William T. Johnson and family papers. Legal and financial documents. Folder 01-23, 1867-1873. - William T. Johnson and family papers. Legal and financial documents. Folder 01-23, 1867-1873.

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Title
William T. Johnson and family papers. Legal and financial documents. Folder 01-23, 1867-1873.
Biographical Information
Anna L. Johnson (1841-1922) was born a free person of color in Natchez, Mississippi to William Johnson (1809?-1851) and Ann Battles Johnson (1815?-1866), both free people of color and former enslaved persons. Anna had nine brothers and sisters: William (born 1836), Richard (born 1837), Byron (1839-1872), Katharine (1842-1901), Phillip (born 1844), Eugenia (born 1845), Alice (born about 1846), Josephine (born 1849), and Clarence (born 1851).</br></br>Anna's father, William Johnson, was a slaveholder and the owner of three barber shops, a bath house, and a plantation. In the late 1840s, William Johnson became involved in a dispute with Baylor Winn and Benjamin Wade regarding a property line on his plantation. In May 1851, after the circuit court ordered a survey, the dispute was settled out of court. However, on June 16, 1851, Johnson was fatally wounded in an ambush, and before his death on the morning of June 17, he named Winn as his assassin. Following William's death, and the death of Anna Battles Johnson in 1866, Anna's brother Byron Johnson (1839-1872) became the head of the household.</br></br>After Byron's death in 1872, Anna became the head of the Johnson household, managing the family's financial and business matters. Anna taught in the Natchez primary schools, as did her sisters: Alice, Josephine, and Katharine. During the period of 1912 through 1920, Anna lived at the family plantation, Peachland Plantation. Anna died in 1922 at about age 81.</br></br>Byron Johnson (1839-1872) was a barber and was born a free person of color in Natchez, Mississippi to William Johnson (1809?-1851) and Ann Battles Johnson (1815?-1866), both free people of color and former enslaved people. He was one of ten children: William (born 1836), Richard (born 1837), Anna (1841-1922), Katharine (1842-1901), Phillip (born 1844), Eugenia (born 1845), Alice (born about 1846), Josephine (born 1849), and Clarence (born 1851). Following the death of his father and mother, Byron Johnson became the head of the household. Byron Johnson was shot by another colored man in 1872 and died. After Byron’s death in 1872, Anna became the head of the Johnson household, managing the family’s financial and business matters.</br></br>Juanito Garrus (born about 1846) and Carlito Garrus (born about 1848) were brothers born in Cuba who worked as barbers in Natchez, Mississippi as free people of color. Their father was of French origins and served as the French consul to Havana; their mother was Cuban. Juanito married Eugenia Johnson (born 1845), the daughter of Ann Battles Johnson and William T. Johnson, free people of color. Together, Juanito and Eugenia Garrus had at least four children: Annie, Alphonse, Arthur, and Juanito.
Date Created
1867 - 1873
Location
Description
Legal and financial papers of the Johnson family for the years 1867-1873 include receipts for rent, cotton, freight, and funerary costs; invoices for goods and services rendered; lease agreements; tax receipts; a license for a dog; and various other financial and legal documents pertaining to the management of the Johnson family's barber shops, plantation, and other businesses. Materials of Byron Johnson predominate. Anna Johnson's materials, dated 1873, reflect the transfer of family and business responsibilities from Byron to Anna Johnson, following his death in 1872. An agreement, dated 1870, with Richard M. Johnson to cultivate Black Lake Plnatation; and receipts for Carlito Garrus, Juanito Garrus, and Clarence Johnson are also represented.
Type of Resource
text
Size
70 items.
Language
English
Source
Louisiana State University Libraries, Special Collections, Hill Memorial Library, Baton Rouge, La., http://www.lib.lsu.edu/special
Digital Collection
Revealing an Unknown Past: Free People of Color in Louisiana and the Lower Mississippi Valley
Repository Collection
William T. Johnson and family memorial papers, Mss. 529, 561, 597, 770, 926, 1093, LSU Libraries.
Shelf Location
Mss. 529, Box 1
Contact Information
To inquire about ordering copies of these images, email lsudiglib@lsu.edu See instructions for ordering reprints of this image here: http://www.lib.lsu.edu/special/services/duplication.html . Include the "Item URL" in your request.
Rights
Physical rights are retained by the LSU Special Collections. Copyright has expired and the item is therefore in the public domain. Permission to reproduce this image must be requested through the repository that holds the original.
Preferred Citation
William T. Johnson and Family Memorial Papers,Mss. 529, 561, 597, 770,926, 1093,Louisiana and Lower Mississippi Valley Collections, LSULibraries, Baton Rouge.
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