J. Neely Johnson
Encyclopedia
John Neely Johnson was an American lawyer and politician. He was elected as the fourth governor of California
from 1856 to 1858, and later appointed justice to the Nevada Supreme Court from 1867 to 1871. As a member of the American Party
, Johnson remains one of only two members of a third party
to be elected to the California governorship, with the only other being Frederick Low
, who was elected on a National Union Party
ticket.
, Johnson studied to become a lawyer
, successfully completing his studies at the age of 21 in Iowa
. In July 1849, Johnson abandoned law to join the Gold Rush in California
. Johnson briefly employed himself as a gold prospector, and later as a mule train driver. Upon settling in Sacramento
, Johnson restarted his law career, and at the age of 25 in 1850, was elected as Sacramento city attorney. After two years of working in the City Attorney's office in the growing inland city, Johnson embarked on beginning a political career. In the 1852 general election, running as a Democrat
, Johnson was elected to the California State Assembly
as one of four members representing Sacramento.
During his time in the Assembly, Johnson famously nearly broke a local editor's nose after accusing the editor of writing an insulting article on the young Assemblyman. The editor pulled out a pistol and aimed it at Johnson, but was tackled by onlookers before he could fire.
By 1854, both the state and federal wings of the Democratic Party increasingly split into two separate Lecompton and Anti-Lecompton camps due to the Kansas-Nebraska Act
. Frustrated with increasingly frequent and sometimes violent party splits, Johnson abandoned the Democrats and joined the Nativist American Party
, known popularly as the "Know Nothing
s" due to their semi-secret meetings where members frequently responded when asked of their political activities, "I know nothing." The Whig Party
, once a force in national and state politics, all but collapsed.
During the 1855 general elections, the new American Party, fresh from the Whig disintergration and hoping to capitalize on Democratic divisions and growing anti-Catholic
sentiment, nominated Assemblyman Johnson as its candidate for Governor of California
, running against incumbent Governor John Bigler
, who hoped to garner a third term. Johnson and the American Party's distinct anti-immigrant rhetoric and fatigue from deep Democratic divisions proved popular with the electorate, giving Johnson the governorship by a comfortable margin. Johnson was described as "the most startled man in the state" upon hearing of his election. Along with the governorship, Know Nothings also received considerable gains in the California State Legislature
, as well as getting elected to every other major executive post in the state, such as the offices of Lieutenant Governor
, Attorney General
, Treasurer
, and Controller
.
on January 9, 1856. Taking office at age of 30, Johnson remains the youngest to have done so in California history. Upon assuming the office, Johnson inherited a growing state debt left over from the Bigler administration. Johnson sought nearly immediately to reduce government expenditures in the hope of cutting the debt.
Since the beginning of the 1850s, tensions within San Francisco
political circles had often expanded to open violence. In 1851, due to distrust with municipal authorities and allegations of severe corruption, armed citizens took to the streets and formed the San Francisco Vigilance Movement
to correct wrongs they saw being committed or being protected by the city government. In one of the committee's first moves, citizens lynched two criminals that had been in the city jails. The governor at the time, John McDougall, condemned the actions of the vigilantes, but proved powerless to stop them due to the infancy of state law enforcement.
Remaining dormant for five years, distrust of city authorities again reached the surface when on May 14, 1856, James King of William, editor of the San Francisco Bulletin and a vocal critic of corrupt officials, was mortally wounded by James P. Casey, a purported ballot-box stuffer and city politician.
As Casey stood in custody with San Francisco law enforcement, William T. Coleman, a ringleader in the 1851 Vigilance Committee and another vocal critic of municipal authorities, called for sympathizers and arms to form another Vigilante Committee. Armed citizens erected a barricade along Sacramento Street to repel city officers from removing their presence. By the next week, Vigilantes marched on the city jail, overpowering its guards to arrest Casey, along with criminal Charles Cora, who had fatally shot a U.S. Marshal the previous year.
Johnson reacted to the news of the Vigilante Committee quickly. Johnson, along with his brother William and the newly commissioned chief of the California Militia, Major General William Tecumseh Sherman
, traveled to San Francisco from Sacramento to meet the Vigilante Committee ringleaders face to face. Sherman later recalled in his 1875 Memoirs of Johnson angrily confronting Coleman and other Vigilante ringleaders in their makeshift headquarters, exclaiming, "Coleman, what the devil is the matter here?" Coleman replied the San Franciscans "were tired of it, and had no faith in the officers of the law.” After personal negotiations between Governor Johnson and the Vigilantes over transferring the criminals to state law enforcement failed, Johnson watched helplessly as both Casey and Cora were hanged by the Vigilantes on May 20.
