Nicholas Hamner Cobbs to Charles Johnston, May 9, 1832

[Nicholas Hamner Cobbs at Bedford, Virginia, to Charles Johnston at Botetourt Springs, Virginia, May 9, 1832. James Ambler Johnston Papers, Section 5, Virginia Historical Society. This is my rough, annotated transcription from a copy graciously provided by William Myers. Extra paragraph breaks inserted for easier reading.]

                                        Bedford May 9th 1832

My Dear Sir

Your favour of the 29th ult[imo] has been received; an answer to which has been delayed a few days in consequence of my . . . preparations for our approaching Convention.

I do assure you that I am very gratified to find how much your mind is intent[?] on the all important subject of Baptism. I had thou[ght] for some time that you were no stranger to the awakening influences of the Holy Spirit, & it is now evident that there is a work of grace going on in your heart.

I truly sympathize unto[?] you in your religious difficulties. I can fully see their influence on your hopes & feelings. But, my Dear Sir, be not discouraged: these difficulties are not insuperable: the grace of God which has given you the knowledge of these difficulties will afford you strength to overcome them.

Let me affectionately caution you against the tendency of old age to despair: I believe that many more old persons would become pious & happy [C]hristians were it not . . . But be assured these . . . to assist you & most surely will be blessed in your efforts. Though you stumble & fall seven times a day, still rise again & press onward in your course.

Recollect for you can that you have to deal with God who knows your frame & remember you are dust, who understands the force of habit, & who estimates moral character for the intents & purposes of the heart . . . that God is a tender Father [&] pities those that fear him, & makes all proper allowances for the difficulties, infirmities & temptations of those who are endeavoring to serve him.

Every holy desire, every humble confession, every penitent prayer is acceptable in his sight: in the language of scripture he will not break the bruised seed nor quench the smoking flame. As long as you are conscious to yourself that it is your habitual desire to serve God, take comfort to yourself & let the hopes of success animate you to perseverance.

Call to mind the animating promises of the gospel: he that comes unto me I will in no wise cast out. "[W]ho soever will, let him take of the waters of life truly:" "Christ cam to see and to save it . . . which was lost." "Come unto me all you sinners."

Keep up therefore a regular habit of prayer, read the blessed word of God & set a constant watch on your peculi[ar] failings & besetting sins. In this way God will give you grace & strength;& though you may not experience the vivid comforts of young Christians, you will certainly obtain a calm restless faith that will gold with hope the . . . of death,

May God almighty abundantly bless you, my Dear Sir, may he give you much peace & joy in believing after having borne you up under the troubles & trials of this life may he give you a crown of glory and the Kingdom of Heaven. Such is the prayer of one who feels himself under obligations for the kind attentions of yourself & family.

                                                                      Sincerely yours
                                                                       N.H. Cobbs

P.S. I hope certainly to be at your house when I next visit Botetourt. I shall be happy yo converse with you fully on [this subject].

[Additional note, added by a grandchild:] This letter from Mr. (afterwards Bishop) Cobbs is inserted here to shew the spiritual condition of my Grandfather's mind only a few months before his death.


[Nicholas Hamner Cobbs (1796-1861), Episcopal Deacon.

Charles Johnston (1769-January 21, 1833).]

[Many thanks to Sue Davis, William Myers, Mary Davy and Sally Young for their ongoing research collaboration.]    

Jane Wood Johnston Mitchell/Michel notes (circa 1891), part 4

Columbia, S.C. in 1850. Circled in red: shops run by E. W. and A. S. Johnston in the late 1820s

[Jane Mary Wood Johnston Michel (aka Mitchell) [at Washington City for Robert Morton Hughes at Norfolk, Virginia, circa 1891.] Box 3, folder 9, Robert Morton Hughes Papers, Special Collections and University Archives, Patricia W. and J. Douglas Perry Library, Old Dominion University Libraries, Norfolk, VA 23529. This is my rough, annotated transcription from a copy graciously provided by William Myers. Extra paragraph breaks added for emphasis and easier reading.]

[Re: Joseph Eggleston Johnston.]

After graduating, he was stationed for a year or more at Governor’s Island, N.Y.

The next place, as well as I recollect, was Fortress Monroe, where he spent quite a long time.

