Antebellum Political Characters from Virginia: Johnson

The "Virginia Governors" of Louisiana filled a void caused by the lack of democratic political skills in the Louisiana population because of the years of rule by the French and Spanish monarchies. Governor Thomas Bolling Robertson and later Henry S. Johnson did not exactly get along with their Creole constituents and the conflicts between the Anglo and Creole segments of the Louisiana's inhabitants sometimes were intensified by the actions of these men from a non-Louisiana tradition. Neither Robertson nor Johnson had the sensitivity or political skills of the first Virginian who served as governor of Louisiana, William C. C. Claiborne. And now more about Henry S. Johnson.

Henry S. Johnson

Henry Johnson served as a governor of Louisiana, a U.S. Senator and Representative from Louisiana. But he was born in Virginia in September of 1783. He studied studied law and was admitted to the Virginia bar. In 1809 he moved to the Territory of Orleans to become the clerk of the second superior court of the Territory.

Johnson served as district judge of a parish court in 1811 and was a delegate to the state constitutional convention of 1812. Johnson loved politics and became a "professional politician." In 1812 he lost a bid to the U.S. Congress, though. Until the his next race, Johnson practiced law in Donaldsonville. In 1818 he was elected as a Republican to the U.S. Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the death of William C. C. Claiborne. Johnson was re-elected to the U.S. Senate in 1823 and served to almost June of 1824. In the Senate, Johnson served on the Committee on Indian Affairs. In 1824, Johnson resigned to run for governor of Louisiana.

From the Louisiana Secretary of State website:

At this time, the legislature moved the seat of government to Donaldsonville [Johnson's adopted hometown] in a compromise between the Anglo-American leaders who wanted the capital out of New Orleans and the Creoles who wanted to retain the seat of government within a French area.

Johnson benefited from a bitter division among the Creoles to get elected, then luckily enjoyed the fruits of a visit to Louisiana by Revolutionary War hero, the Marquis de Lafayette. That visit allayed the bitter Creole-Anglo split, but Johnson was to inflame the conflict once again by taking the side of the "Anglos" in a dispute about cotton and sugar cultivation. The creation of two financial institutions promoted prosperity during Johnson's term: the Louisiana State Bank and the Consolidated Association of Planters of Louisiana. He improved commerce within Louisiana by forming the Internal Improvement Board to maintain and build roads and canals.

The copyright of the article Antebellum Political Characters from Virginia: Johnson in Louisiana is owned by Kathryn Morse. Permission to republish Antebellum Political Characters from Virginia: Johnson in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

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