Believing the matter done, Johnson returned to Sacramento, still reeling from his lack of authority to stop the hangings. The Vigilantes, however, had refused to disperse, claiming themselves as the city's rightful law enforcement. San Francisco Mayor
James Van Ness
, with the municipal police
and sheriff departments overwhelmed by the Vigilantes continued armed presence in the city's streets, pleaded to the Governor for military assistance. Johnson acted, instructing General Sherman to gather available arms and muster the California Militia in San Francisco on June 2, and issuing a gubernatorial proclamation declaring San Francisco in a state of insurrection the following day. But Johnson's proclamation, like those of McDougall's five years earlier, faced enforcement problems. Johnson had instructed the California Militia to impose martial law. Yet due to the lack of proper arms, the Militia needed equipment provided by federal forces. Johnson ordered John E. Wool
of the U.S. Army's Department of the Pacific
based in Benicia
to dispatch weapons to the state militia. Yet General Wool rejected, claiming that the Governor did not have the authority to use arms from federal soldiers or his soldiers use to any military capacity, claiming that right laid exclusively with the President
.
Both Johnson and Sherman were furious over General Wool's refusal to lend arms for state militia forces. Seeing the state government's powerlessness in the face of the situation, Sherman resigned from his military commission, vowing never to return to the realm of California politics. Meanwhile, the California Militia, under the new command of Major General Volney E. Howard
, continued to gather arms in the city for its companies that Sherman had begun, but suffered a major setback when on June 21, 1856, Vigilantes seized the arms schooner Julia, depriving the state militia its arms supply and a majority of its muskets.
The Vigilantes remained the defacto law enforcement of San Francisco until August 1856. Between June to their gradual dissolution, Vigilantes had arrested Chief Justice David S. Terry
of the Supreme Court of California
for stabbing a Vigilante member, as well as hanging two more individuals. Governor Johnson revoked his proclamation on San Francisco's insurrection on November 3.
Despite denouncing the Vigilantes and their rebellion against city authorities, Johnson did agree to an earlier Vigilante demand of uniting the city and county of San Francisco into a single entity to minimize corruption. The result was the passage and signing of the Consolidation Act of 1856, uniting county and municipal authorities.
made up of Know Nothing
party members, Johnson once vetoed a bill due to its "bad spelling, improper punctuation and erasures." One important accomplishment of the Johnson Administration would be the approval of funds to build the future California State Capitol
.
By the 1857 general election, Know-Nothings had grown frustrated with Johnson's inability to deal with the San Francisco Vigilantes
. During the American Party's convention that year, Johnson lost the party's nomination for the governorship to George W. Bowie. Bowie would later be defeated by Lecompton
Democrat John Weller. Shortly afterwards, the Know-Nothings ceased to be a major political force in California, and later collapsed, swallowed up by the emerging Republican Party
and sections of the Democratic Party.
shortly after his departure. Following Utah's split and the creation of the Nevada Territory
, as well as the beginning of the American Civil War
in 1861, discussion began in territorial political circles to draft documents suitable for the federal government to admit Nevada as a U.S. state
. In 1863, Johnson was elected to the Nevada Constitutional Convention in Carson City
. The following year, the former governor was elected as Convention President.
Due in part to Johnson's efforts, Nevada was admitted as a U.S. state on October 31, 1864.
In 1867, Nevada governor Henry G. Blasdel
appointed Johnson to the Nevada Supreme Court. A justice until 1871, Johnson would serve in this post longer than any other in his life.
After leaving the high court in 1871, Johnson's health declined. He died in Salt Lake City
on August 31, 1872 at the age of 47.
Governor of California
The Governor of California is the chief executive of the California state government, whose responsibilities include making annual State of the State addresses to the California State Legislature, submitting the budget, and ensuring that state laws are enforced...
from 1856 to 1858, and later appointed justice to the Nevada Supreme Court from 1867 to 1871. As a member of the American Party
Know Nothing
The Know Nothing was a movement by the nativist American political faction of the 1840s and 1850s. It was empowered by popular fears that the country was being overwhelmed by German and Irish Catholic immigrants, who were often regarded as hostile to Anglo-Saxon Protestant values and controlled by...
