Isaac Johnson (November 1, 1803 – March 15, 1853) was a US politician and the 12th Governor of the state of

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a U.S. state, state in the Deep South and South Central United States, South Central regions of the United States. It is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 20th-smal ...

. Born on his father's plantation "Troy" near St. Francisville in

West Feliciana Parish West Feliciana Parish (French: ''Paroisse de Feliciana Ouest''; Spanish: ''Parroquia de West Feliciana'') is a civil parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana. At the 2010 census, the population was 15,625, and 15,310 at the 2020 census. ...

, Johnson was the fourth son of

John Hunter Johnson John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Seco ...

and Thenia Munson. Johnson's grandfather, Isaac Johnson, arrived in the area in the 1770s, and his father had a leading role in the West Florida Rebellion. Later he served as a British officer in

Natchez, Mississippi Natchez ( ) is the county seat of and only city in Adams County, Mississippi, United States. Natchez has a total population of 14,520 (as of the 2020 census). Located on the Mississippi River across from Vidalia in Concordia Parish, Louisiana, ...

during the English occupation and was a lawyer, planter, parish sheriff and judge, finally settling at Fairview Plantation on Bayou Sara in Louisiana. Johnson was taught by private tutors early and

read law Reading law was the method used in common law countries, particularly the United States, for people to prepare for and enter the legal profession before the advent of law schools. It consisted of an extended internship or apprenticeship under th ...

under his father and his uncle Joseph E. Johnson, eventually establishing his own law practice. Johnson married Charlotte McDermott in 1828. He was involved in local

Democratic Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

politics and won a seat in the

Louisiana House of Representatives The Louisiana House of Representatives (french: link=no, Chambre des Représentants de Louisiane) is the lower house in the Louisiana State Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. This chamber is composed of 105 re ...

, serving only one term. In 1839, Johnson was appointed a judge in the 3rd Judicial Court. Nominated by the Democratic Party to run for governor in 1846, Johnson competed against Whig Guillaume DeBuys. Johnson won by almost 2,500 votes and assumed the office of governor at the age of 43. Louisiana had adopted a new constitution in 1845, but the unsettled nature of some of the provisions filled the Johnson Administration with confusion and turmoil; even his inaugural oath was questioned. In his inaugural speech, Johnson called for moving the state capital from

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

Baton Rouge Baton Rouge ( ; ) is a city in and the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana. Located the eastern bank of the Mississippi River, it is the parish seat of East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana's most populous parish—the equivalent of countie ...

and stressed the importance of public schools. During his term, Governor Johnson was outspoken in his views: during the 1846–1848 U.S.-Mexican War Johnson put out a call for volunteers and had a confrontation with the Army Paymaster over maintenance of these volunteers. He announced that the United States should annex all of Mexico. On the expansion of

slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

to new territories, Johnson was a champion of

states' rights In American political discourse, states' rights are political powers held for the state governments rather than the federal government according to the United States Constitution, reflecting especially the enumerated powers of Congress and ...

. He denounced the

Wilmot Proviso The Wilmot Proviso was an unsuccessful 1846 proposal in the United States Congress to ban slavery in territory acquired from Mexico in the Mexican–American War. The conflict over the Wilmot Proviso was one of the major events leading to the ...

to prohibit slavery in territories. One of the most important accomplishments during Johnson's administration was an act establishing the University of Louisiana, a bill he signed in 1847. Johnson's leadership was a disappointment to state Democratic leaders because he appointed Whigs to office and did not advance strict party disciplines. By 1848, he had fallen out of favor, and Democrats who supported home-state candidate

Zachary Taylor Zachary Taylor (November 24, 1784 – July 9, 1850) was an American military leader who served as the 12th president of the United States from 1849 until his death in 1850. Taylor was a career officer in the United States Army, rising to th ...

helped carry the state for the Whigs in the 1848 presidential election. In 1849, the state capitol was moved to Baton Rouge. The following year, Governor Johnson did not run for reelection. His successor,

Joseph Marshall Walker Joseph Marshall Walker (July 1, 1784 – January 20, 1856) was a Louisiana soldier and politician and the 13th Governor of Louisiana, from 1850 to 1853. He is best known for being the first Governor inaugurated in the new state capital building ...

, appointed him as Attorney General of Louisiana and he served until his death in 1853. The Verandah St Charles Common NOLA 1845 B Norman

Johnson died of a heart attack at the Verandah Hotel in New Orleans on March 15 and was buried at Troy Plantation. Two of his sons died of yellow fever later that year.

Sources

State of Louisiana - BiographyCemetery Memorial
by La-Cemeteries {{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Isaac 1803 births 1853 deaths Democratic Party governors of Louisiana Louisiana Attorneys General Democratic Party members of the Louisiana House of Representatives American planters 19th-century American politicians American lawyers admitted to the practice of law by reading law People from St. Francisville, Louisiana