Thomas Johnson was born around 1841 in Memphis Tennessee. He was a blacksmith by trade. In 1864, when he was 23 years old, he volunteered for the Union army. He was mustered in on January 11, 1864 in Detroit Michigan. His monthly pay was $6.00. During the July and August muster roll, he was present but considered sick. For September and October, he owed the U.S. “1 screwdriver and 1 wormer.” He was also absent because he was in confinement “since Oct 20.”  This was because he was court martialed. In October of 1864, Johnson left his regiment’s camp at Barn Yard Plantation in Ladies Island, South Carolina to steal chickens from the nearby Pleasant Point Plantation. In the process, he held two civilian women at gunpoint and threatened to shoot them. The result of this court martial was a fine of $10.00. It took Johnson six months (from November of 1864 to April of 1865) to pay this amount. He was honorably discharged on September 30, 1865 in Charleston, South Carolina. 

 

After the war, he went back to blacksmithing and lived in Illinois. On April 15, 1876, he married Margaret in Alexander, Illinois. He was previously married to Elnora but it is unclear when they were married and why they were no longer married. They had several children: Josephine (b. March 28, 1877), Willie (b. February 28, 1880), Della (b. February 6, 1882), and Hannah Elnora (b. February 14 (or 15), 1884). In 1882, Johnson claimed his pension based on a gunshot wound to his left breast. According to Johnson’s neighbor, Albert Crockett, Johnson complained of his wound from the war quite a bit and claimed that it progressively got worse. On March 24 (or 28), 1885, Johnson “dropped dead” suddenly. It is presumed that he died from heart disease. He was roughly 44 years old. It is unclear whether or not he received his pension before he died.

 

After his death, his wife, Margaret Johnson, claimed a Widow’s Pension. In her claim, she made it clear that she was in dire need of money. She received $8.00 a month with an additional $2.00 for every child under the age of 16. The last payment she actually received was $12 on April 4, 1915. Her last check was issued on July 4, 1915 for $36 but it was returned and canceled due to the fact that Margaret died on April 11, 1915. She was officially dropped as a pensioner on August 3, 1915. None of her children were still under 16 at the time of her death.