Johnson Family

John J. Johnson was born on February 12, 1843, on a farm in Hancock County near Findlay. The family moved to Defiance County where they engaged in farming. John met and married Flora Bissonette. Her family originated in Skye, Scotland. Her grandmother was Flora MacDonald Flovelle, great-granddaughter of Allen and Flora MacDonald. The family migrated to North Carolina, and Allen and his sons fought in the Revolutionary War. They became prominent in the early settlement of the country. A college known as the Flora MacDonald College was established in Belvidere, North Carolina. Today, this college is consolidated with St. Andrews College and is located in Laurinburg, North Carolina. Some of the family migrated to Ohio by way of Tennessee. Some went to Canada and settled near Quebec.

Flora was born at Quebec. She met and married Richard Bissonette. Their children were Christina, Joseph, Flora, Agnes, Caroline, Alex, Henry, Steven, Mary and Sophia Bissonette.

The family migrated to Ohio from Canada in the early years of the nineteenth century when this territory was opened to settlers. Flora Bissonette married John Johnson and went to live on a farm in Defiance County. Two children were born in Defiance County: George and Rosalie. John bought a farm abutting the Maumee River, southwest of Napoleon, Ohio. It was known as the Round Bottom Farm. This area was once the scene of Indian warfare. It was located between Fort Defiance and Fort Meigs where General Anthony Wayne fought the Indians. Two more children were born on the farm: Josephine and Walter (Bob). John Johnson died in 1908. The family moved to Napoleon and Henry and Anna Bissonette lived on the farm.

George Johnson went to school in Napoleon and graduated from Napoleon High School. He took the Boxwell Test, passed it, and taught at the Dunbar School. He later attended college at Ada, Ohio. Rosalie married Michael Kunz and lived in Toledo, Ohio. Josephine became a practical nurse nad worked at the county home until she retired. Walter was in the seed business. He married Martha Groll and they had a son, Howard. Howard married Evelyn Kanney and lives at Cincinnati, Ohio. Their children are Steven and Nancy.

George Johnson married Martha Konzen. The Konzen family originated in Bavaria, Germany and migrated to Chillicothe, Ohio. Martha was the daughter of Frank and Mary Kellhofer Konzen. The Konzen children were Martha, Frank, George, Henry, John, Leonard, Mary, Magdalena, and Elizabeth. The Konzens moved to Henry County and bought a farm near the Henry-Fulton County line. After George and Martha Johnson were married, they moved to Leipsic, Ohio. There he managed a shoe store. John Lawrence Johnson was born there. The Johnson family moved to Hamler, Ohio, and with Michael Mack, they ran a general store known as "Johnson and Mack". Marguerite, Robert and Mary were born at Hamler. George helped establish the first Hamler State Bank. He was once president of the bank and postmaster of Hamler. John Lawrence, Marguerite, and Robert graduated from Hamler High School. After graduation, John Lawrence went to Toledo, Ohio, and was in the automobile business and stayed in this business until his death in 1963. He married Louise Reusch. They had six children: Donald, John Jr., Richard, Patricia, Nancy, and Robert.

Marguerite graduated from St. Vincent's School of Nursing in Toledo, and after working as an office nurse for a number of years, she married Dr. T. J. Cunningham and resides in Toledo, Ohio.

In 1929, the family moved back to the Johnson farm at Round Bottom, near Napoleon. Mary graduated from Napoleon High School. Robert and Mary attended Bowling Green State University. Robert taught school at Riverside, and Veigel, in Napoleon Township. Then he went to Ohio State University, in Columbus, Ohio, and received a degree in Electrical Engineering. He worked at Haughton Elevators, in Toledo. He married Kathleen S •artz, a school teacher from Cygnet, Ohio. The National Guard, of which he was a member, was called to duty in 1940, and when World War II began, he left with the National Guard. He was stationed in the South Pacific for thirty eight months. He left the United States as a lieutenant and returned a colonel. After his return, he went to work for the General Electric Company. He remained with this company until his retirement. Robert and Kathleen had Carol and James. Kathleen died in 1968. Robert married Martha Cronwall, from Carmel, California, in 1973. Martha died in 1977. Robert now resides in Carmel. His daughter, Carol, graduated from Dayton University. She married Larry Daker, a school teacher, from Chicago, Illinois. They have four children: Matthew, Kathleen, Jeanne, and Jennifer, and live in Chicago. James attended Ohio State University and lives in Cleveland, Ohio.

Mary Johnson graduated from Bowling Green University with a degree in Elementary Education. She taught school at South, Ridge, Freytag, Okolona, and Ridgeville Corners, Ohio. She married Charles Middleton in 1948. Charles attended Chicago Air College. He was drafted into the army in 1942. He served three years in the European theater, primarily in Italy, but he also served in Japan. Charles returned home in November, '1945. He went back to Chicago where he attended the Industrial Training Institute. He returned to Napoleon and worked for Snyder Chevrolet. In 1951, he went to Hobart Trade School, Troy, Ohio, where he graduated in welding. He started his own welding business on Monroe Street in April, 1951. He moved his welding business to the corner of Scott and Railroad Street in 1961 and his shop is still located at that address. His hobbies are drawing and metal sculptures.

Charles and Mary have two daughters, Patricia and Teresa. Patricia married David Gilliland and they have one daughter, Dawn Lynne. They live in Rio Rancho, New Mexico near Albuquerque.

Teresa married James Burk and has one daughter, Kathleen Jo, and live in Napoleon, Ohio.

Submitted by: Mary Johnson Middleton