Carter Page Johnson was an American major throughout the late 19th century and early 20th century. He was known for his career in the American Frontier and his leadership at the

Battle of Tayacoba The Battle of Tayacoba, June 30, 1898, (also spelled Tayabacao) was an American special operations effort to land supplies and reinforcements to Cuban rebels fighting for their independence in the Spanish–American War. Background On June 25 ...

during the Santiago campaign of the

Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...

Origin

Carter was born on June 4, 1851, at

Staunton, Virginia Staunton ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 25,750. In Virginia, independent cities a ...

as the son of William Bosewell Johnson and Margaret Breckinridge. His paternal grandparents were Chapman Johnson and Mary Nicholson and his maternal grandparents were John Breckinridge and Margaret Heiskell.

Service in the Frontier

Johnson entered the

Virginia Military Institute The Virginia Military Institute (VMI) is a public senior military college in Lexington, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1839 as America's first state military college and is the oldest public senior military college in the U.S. In k ...

on August 10, 1871, as a cadet before graduating on July 2, 1875, ranking 28th out of 45 in his class. He proceeded to participate in the

Northern Cheyenne Exodus The Northern Cheyenne Exodus, also known as Dull Knife's Raid, the Cheyenne War, or the Cheyenne Campaign, was the attempt of the Northern Cheyenne to return to the north, after being placed on the Southern Cheyenne indian reservation, reservatio ...

at the

Fort Robinson breakout The Fort Robinson breakout or Fort Robinson massacre was the attempted escape of Cheyenne captives from the U.S. army during the winter of 1878-1879 at Fort Robinson in northwestern Nebraska. In 1877, the Cheyenne had been forced to relocate fr ...

. In 1882, he was promoted to Second Lieutenant and began serving at the 4th Infantry Regiment at Fort Robinson but was transferred to the

10th Cavalry Regiment The 10th Cavalry Regiment is a unit of the United States Army. Formed as a segregated African-American unit, the 10th Cavalry was one of the original " Buffalo Soldier" regiments in the post–Civil War Regular Army. It served in combat during ...

and was transferred to

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

. While there, he was part of the soldiers that pursued

Geronimo Gerónimo (, ; June 16, 1829 – February 17, 1909) was a military leader and medicine man from the Bedonkohe band of the Ndendahe Apache people. From 1850 to 1886, Geronimo joined with members of three other Central Apache bands the Tchihen ...

and his disciples across the state. Despite the failure of attempting to find any of them, Johnson received commendation for his efforts in trying to find them.

Spanish–American War

When the

broke out, 1st Lieutenant Johnson was assigned to Troop M of the 10th Cavalry Regiment and set out for Cuba. Departing from

Lakeland, Florida Lakeland is a city in Polk County, Florida, United States. Located along Interstate 4, I-4 east of Tampa and southwest of Orlando, Florida, Orlando, it is the List of municipalities in Florida, most populous city in Polk County. As of the 2020 ...

on June 21 along with Lieutenant

George P. Ahern George may refer to: Names * George (given name) * George (surname) People * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Papagheorghe, also known as Jorge / GEØRGE * George, stage name of Gior ...

and Captain

Winthrop Astor Chanler Winthrop Astor Chanler (October 14, 1863 – August 24, 1926) was an American sportsman and soldier who fought in the Spanish–American War and World War I. Chanler, a descendant of many prominent American families including the Dudley–Winthr ...

, they would collaborate with General

Emilio Núñez Emilio Núñez (born Juan Emilio de la Caridad Núñez y Rodriguez on 27 December 1855 in Esperanza, Las Villas, Cuba – 5 May 1922 in Havana, Cuba) was a Cuban-American soldier, dentist, and politician.Marquez Sterling, Carlos & Manuel; ''Hist ...

's forces at the mouth of the Tallabacoa River as they landed on the beachhead nearby to support the

Cuban War of Independence The Cuban War of Independence (), also known in Cuba as the Necessary War (), fought from 1895 to 1898, was the last of three liberation wars that Cuba fought against Spain, the other two being the Ten Years' War (1868–1878) and the Litt ...

. After a bombardment from the , the American and Cuban forces began making their war to

Trinidad, Cuba Trinidad () is a town in the province of Sancti Spíritus, central Cuba. Together with the nearby Valle de los Ingenios, it has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1988, because of its historical importance as a center of the sugar trade ...

. At the

, the Americans and Cubans came under heavy fire from the Spanish at the nearby jungles and were forced to retreat. During the battle, when Cuban forces managed to capture a fort and a block house, he took a barrel of rum and got drunk. He pulled down the Spanish flag, ran up his blouse as the American flag and drunkenly ordered his troops to fire on the Cubans but his men refused to follow the order.

Later service

Johnson briefly served in the

Philippine–American War The Philippine–American War, known alternatively as the Philippine Insurrection, Filipino–American War, or Tagalog Insurgency, emerged following the conclusion of the Spanish–American War in December 1898 when the United States annexed th ...

but not desiring any further overseas service, Johnson was transferred to the

8th Cavalry Regiment The 8th Cavalry Regiment is a regiment of the United States Army formed in 1866 during the American Indian Wars. The 8th Cavalry continued to serve under a number of designations, fighting in every other major U.S. conflict since, except Wor ...

. He retired in 1909 at Fort Robinson as a major and settled on a ranch west of the White River nearby the Fort. Johnson re-entered service on 1916 but died from heart problems while returning from a trip at

Wheatland, Wyoming Wheatland is a town in and the county seat of Platte County in southeastern Wyoming, United States. The population was 3,588 at the 2020 census. History Before the late 19th century, the area around the future site of Wheatland was a flat, ari ...

and died at

Alliance, Nebraska Alliance is a city in and the county seat of Box Butte County, Nebraska, Box Butte County, in the western part of the state of Nebraska, in the Great Plains region of the United States. Its population was 8,151 at the 2020 census. Alliance is ho ...

Legacy

Johnson was posthumously described as "an excellent soldier and efficient officer." Carter P. Johnson Lake near

Scottsbluff, Nebraska Scottsbluff is a city in Scotts Bluff County, Nebraska, United States, in the Great Plains region. The population was 14,436 at the 2020 census. Scottsbluff is the largest city in the Nebraska Panhandle, and the 13th-most-populous city in N ...

is named after him.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Carter Page 1851 births 1916 deaths People from Staunton, Virginia United States Army officers Virginia Military Institute alumni United States Army personnel of the Indian Wars American military personnel of the Spanish–American War American military personnel of the Philippine–American War Breckinridge family