of Police. He welcomed his wife and the next evening gave a dinner to present her to his friends and to celebrate their reunion after the long separation.
They stayed on in St. Louis in spite of the cholera epidemic that year, but later moved to Texas, taking with them the daughter, Olive, who was born after Mr. Johnson had left Virginia. He entered into the
mercantile business, first at Corsicana, then at Whitesboro where he resided at the time of his death.
Capt. Johnson died of pneumonia November 1, 1873 after an illness of four days. At the time, he was a candidate for the state Senate with a good prospect of election. His business ventures had not proven successful, so his wife, in poor health herself, was left with many problems. The eldest daughter, Olive, had developed tuberculosis and the younger daughter was not yet three years of age.



Missouri Soldiers Database:

Name: Johnson, Thomas B.
Rank: Captain
Conflict: Civil War
Side: Confederate
Type of Unit: Cavalry
Organization: Missouri State Guard
Name of Unit: 2nd Missouri Cavalry Volunteers
Alternate Unit Name: Company: B
Thomas B. Johnson, Capt.
Elected or Appointed June 8, 1861
Resigned or term Expired October 28, 1861
Time of Service 4 months 22 days Paid $504.11.



1850 Harrison Co., VA Census – Dist. No. 22:
Line 7, 9 July
111/111 William Johnson, age 58, male, farmer, $11,200 real estate, born NJ
Olive Johnson, age 51, female, born VA
Martha, age 17, female, born VA
Benton, age 15, male, born VA
Olive, age 12, female, born VA
John, age 9, male, born VA
George W., age 6, male, born VA

1850 St. Clair Co., MO Census – District No. 79 Being:
Line 3, 19 August
36/36 Waldo P. Johnson, age 32, male, Lawyer, $5000 real estate, born VA
Emily M. Johnson, age 27, female, born VA
Wm. Tell Johnson, age 1, male, born MO

1860 St. Clair Co., MO Census – Town of Osceola:
Page 5, Line 12, 14 June, Osceola P.O.
30/30 Jno. F. Pollard household
T.B. Johnson, age 25, male, Lawyer, $4000 real estate, $4000 personal estate, born VA

1860 Harrison Co., VA Census:
Page 35, Line 4, Clarksburg P.O.
245/245 William Johnson, age 68, male, farmer, $34,000 real estate, $15,000 personal estate, born NJ
Rebecca B., age 44, female, born PA
John C., age 20, male, born VA, attended school
Richard M., age 17, male, born VA, attended school
Jessie, age 2, female, born VA
Jo., age 6/12, male, born VA

1860 St. Clair Co., MO Census – Town of Osceola:
Page 7, Line 10, Osceola P.O., 14 June
39/39 Waldo P. Johnson, age 42, male, lawyer, $100,000 real estate, $40,000 personal estate, born VA
E.M. Johnson, age 36, female, born VA
W.T. Johnson, age 11, male, born VA, attended school
T.M. Johnson, age 8, male, born MO, attended school
St. C. Johnson, age 6, male, born MO
Charles Johnson, age 1, male, born MO



St. Clair Co., MO Cemetery Records:

Osceola Cemetery
Johnson, Waldo P., died 14 August 1885, age 68 years