Next, I believe, was Washington.

In 1832, South Carolina having “nullified” & being in a state bordering on war, every gentleman being a volunteer for military service. Pres: Jackson sent a body of U.S. troops to Charleston to quell the revolt. 

Joseph was Lieut. in one of the regiments, & had the pleasing prospect of fighting his own brothers, Edward, Sydney, & Benjamin, who were all "minute men" (that is, training daily to be ready to go to battle at a minute's notice). He got leave to come up to Columbia to see us all, however, & we had a peaceful visit from him of two days, when he rejoined his regiment.

Thanks to Old Hickory, the war was nipped in the bud. 

[Compare with the final version from Robert M. Hughes, General Johnston (Great Commanders), New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1893, pages 16-17]: 

Johnston's first military service was as second lieutenant in the Fourth Artillery ; the next, in garrison at New York, followed by similar service at Fortress Monroe. This period, extending from 1829 to 1832, was uneventful, being mainly utilized by him in acquiring that knowledge of the soldier's duty which is essential to success. His first experience in actual campaigning was in the Black Hawk expedition of 1832, under General Scott, in which he participated, though without any opportunity for distinction.

In the fall of this same year the nullification troubles in South Carolina were at their height, and Johnston was with the small body of United States troops stationed at Charleston by President Jackson for the purpose of preserving order. Here the contingencies of civil war were forcibly impressed upon his mind, for three of his brothers resided in Columbia and belonged to the South Carolina minutemen then drilling for the conflict with the United States which everyone expected, and they would have been the first to come into collision with the national forces if matters had proceeded to extremities. Fortunately, events took a turn which prevented them from being confronted in fratricidal strife. From this period till the beginning of 1836 he was on duty at Fortress Monroe and at Fort Macon, North Carolina; and he was also assigned to topographical duty.

Louis McLane estate: Bohemia Farm by E.H. Pickering, HABS photographer via Wikimedia Commons (1936)

[Loose leaf of paper]:

You were misinformed as to the place where he was married. It was the family seat, Bavaria, on the Eastern shore of Maryland. [Close: the actual name was Bohemia, later also called Bohemia Farm.]

[Compare with the final version from Robert M. Hughes, General Johnston (Great Commanders), New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1893, pages 22-23]: 

During this period of comparative rest he had formed the acquaintance of Lydia McLane, daughter of Louis McLane and sister of Robert M. McLane, whose intimacy with Johnston, great even at that early period, continued without interruption during his long life. She was a lady of great personal beauty, and none the less attractive were her qualities of mind and heart. Amid her host of admirers Lieutenant Johnston was so fortunate as to be the favored suitor, and on July 10, 1845, they were married. Their union was a specially happy one. The absence of offspring but served to draw them closer together and make their lives more nearly one. Throughout his distinguished career she was a worthy helpmate, whether in the circles of society or the more sacred one of private life.

The family to which Mrs. Johnston belonged is distinguished in the annals of Delaware and Maryland. Her father was often honored with high office, having served in the House of Representatives, the Senate, also as Minister to England, and as Secretary of the Treasury under Jackson. During Jackson's second administration he was transferred to the Department of State. For many years he was president of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company. Her brother Robert is also an eminent citizen, having been Governor of Maryland, member of the House of Representatives, and Minister to France, the latter during the administration of President Cleveland.

[Robert Morton Hughes (1855-1940).
Jane Mary Wood Johnston Mitchell/Michel (1811-1892). Note: from the above, she was visiting or temporarily residing in Columbia at some point in 1832. She married Harvey Mitchell (1799-1866) in Abingdon, Virginia, on September 24, 1832.
Joseph Eggleston Johnston (1807-1891).
Edward William Johnston (1799-1867)
Algernon Sidney Johnston (1801-1852)
Benjamin Franklin Johnston (1808-1834)
Lydia Milligan Sims McLane (1822-1887)
Louis McLane (1784-1857)
Robert Milligan McLane (1792-1849).]

[Many thanks to Sue Davis, William Myers, Mary Davy and Sally Young for their ongoing research collaboration; in this case, specifically to William for providing a scanned copy of the original document.] 

