William H. Johnson
William H. Johnson, (d. 1864) was a free African-American, and the personal valet of Abraham Lincoln. Having first met Lincoln in Springfield, Illinois, he accompanied the President-Elect to Washington, D.C..[1] Once there, he was employed in various jobs, part time as President's valet and barber, and as a messenger for the Treasury Department at $600 per year.
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[edit] Smallpox
On November 18, 1863, Johnson traveled by train with Lincoln to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania for the dedication of the Soldiers' National Cemetery, where Lincoln delivered the Gettysburg Address. On the return trip, Lincoln became ill with what turned out to be smallpox.
Johnson tended to him, and by January 12, 1864 was himself sick with the disease. By the 28th, he was dead.[2]
[edit] Burial
Lincoln arranged for and paid for Johnson's burial in January 1864. Burial records from the time were not well kept and at least three competing locations have been proposed for Johnson's grave. The most popular is a William H. Johnson who was buried in 1864 at Arlington National Cemetery, although his common surname makes a conclusive match impossible. Contrary to a popular myth though, Lincoln did not purchase the headstone that appears there. Neither did he order it inscribed Citizen, which was the label used to distinguish civilian graves from soldiers before Arlington became an exclusively military cemetery.[3]
[edit] References
- ^ Holzer, Harold (2008). Lincoln President-Elect: Abraham Lincoln and the Great Secession Winter 1860-1861. Simon and Schuster. pp. 280. ISBN 9780743289474.
- ^ Hopkins, Donald R. (2002). The Greatest Killer: Smallpox in History. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. pp. 279. ISBN 9780226351681.
- ^ ""Mr. Lincoln and Mr. Johnson," the New York Times". 1 February 2012. http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/02/01/mr-lincoln-and-mr-johnson/.
[edit] External links
Possible William H. Johnson grave site at Arlington Cemetery [1]
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