Samuel Wistar Johnson, M. D.
Corsicana, Navarro County, Texas
Marker Inscription
(1853-1922) A native of Georgia, Samuel W. Johnson established his first medical practice in Atlanta. After moving to Texas and settling in Corsicana, he became a respected community physician and was elected mayor in 1900. During his term in office the public library was established, thanks to the efforts of the city's women's clubs. Johnson was also instrumental in the early oil industry in Corsicana. His first wife, Kate Beaton, died in 1904. In 1910 he married Sarah Pace. Johnson moved to Dallas in 1910 and died there in 1922. He is buried in Corsicana's Oakwood Cemetery.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Georgia native Dr. Samuel Wistar Johnson began his medical career in Atlanta before settling in Corsicana, where he became a respected physician and was elected mayor in 1900. During his term the city gained a public library, spurred by its women's clubs, and Johnson also had a hand in Corsicana's pioneering oil industry. He later moved to Dallas, died there in 1922, and is buried in Corsicana.
Why it matters
His career links two engines of turn-of-the-century Texas: the first oil boom and the civic reforms led by women's clubs.
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Related people
- · Samuel Wistar Johnson
Themes & tags
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