Charles Johnston to Frances Steptoe Johnston Royall, May 7, 1832

 Engraving: Saint-Mémin portrait of Charles Johnston, 1808 (National Portrait Gallery) 

[Charles Johnston at Botetourt Springs, Virginia to Frances Steptoe Johnston Royall at Lynchburg, Virginia, May 7, 1832. James Ambler Johnston Papers, Section 5. Virginia Historical Society. This is my rough, annotated transcription from a copy graciously provided by William Myers. Extra paragraph breaks inserted for easier reading.]

My dear Child,

I rec’d by the last mail the enclosed letter from Francis. Previous to which I had written him that I had provided a situation for him with Col. Shanks and that if he would return I would view what had passed as a youthful indiscretion and every thing should be buried in the deepest oblivion. Whether or not he will return time alone can determine.

When I lately wrote the Dr. how happy I was at having provided for all my boys but Julius little did I dream that there would be this sad exception.

I am getting very uneasy about James, not having rec’d the scrape of a pen from him since about the first of March, his last letter being dated so long ago as the 14^th of Feb’y. What can have prevented him from writing for such a length [of time?] I cannot conceive after having at first been so punctual.

The girls have shewed me your late letters to them in which you complain that they have not given you information as to a certain affair. Having guessed at what it is to which [you] allude I am now able to satisfy your curiosity on that point by telling you that Doct’r Dillon asked and obtained my consent on [F]riday last. As Mary does not know of my having made this communication to you I wish you not to mention it untill [until] you hear of it from some other quarter unless it be in confidence of the Dr. and Charles.

Edward & Ann have set out this morning to Fauquier. Tell the Doct’r I have not yet been able to get a wagon to take down his oil but that he may depend on my not losing sight of it.

                                                       Your ever affectionate father

                                                              Ch. Johnston

[Charles Johnston (1769-1833)

Frances Steptoe Johnston Royall (circa 1807-after 1850), who married Dr. James Townes Royall (1797-1860) in 1825. Hence, references to “the Doct’r.”

Francis = Francis Duchouquet Johnston (1814-circa 1833?), named for a French Canadian trader connected to Charles Johnston’s frontier adventures. He may have died in Cumberland, Maryland. Information about his life and death is sketchy -- and made all the more mysterious by this letter.

Col. Shanks = probably David Cary Shanks (1793-1833), who was born in Botetourt County and is buried in Salem, Virginia.

Julius = Julius Dandridge Johnston (1811-1851), another mystery. He apparently took off for Missouri, where he married Neville Constance Christy (1810-?) on December 10, 1834, in St. Charles. But they were back in Virginia when their children were born: Virginia Neville Johnston (1835-1869) and Martha Louise Johnston (1837). The older daughter married Beverly Holcomb Robertson (1827-1910), a US Army officer, in St. Louis in 1856. Robertson joined the Confederacy and became a brigadier general in the cavalry.

As for Julius Dandridge Johnston, presumably after the death of his wife, he became a Jesuit and died at the age of forty in Cincinnati, Ohio, where he is buried.

James = James Steptoe Johnston (1808-1895). Would marry Louisa Clarissa Bridges Newman (1808-1847), circa June 4-6, 1834, in Jefferson County, Mississippi. 

Dr. Dillon = John Gillam Dillon (1806-1835)

Mary = Mary Morris Johnston would marry Dr. Dillon on October 9, 1832.

Charles = Charles Pickett Johnston (1802-1852), died in Mississippi -- details sketchy. 

Edward & Ann = Edward Pickett Johnston (1798-1893) had married Anne Smith Chilton (1810-1893) on January 5, 1832.

Engraving of Charles Johnston by Charles Balthazar Julien Févret de Saint-Mémin (1770-1852): National Portrait Gallery, Smithsonian Institution. Link here.]

[Many thanks to Sue Davis, William Myers, Mary Davy and Sally Young for their ongoing research collaboration.]

Martha Wood Southall Stras to Ann Bernard Johnston, June 27, 1832

[Martha Wood Southall Stras at Washington City to Ann Nancy Bernard Johnston at Abingdon, Virginia, June 27, 1832.  Bernard Family Papers, Virginia Historical Society, Section 1. This is my rough, annotated transcription from a photocopy graciously provided by William Myers. Extra paragraph breaks inserted for easier reading.]