, Johnson remains one of only two members of a third party
Third party (United States)
The term third party is used in the United States for any and all political parties in the United States other than one of the two major parties . The term can also refer to independent politicians not affiliated with any party at all and to write-in candidates.The United States has had a...
to be elected to the California governorship, with the only other being Frederick Low
Frederick Low
Frederick Ferdinand Low was an American politician, US congressman and the ninth Governor of California.-Life:Born in Frankfort in 1828, Low attended the Hampden Academy in Hampden, Maine. Low moved to California, entering the shipping business in San Francisco in 1849...
, who was elected on a National Union Party
National Union Party (United States)
The National Union Party was the name used by the Republican Party for the national ticket in the 1864 presidential election, held during the Civil War. State Republican parties did not usually change their name....
ticket.
Biography
Born in rural Gibson County, IndianaGibson County, Indiana
Gibson County is a county located in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Indiana and is included in the Evansville, Indiana–Kentucky Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010, the population was 33,503. The county seat is Princeton.-Geography:...
, Johnson studied to become a lawyer
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
, successfully completing his studies at the age of 21 in Iowa
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
. In July 1849, Johnson abandoned law to join the Gold Rush in California
California Gold Rush
The California Gold Rush began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The first to hear confirmed information of the gold rush were the people in Oregon, the Sandwich Islands , and Latin America, who were the first to start flocking to...
. Johnson briefly employed himself as a gold prospector, and later as a mule train driver. Upon settling in Sacramento
Sacramento, California
Sacramento is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat of Sacramento County. It is located at the confluence of the Sacramento River and the American River in the northern portion of California's expansive Central Valley. With a population of 466,488 at the 2010 census,...
, Johnson restarted his law career, and at the age of 25 in 1850, was elected as Sacramento city attorney. After two years of working in the City Attorney's office in the growing inland city, Johnson embarked on beginning a political career. In the 1852 general election, running as a Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
, Johnson was elected to the California State Assembly
California State Assembly
The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature. There are 80 members in the Assembly, representing an approximately equal number of constituents, with each district having a population of at least 420,000...
as one of four members representing Sacramento.
During his time in the Assembly, Johnson famously nearly broke a local editor's nose after accusing the editor of writing an insulting article on the young Assemblyman. The editor pulled out a pistol and aimed it at Johnson, but was tackled by onlookers before he could fire.
By 1854, both the state and federal wings of the Democratic Party increasingly split into two separate Lecompton and Anti-Lecompton camps due to the Kansas-Nebraska Act
Kansas-Nebraska Act
The Kansas–Nebraska Act of 1854 created the territories of Kansas and Nebraska, opening new lands for settlement, and had the effect of repealing the Missouri Compromise of 1820 by allowing settlers in those territories to determine through Popular Sovereignty if they would allow slavery within...
. Frustrated with increasingly frequent and sometimes violent party splits, Johnson abandoned the Democrats and joined the Nativist American Party
Know Nothing
The Know Nothing was a movement by the nativist American political faction of the 1840s and 1850s. It was empowered by popular fears that the country was being overwhelmed by German and Irish Catholic immigrants, who were often regarded as hostile to Anglo-Saxon Protestant values and controlled by...
, known popularly as the "Know Nothing
Know Nothing
The Know Nothing was a movement by the nativist American political faction of the 1840s and 1850s. It was empowered by popular fears that the country was being overwhelmed by German and Irish Catholic immigrants, who were often regarded as hostile to Anglo-Saxon Protestant values and controlled by...
s" due to their semi-secret meetings where members frequently responded when asked of their political activities, "I know nothing." The Whig Party
Whig Party (United States)
The Whig Party was a political party of the United States during the era of Jacksonian democracy. Considered integral to the Second Party System and operating from the early 1830s to the mid-1850s, the party was formed in opposition to the policies of President Andrew Jackson and his Democratic...
, once a force in national and state politics, all but collapsed.
During the 1855 general elections, the new American Party, fresh from the Whig disintergration and hoping to capitalize on Democratic divisions and growing anti-Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
sentiment, nominated Assemblyman Johnson as its candidate for Governor of California
Governor of California
The Governor of California is the chief executive of the California state government, whose responsibilities include making annual State of the State addresses to the California State Legislature, submitting the budget, and ensuring that state laws are enforced...
