John Albert Johnson

American politician

John Albert Johnson

16th Governor of Minnesota
In office
January 4, 1905 – September 21, 1909
Lieutenant| Ray W. Jones
Adolph Olson Eberhart
Preceded by| Samuel Rinnah Van Sant
Succeeded by| Adolph Olson Eberhart
Personal details
Born| (1861-07-28)July 28, 1861
St. Peter, Minnesota, US
Died| September 21, 1909(1909-09-21) (aged 48)
Rochester, Minnesota, US
Political party| Democratic
Spouse|

Elinore "Nora" Preston

(m. 1894)​

Profession| Politician
Signature|

John Albert Johnson (July 28, 1861 - September 21, 1909) was an American politician. He served in the Minnesota State Senate from January 1897 to January 1901. He was the 16th governor of Minnesota from January 4, 1905, until his death on September 21, 1909 as a member of the Democratic Party.

Johnson was the first Minnesota governor born in Minnesota. He was only the second non-Republican governor in 45 years and the third since statehood. He was also first to serve a full term in the present state capitol, and the first to die in office. Johnson sought the 1908 Democratic presidential nomination but lost to William Jennings Bryan.

## Biography

[edit]

Governor Johnson re-election mailing card

John Albert Johnson was born on a farm near St. Peter, Minnesota, on July 28, 1861,[1] the eldest child of Gustaf and Caroline Johnson. After Gustaf abandoned his family, John left school at 13 to support his mother and siblings. During this time, he worked at a local drugstore. After that, he had a seven-year-long stint in the Minnesota National guard, where he reached the rank of captain. Local Democrats, impressed with the enterprising young store clerk, asked him to join their party and edit the strongly Democratic St. Peter Herald. Before he could take the position, he became seriously ill with typhoid fever, but he recovered.[2] His journalistic success attracted statewide attention and fostered political aspirations.

Johnson married Elinor M. Preston on June 1, 1894, at the Union Presbyterian Church in St. Peter.[1]

Johnson failed in early campaigns for state office from his heavily Republican home county but was elected to the state senate in 1898, indicating his growing bipartisan appeal.

## Governor

[edit]

Several reforms of a progressive nature were carried out during Johnson's tenure.[3][4][5] In his 1904 inauguration speech, Johnson called for the 2-year term to be extended to 4 years, more funding for roads, more funding to rural schools, and several other important ideas. Johnson's ability to reason and work with legislators of both parties resulted in such reform legislation as a reorganization of the state's insurance department to the benefit of policyholders, reduction of railroad passenger and freight rates, and removal of constitutional restraints on the legislature's power to tax. Johnson was reelected in 1906 and 1908. He began his third term with reservations. At that point, he had had over four surgeries for his intestinal problems, and wanted to pursue a promising sideline as a public orator. His chronic illness forced him to head to the Mayo Clinic once again on September 13, 1909. When he died suddenly at age 48 from post-operative complications, which included an infection, the state's citizens were grief-stricken.

## Legacy

[edit]

Governor Johnson's funeral train leaving Rochester, Minnesota

Johnson was the first of three governors to die in office. Governor Winfield Scott Hammond was the second, after suffering a stroke in 1915. Floyd B. Olson was the third and most recent, dying of cancer in 1936.

Statues of Johnson are on the steps of the Minnesota State Capitol and the grounds of the Nicollet County Courthouse. Johnson Senior High School in St. Paul is named for him, as is the portion of U.S. Route 169 from Saint Peter to the Twin Cities.

The John A. Johnson School in Virginia, Minnesota was built in 1907.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b The National Cyclopaedia of American Biography. Vol. XIV. James T. White & Company. 1910. pp. 164–165. Retrieved December 15, 2020 - via Google Books.
2. ^ Schmahl, Julius. Legislative Manual Minnesota 1909. Harrison & Smith Company. p. 662.
3. ^ John A. Johnson THE PEOPLE’S GOVERNOR A Political Biography by WINIFRED G. HELMES, P.294
4. ^ Title: November 1909 : Bulletin of the United States Bureau of Labor, No. 85, Volume XIX, P.641-648
5. ^ John A. Johnson THE PEOPLE’S GOVERNOR A Political Biography by WINIFRED G. HELMES, P.212

## External links

[edit]

* John Albert Johnson at Find a Grave
* Minnesota Legislators Past and Present
* John Albert Johnson photos at the Minnesota Historical Society.
* Biographical information and his gubernatorial records are available for research use at the Minnesota Historical Society.

Party political offices

Preceded by

Leonard A. Rosing

|  Democratic nominee for Governor of Minnesota
1904, 1906, 1908 | Succeeded by

James Gray

Political offices
Preceded by

Samuel Rinnah Van Sant

|  Governor of Minnesota
1905 - 1909  | Succeeded by

Adolph Olson Eberhart

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Governors of Minnesota

Territorial (1849-1858)|

* Ramsey
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(<- 1904) 1908 United States presidential election (-> 1912)

Republican Party
(Convention)|

| Nominees|

* President: William Howard Taft
* Vice President: James S. Sherman

|

Other candidates|

* Philander C. Knox
* Charles W. Fairbanks
* Robert M. La Follette
* Joseph B. Foraker
* L. M. Shaw

Democratic Party
(Convention)|

| Nominees|

* President: William Jennings Bryan
* Vice President: John W. Kern

|

Other candidates|

* George Gray
* John Albert Johnson

Third-party and independent candidates

Socialist Party|

* Nominee: Eugene V. Debs
* VP nominee: Ben Hanford

Prohibition Party|

* Nominee: Eugene W. Chafin
* VP nominee: Aaron S. Watkins

Independence Party|

* Nominee: Thomas L. Hisgen
* VP nominee: John Temple Graves

Populist Party|

* Nominee: Thomas E. Watson
* VP nominee: Samuel Williams

* Other 1908 elections: House
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*[m.]: married
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