                                                        Washington June 27^th 1832

Dear Madam,

Amid the gloom & desolation of heart which the latest cruel catastrophe at Alexandria has brought to us all, I take a melancholy pleasure in offering you my condolences on the great loss that one family has sustained, a loss that will be felt throughout not only Virginia but the Union. Virtues the most endearing, the finest talents, a manner that elevated & conciliated all who approached him, the warmest affections & the purest taste; these formed the rare & perfect character of the friend, who has been torn from us, & who seemed to concentrate all love & hopes of that little band of attached hearts, to which his own clung so fondly. Never was there a relation more kind & considerate; he appeared to live but for those around him, always to think of himself last, & to find his highest enjoyment in ministering to the happiness of others.

Here his popularity was commensurate with his acquaintance; from the highest to the lowest, every body who knew him, loved him, & while a general sadness pervaded all Congress, there was not a messenger-boy about the Capitol, not a servant at his lodgings, who was not in tears at the deplorable event.

Recent as was my intercourse with our dear lost Charles, he was to me almost as a son – to his cousin almost a brother; & if such was the warmth of feeling that greeted almost his very appearance here, how must those who have regarded & appreciated his worth, among whom all his life was spent?

Bitter is the pang with which we bewail his early & sudden removal, on our own account, it sinks in affectionate sympathy for those nearer friends, on whom the dreadful blow is yet to descend – for the bereaved brothers, for the desolate female relatives – and above all for those dear children, on whom all his tenderest thoughts & emotions lingered - & who have now no parent. But the Lord himself has not disdained to say, “Leave unto me thy fatherless children, & I will preserve them alive;” & many are the friends that the father’s virtues & His providence have raised up for those poor little orphans. First among these is yourself, dear Madam; for well do I know that my departed nephew would have confided them to you as to his own mother; often did he dilate on your amiable cares for them, & on the happy chance that had blessed them with one so kind & so competent not only to watch over their health but to form their minds.

Once or twice when I proposed that the little girl (who, I am told, is very extraordinary both in beauty & intelligence) should be brought to town for the purposes of education, his reply was that he would never remove her from the advantages of such tuition as you & my niece would bestow, as long as she could possibly enjoy them.

I am sure, from all that I have understood of you both, as well as of Louisa Johnston, that Heaven has been has been especially gracious to our poor Charles in making you the guardians of those whom he valued more than life itself, & that under your affectionate charge, the interesting little creatures will scarce miss the parents, of whom the divine hand has deprived them. Nothing consoles me so much as this thought, & the certainty that they are surrounded in their uncles by the most jealous friends.

I am already your debtor, Madam, for your extreme kindness to my son, while he resided with his best friend, the late Judge, & I have often designed to write you my thanks for all those amiable attentions which you bestowed on his illness, & which have kindled in us both the liveliest gratitude. My very weak health & many other hindrances kept me silent for a long time; & where I was most anxious to address you on the late lamented death of your excellent husband, the loss of one of my daughters, that occurred not a fortnight before, at the house of her sister in Kennebunk, Maine, rendered me quite inadequate to an effort in the epistolary way, even though it was to express the sincere grief, with which I participated in your bereavement. Alas! I had scarcely recovered myself in some degree from those shocks, when called upon to undergo a third, if anything, more dreadful, because so totally unexpected.

I should like much to know when my dear Jane will be with you; poor girl! My best love & prayers are with her. My daughter, Emily, begs to be remembered with me most affectionately to Louisa & her little boy. Kiss your sweet little orphans most tenderly for us, & accept for yourself, dear Madam, our warmest wishes for your health & happiness.

                             M. Stras    

[M. Stras = Martha Wood (1768-1834), a daughter of Valentine Wood (1724-1781) and Lucy Henry (1743-1826) and sister of Mary Valentine Wood (1769-1825), first wife of Judge Peter Johnston, Jr. (1763-1831). Martha Wood's first husband was Stephen Turner Southall (1757-1799) and her second was George Frederick Stas (1746-1811).  Charles Clement Johnston (1795-1832) was her nephew.

Ann Nancy Bernard (1775-1865) was Judge Johnston's second wife from December 12, 1828, to his death on December 15, 1831.