, running against incumbent Governor John Bigler
John Bigler
John Bigler was an American lawyer, politician and diplomat. A Democrat, he served as the third Governor of California from 1852 to 1856 and was the first California governor to complete an entire term in office successfully, as well as the first to win re-election...
, who hoped to garner a third term. Johnson and the American Party's distinct anti-immigrant rhetoric and fatigue from deep Democratic divisions proved popular with the electorate, giving Johnson the governorship by a comfortable margin. Johnson was described as "the most startled man in the state" upon hearing of his election. Along with the governorship, Know Nothings also received considerable gains in the California State Legislature
California State Legislature
The California State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of California. It is a bicameral body consisting of the lower house, the California State Assembly, with 80 members, and the upper house, the California State Senate, with 40 members...
, as well as getting elected to every other major executive post in the state, such as the offices of Lieutenant Governor
Lieutenant Governor of California
The Lieutenant Governor of California is a statewide constitutional officer elected separately from the Governor who serves as the "vice-executive" of California. The Lieutenant Governor of California is elected to serve a four year term and can serve a maximum of two terms...
, Attorney General
California Attorney General
The California Attorney General is the State Attorney General of California. The officer's duty is to ensure that "the laws of the state are uniformly and adequately enforced" The Attorney General carries out the responsibilities of the office through the California Department of Justice.The...
, Treasurer
California State Treasurer
The California State Treasurer is responsible for the state's investment and finance. The post has more narrow responsibilities and authority than the California State Controller...
, and Controller
California State Controller
The State Controller is the Chief Financial Officer of the State of California in the United States. The post has broader responsibilities and authority than the California State Treasurer...
.
Governor
Johnson was sworn in as the fourth governor of CaliforniaGovernor of California
The Governor of California is the chief executive of the California state government, whose responsibilities include making annual State of the State addresses to the California State Legislature, submitting the budget, and ensuring that state laws are enforced...
on January 9, 1856. Taking office at age of 30, Johnson remains the youngest to have done so in California history. Upon assuming the office, Johnson inherited a growing state debt left over from the Bigler administration. Johnson sought nearly immediately to reduce government expenditures in the hope of cutting the debt.
The Vigilante Committee
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
political circles had often expanded to open violence. In 1851, due to distrust with municipal authorities and allegations of severe corruption, armed citizens took to the streets and formed the San Francisco Vigilance Movement
San Francisco Vigilance Movement
The San Francisco Committee of Vigilance was a popular ad hoc organization formed in 1851 and revived in 1856. Their purpose was to rein in rampant crime and government corruption. They were among the most successful organizations in the vigilante tradition of the American Old West.These militias...
to correct wrongs they saw being committed or being protected by the city government. In one of the committee's first moves, citizens lynched two criminals that had been in the city jails. The governor at the time, John McDougall, condemned the actions of the vigilantes, but proved powerless to stop them due to the infancy of state law enforcement.
Remaining dormant for five years, distrust of city authorities again reached the surface when on May 14, 1856, James King of William, editor of the San Francisco Bulletin and a vocal critic of corrupt officials, was mortally wounded by James P. Casey, a purported ballot-box stuffer and city politician.
As Casey stood in custody with San Francisco law enforcement, William T. Coleman, a ringleader in the 1851 Vigilance Committee and another vocal critic of municipal authorities, called for sympathizers and arms to form another Vigilante Committee. Armed citizens erected a barricade along Sacramento Street to repel city officers from removing their presence. By the next week, Vigilantes marched on the city jail, overpowering its guards to arrest Casey, along with criminal Charles Cora, who had fatally shot a U.S. Marshal the previous year.
Johnson reacted to the news of the Vigilante Committee quickly. Johnson, along with his brother William and the newly commissioned chief of the California Militia, Major General William Tecumseh Sherman
William Tecumseh Sherman
William Tecumseh Sherman was an American soldier, businessman, educator and author. He served as a General in the Union Army during the American Civil War , for which he received recognition for his outstanding command of military strategy as well as criticism for the harshness of the "scorched...
