John Johnson, the fourth son of Griffith Johnson (I), was born September 15, 1765 in Allegany County, Maryland. His father, Griffith Johnson (I), served in the American Revolution as a captain in the 3rd Western Battalion of the Washington County, Maryland Militia. Griffith was born on March 5, 1734 in Virginia (a region which was to later become Allegheny County, Maryland. He married John’s mother Elizabeth Thomas (b. 1732), a Quaker of Montgomery County (Maryland) in 1759. Griffith’s father, Thomas Johnson, was a member of Captain Stewart’s Light Horse Body Guards during the time of the French and Indian War. Thomas’s father, Valentine Johnson, was born around 1670 in England and emigrated to America, specifically Orange County, Virginia, eventually settling in the province of Maryland.
A good amount of information still exists about Revolutionary War Captain Griffith Johnson (I), John’s father. An item in the Maryland Gazette for Feb. 16, 1758 reads: “Week before last John Lane and Griffith Johnson were out on a scout on the Patowmack and found Indian tracks leading to George’s Creek near Savage River. They fired on them. Lane is the man who was taken prisoner last November.” This reference may indicate a previous military connection. John’s son Charles would later marry Jane Johnson, daughter of Griffith Johnson. By 1774 Griffith had relocated his family near Town Creek.
Braddock and His Men at Fort Duquesne
On July 9. 1775, Griffith was with Braddock and his Virginia men at Fort Duquesne. He was a silversmith and owned a farm near Cumberland, Maryland called “Betsy’s Choice.” In 1763, during Pontiac’s War, Griffith participated in the Battle of Bloody Run. The town of Blood Run was located at that time in Maryland, but after the Mason Dixon line was established it became a part of Bedford County, Pennsylvania and its name was changed to Everett.
Pontiac’s War Battle
In 1774, Griffith purchased land in Frederick County, Maryland, saying he was a resident of Maryland at that time. During the Revoltuionary War, he was appointed a Captain of the Militia in Washington County, Maryland, on Tuesday, December 3, 1776. A commission was issued to Captain Johnson Monday, June 22, 1778 to the Third or Western Battalion in Washington County, Maryland. The year of 1776, he made an application for two grants of land from the State of Pennsylvania. Griffith died in early 1805 in Allegheny County, Maryland, and is buried in Oldtown United Methodist Church Cemetery (a village in that county). His will was written May 18, 1805, and it does not mention his wife so we assume she died before he did. It was probated on December 6, 1814.
Maryland Militia at Battle of North Point
In 1956, the DAR erected a Memorial Arch in the Valley Forge National Park in Pennsylvania honoring the Revolutionary War veterans. It was constructed to commemorate the arrival of General George Washington and his Continental Army into Valley Forge. Designed by Paul Philippe Cret, the arch is a simplified version of the Triumphal Arch of Titus in Rome (A.D. 81). Griffith Johnson’s name is engraved on the arch.
National Memorial Arch at Valley Forge
Around 1770, John Johnson married Elizabeth Perrin, the daughter of John Perrin and Sarah (Kelly) Perrin (most likely in Allegany County). John and Elizabeth had five children: Griffith (II) (b. 1791), Benjamin, Nathan (b. 1795), Elizabeth, and John (b. 1799). John’s brother Benjamin was married to Drusilla Perrin, believed to be Elizabeth’s sister. The family moved from Maryland to Ohio with a possible settlement in Washington County, Pennsylvania where he had purchased land in 1799, before Ohio was opened for settlement. Elisabeth died in August of 1800. John settled in Harrison County, Ohio in 1810. He was one of the earliest settlers in Harrison County… Early land and deed records indicate that he took up land from the government in 1810, described as the NW Quarter, Section 27, Twp. 11, Range 6.
Harrison County, Ohio
John was remarried to Mary Ann Campbell. Together they had four children: Jonathan, Samuel, Aaron (b. 1816), and Jane. John died in Deersville, Harrison County in January of 1831. He was buried in Harrison County, not far from the county seat of Cadiz.
Griffith Johnson Probate Record March 5, 1805
1800 Allegany, MD Census
