Gazlay Family History
John Johnston
Parents
| Father | John Johnston (1765 - ca. 1820) |
| Mother | Mary Caldwell (1765 - March 1842) |
Personal Information
| Record Created: 30 January 2013; Last Edited: 18 February 2024 |
| Person ID | 4912 |
| Name | John Johnston |
| Gender | Male |
| Born | 24 June 1815 in Northern Ireland1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| Married | 23 November 1843 in Harrison County, Ohio to Eleanor Gibson Cairns2, 7 |
| Died | 30 October 1899 in Cortland, Cortland County, New York1, 2 |
| Buried | in Cortland Rural Cemetery, Cortland, Cortland County, New York1, 2 |
Biography
John Johnston was a “boatman” on the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers from the early 1840’s to the mid 1850’s, part of that time being a riverboat pilot (like Mark Twain), and in the early 1850’s a steamboat captain based in the Wheeling, Virginia (now West Virginia) area, an occupation he shared with his brother George Johnston. After retiring from this business (and before Alice Carrie Johnston was born) he bought a farm in Bloomington, Illinois, where he lived most of the rest of his life. In the 1890’s he and his wife came to Cortland, New York, where daughter Alice lived.2
Person/Family
| Spouse 1 |  Eleanor Gibson Cairns (daughter of Michael Cairns and Isabella Kennedy) |
| Born | 31 July 1823 in Northern Ireland |
| Married | 23 November 1843 in Harrison County, Ohio to John Johnston |
| Died | 4 April 1907 in Corning, Clay County, Arkansas |
| Children | of John Johnston and Eleanor Gibson Cairns: |
| 1. | George Johnston |
| Born | ca. 1845 in Ohio |
| 2. | Moses Johnston |
| Born | ca. 1846 in Ohio |
| 3. | Franklin Johnston |
| Born | ca. 1848 in Ohio |
| 4. | Thomas Johnston |
| Born | ca. 1850 in Ohio |
| 5. | Leander Johnston |
| Born | ca. 1852 in Ohio |
| 6. | Thompson Johnston |
| Born | ca. 1854 in Virginia |
| +7. | Alice Carrie Johnston |
| Born | 21 June 1857 in Bloomington, Illinois |
| Married | 21 December 1882 in Normal, McLean County, Illinois to Henry Willis Gazlay |
| Died | 8 March 1901 in Cortland, Cortland County, New York |
| 8. | Clara Johnston |
| Born | ca. 1860 in Illinois |
| 9. | Alfred Johnston |
| Born | ca. 1861 in Illinois |
| 10. | Ellen Johnston |
| Born | ca. 1865 in Illinois |
Sources
- Find a Grave (website). Cortland Rural Cemetery, Cortland, Cortland County, New York; John Johnston, born: 24 June 1815; died: 30 October 1899 (from record, which provides the names and links for his wife and two children).
- Email from Mark Morrison Johnston, 6-8 November 2011, with information regarding Alice Carrie Johnston and her parents John and Eleanor (Cairns) Johnston, and a photo of their common gravestone that shows all of their birth and death dates.
- U.S. Federal Census, 1850, Ohio, Belmont County, Pultney Township, Image 50 of 54, John Johnson [sic], 36, Ireland, boatman; Eleanor Johnson, 28, Ireland; George Johnson, 5, O. [Ohio]; Moses Johnson, 4, O. [Ohio]; Franklin Johnson, 2, O. [Ohio]; Thomas Johnson, 8/12, O. [Ohio]; Martha Johnson, 17, Ireland.
- U.S. Federal Census, 1860, Illinois, McLean County, Normal, Page No. 113, John Johnston, 44, Ireland, farmer; Elanor, 37, Ireland; George Johnston, 15, Ohio; Moses Johnston, 13, Ohio; Franklin Johnston, 12, Ohio; Thomas Johnston, 10, Ohio; Leander Johnston, 8, Ill.; Thompson Johnston, 6, Ill.; Alice Johnston, 3, Ill.; Isabel Clarence, 73, Ireland, domestic; Elwood Ward, 24, Ohio, laborer.
- U.S. Federal Census, 1870, Illinois, McLean County, Normal Township, Page No. 38, John Johnston, 55, Ireland, farmer; Elenor Johnston, 47, Ireland; Thomas Johnston, 20, Ohio, works on farm; Leander Johnston, 18 [written over 20], Ohio, works on farm; Thompson Johnston, 16 [written over 18], Virginia, works on farm; Clara Johnston, 12 [the 2 appears to be scribbled out, so the age may be 1 year; she does not appear in the 1860 census suggesting she was no older than 10 in 1870], Illinois; Alice Johnston, 12, Illinois; Alfred Johnston, 9, Illinois; Ellen Johnston, 5, Illinois; servant Eliza Jane Kidney, 17, New York.
- U.S. Federal Census, 1880, Illinois, McLean County, Normal Corporation, E.D. 166, Page No. 1, John Johnston, 64, Ireland, Farmer; wife Eleanor G. Johnston, 56, Ireland; daughter Alice Johnston, 22, Ill.; son Alfred Johnston, 19, Ill., farm laborer; daughter Nellie Johnston, 14, Ill.
- Ohio, County Marriages 1789-2013/2016, Harrison County, Marriage Records 1839-1850, Page 246, John Johnston and Eleanor Cairns, marriage license issued 18 November 1843, married on 23 November 1843, filed on 23 December 1843.