, traveled to San Francisco from Sacramento to meet the Vigilante Committee ringleaders face to face. Sherman later recalled in his 1875 Memoirs of Johnson angrily confronting Coleman and other Vigilante ringleaders in their makeshift headquarters, exclaiming, "Coleman, what the devil is the matter here?" Coleman replied the San Franciscans "were tired of it, and had no faith in the officers of the law.” After personal negotiations between Governor Johnson and the Vigilantes over transferring the criminals to state law enforcement failed, Johnson watched helplessly as both Casey and Cora were hanged by the Vigilantes on May 20.
Believing the matter done, Johnson returned to Sacramento, still reeling from his lack of authority to stop the hangings. The Vigilantes, however, had refused to disperse, claiming themselves as the city's rightful law enforcement. San Francisco Mayor
Mayor of San Francisco
The Mayor of the City and County of San Francisco is the head of the executive branch of San Francisco's city and county government. The mayor has the duty to enforce city laws, and the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, the legislative branch....
James Van Ness
James Van Ness
James Van Ness was the seventh mayor of San Francisco, USA from 1855 to 1856.He was the son of Dutch-American Vermont Governor Cornelius Van Ness and father-in-law of future San Francisco mayor Frank McCoppin. Prior to being mayor, he had been a lawyer in the U.S. South and then a San Francisco...
, with the municipal police
San Francisco Police Department
The San Francisco Police Department, also known as the SFPD and San Francisco Department Of Police, is the police department of the City and County of San Francisco, California...
and sheriff departments overwhelmed by the Vigilantes continued armed presence in the city's streets, pleaded to the Governor for military assistance. Johnson acted, instructing General Sherman to gather available arms and muster the California Militia in San Francisco on June 2, and issuing a gubernatorial proclamation declaring San Francisco in a state of insurrection the following day. But Johnson's proclamation, like those of McDougall's five years earlier, faced enforcement problems. Johnson had instructed the California Militia to impose martial law. Yet due to the lack of proper arms, the Militia needed equipment provided by federal forces. Johnson ordered John E. Wool
John E. Wool
John Ellis Wool was an officer in the United States Army during three consecutive U.S. wars: the War of 1812, the Mexican-American War and the American Civil War. By the time of the Mexican-American War, he was widely considered one of the most capable officers in the army and a superb organizer...
of the U.S. Army's Department of the Pacific
Department of the Pacific
The Department of the Pacific was a major command of the United States Army during the 19th century.-Formation:The Department of the Pacific was first organized on October 31, 1853, at San Francisco, California, taking over from the previous Pacific Division. The department reported directly to...
based in Benicia
Benicia, California
Benicia is a waterside city in Solano County, California, United States. It was the first city in California to be founded by Anglo-Americans, and served as the state capital for nearly thirteen months from 1853 to 1854. The population was 26,997 at the 2010 census. The city is located in the San...
to dispatch weapons to the state militia. Yet General Wool rejected, claiming that the Governor did not have the authority to use arms from federal soldiers or his soldiers use to any military capacity, claiming that right laid exclusively with the President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
.
Both Johnson and Sherman were furious over General Wool's refusal to lend arms for state militia forces. Seeing the state government's powerlessness in the face of the situation, Sherman resigned from his military commission, vowing never to return to the realm of California politics. Meanwhile, the California Militia, under the new command of Major General Volney E. Howard
Volney E. Howard
Volney Erskine Howard was an American lawyer, statesman, and jurist.-Career:Howard commenced law practice in Brandon, Mississippi...
, continued to gather arms in the city for its companies that Sherman had begun, but suffered a major setback when on June 21, 1856, Vigilantes seized the arms schooner Julia, depriving the state militia its arms supply and a majority of its muskets.
The Vigilantes remained the defacto law enforcement of San Francisco until August 1856. Between June to their gradual dissolution, Vigilantes had arrested Chief Justice David S. Terry
David S. Terry
David Smith Terry was a California politician, who killed United States Senator David C. Broderick in the Broderick – Terry duel in 1859. He was then killed in 1889 by a bodyguard of United States Supreme Court Justice Stephen J. Field.-Biography:Terry was born in Christian County, Kentucky...
of the Supreme Court of California
Supreme Court of California
The Supreme Court of California is the highest state court in California. It is headquartered in San Francisco and regularly holds sessions in Los Angeles and Sacramento. Its decisions are binding on all other California state courts.-Composition:...
for stabbing a Vigilante member, as well as hanging two more individuals. Governor Johnson revoked his proclamation on San Francisco's insurrection on November 3.
Despite denouncing the Vigilantes and their rebellion against city authorities, Johnson did agree to an earlier Vigilante demand of uniting the city and county of San Francisco into a single entity to minimize corruption. The result was the passage and signing of the Consolidation Act of 1856, uniting county and municipal authorities.
Rest of term
The Vigilante Crisis in the summer of 1856 overshadowed much of the rest of Johnson's term. Despite a large portion of the State LegislatureCalifornia State Legislature
The California State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of California. It is a bicameral body consisting of the lower house, the California State Assembly, with 80 members, and the upper house, the California State Senate, with 40 members...
made up of Know Nothing
Know Nothing
The Know Nothing was a movement by the nativist American political faction of the 1840s and 1850s. It was empowered by popular fears that the country was being overwhelmed by German and Irish Catholic immigrants, who were often regarded as hostile to Anglo-Saxon Protestant values and controlled by...
party members, Johnson once vetoed a bill due to its "bad spelling, improper punctuation and erasures." One important accomplishment of the Johnson Administration would be the approval of funds to build the future California State Capitol
California State Capitol
The California State Capitol is home to the government of California. The building houses the bicameral state legislature and the office of the governor....
.
By the 1857 general election, Know-Nothings had grown frustrated with Johnson's inability to deal with the San Francisco Vigilantes
San Francisco Vigilance Movement
The San Francisco Committee of Vigilance was a popular ad hoc organization formed in 1851 and revived in 1856. Their purpose was to rein in rampant crime and government corruption. They were among the most successful organizations in the vigilante tradition of the American Old West.These militias...
. During the American Party's convention that year, Johnson lost the party's nomination for the governorship to George W. Bowie. Bowie would later be defeated by Lecompton
Lecompton Constitution
The Lecompton Constitution was the second of four proposed constitutions for the state of Kansas . The document was written in response to the anti-slavery position of the 1855 Topeka Constitution of James H. Lane and other free-state advocates...
Democrat John Weller. Shortly afterwards, the Know-Nothings ceased to be a major political force in California, and later collapsed, swallowed up by the emerging Republican Party
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
and sections of the Democratic Party.
Nevada
Frustrated by his tenure in the California governorship and anxious for a new political start, Johnson moved to the Utah TerritoryUtah Territory
The Territory of Utah was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from September 9, 1850, until January 4, 1896, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Utah....
shortly after his departure. Following Utah's split and the creation of the Nevada Territory
Nevada Territory
The Territory of Nevada was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 2, 1861, until October 31, 1864, when it was admitted to the Union as the State of Nevada....
, as well as the beginning of the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
in 1861, discussion began in territorial political circles to draft documents suitable for the federal government to admit Nevada as a U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
. In 1863, Johnson was elected to the Nevada Constitutional Convention in Carson City
Carson City, Nevada
The Consolidated Municipality of Carson City is the capital of the state of Nevada. The words Consolidated Municipality refer to a series of changes in 1969 which abolished Ormsby County and merged all the settlements contained within its borders into Carson City. Since that time Carson City has...
. The following year, the former governor was elected as Convention President.
Due in part to Johnson's efforts, Nevada was admitted as a U.S. state on October 31, 1864.
In 1867, Nevada governor Henry G. Blasdel
Henry G. Blasdel
Henry Goode Blasdel was an American politician. He was the 1st Governor of Nevada, serving during the American Civil War and the first years of the Reconstruction era. He was a member of the Republican Party.-Biography:...
appointed Johnson to the Nevada Supreme Court. A justice until 1871, Johnson would serve in this post longer than any other in his life.
After leaving the high court in 1871, Johnson's health declined. He died in Salt Lake City
Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. The name of the city is often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC. With a population of 186,440 as of the 2010 Census, the city lies in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a total population of 1,124,197...
on August 31, 1872 at the age of 47.
External links
- J. Neely Johnson biography at the California State LibraryCalifornia State LibraryThe California State Library collects, preserves, generates and disseminates a wide array of information. It was founded in 1850 by the California State Legislature. Today, it is the central reference and research library for state government and the Legislature. The California State Library...
- J. Neely Johnson Daguerreotype image from the California State LibraryCalifornia State LibraryThe California State Library collects, preserves, generates and disseminates a wide array of information. It was founded in 1850 by the California State Legislature. Today, it is the central reference and research library for state government and the Legislature. The California State Library...
- Guide to the John Neely Johnson Papers at The Bancroft Library