Orphan children = John Preston Johnston (1824-1847) and Eliza Mary Johnston (1825-1909).
My niece = Jane Mary Wood Johnston (1811-1892).
Louisa = Louisa Smith Bowen Johnston (1800-1873)
Her little boy = John Warfield Johnston (1818-1889)
My son = either Valentine Wood Southall (1789-1861) of Amelia County, or Philip Turner Southall (1791-1857) of Prince Edward. 
Daughters at Kennebunk, Maine. The daughter who died at Kennebunk, 1831/1832, is unidentified by name, but the sister she was staying with was probably Lucy Henry Southall (1790-1868), who had married Charles Cutts (1769-1846) in 1812. 
My daughter Emily = Emily Catherine Stras (1803-1872).

[Many thanks to Sue Davis, William Myers, Mary Davy and Sally Young for their ongoing research collaboration.]  

William Radford Preston to Sarah Buchanan Campbell Preston, June 29, 1832

Greenfield, near Cloverdale and Fincastle, Virginia, in 1934 (Botetourt). 

[William Radford Preston at [Greenfield], Cloverdale, Virginia, to Sarah Buchanan Campbell Preston at Abingdon, Virginia, June 29, 1832. Box 29, folder 10, Robert Morton Hughes Papers, Special Collections and University Archives, Patricia W. and J. Douglas Perry Library, Old Dominion University Libraries, Norfolk, VA 23529. This is my rough transcription. Instances of the "long s" in the original have been modernized and paragraph breaks added for easier reading.]

Dear Aunt,

I had intended to have written to you some time ago from Lynchburg on hearing of the lamented death of Mr. Johnston but was so [rushed?] & hurried for time that I postponed it until I arrived at home.

I wish to get you to intercede with Mr. Johnston's relations to permit me to take my little nephew & niece to raise as my own children not that I think that there [their] Father's relations would not be as kind as part by them as I or any person else but none of them being married or permanently settled are in a situation to keep them together as I would do.

I would not trouble you with doing this favour but I am concious [conscious] of your kind feeling to myself & those poor Little Orphans and if there [their] relations will consent to let me have them I will come out for them immediately.

I am appraised of the fact Sarah & Susan have both been conferred & have two fine girls & are doing well.

We all join affectionately in love to all our relations in Washington & pray kiss my Dear little nephew & niece for me & tell them every thing that is kind from me & there [their] little Cousins.

                                     Your sincerely & affectionate nephew
                                                 W.R. Preston  

[William Radford Preston (1798-1846)
Sarah Buchanan Campbell Preston (1778-1846)
Mr. Johnston = Charles Clement Johnston (1795-June 18, 1832)
Little nephew & niece = John Preston Johnston (1824-1847) and Eliza Mary Johnston (1825-1909).
Sarah = Sarah Radford Preston Bowyer (1805-1848), married to Henry Morton Bowyer (1802-1893).
Susan = Susanna (Susan) Smith Preston Radford (1805-1857), who married William Mosely Radford (1810-1873) at Greenfield.]

Note: Radford University, Radford, Virginia, has a digitized set of Radford Family Letters (transcripts) available online. Looks like a goldmine of material. Link here.

[Many thanks to Sue Davis, William Myers, Mary Davy and Sally Young for their ongoing research collaboration.]

The Death of Charles Clement Johnston (1795-1832): Take IV

[Robert Morton Hughes at Norfolk, Virginia, to Hon. Geo. H. Moses, Chairman Joint Committee on Printing at Washington, D.C., September 26, 1925, provided by Office of the Historian, U.S. House of Representatives, http://history.house.gov/ @USHouseHistory, via William Myers. Hughes' answers are to a circular questionnaire sent out during preparation for the publication of Biographical Directory of the American Congress, 1774–1927. There is a link to the volume, published in 1928, here.]

Notable information about Charles Clement Johnston includes the following:

"Educated by his mother, an accomplished woman."

Peter Johnston, Jr.: "His son Charles studied law under him, and came to the bar on February 28, 1818 (that being the date of his license, now in my possession.)"

"A state rights Democrat."

So, Mary Valentine Wood (1769-1825) educated Charles personally, without doubt utilizing the family library to its fullest. Charles was about sixteen when the Johnston family moved from Longwood, Prince Edward County, Virginia, to what became Panecillo, on the outskirts of Abingdon, Virginia, in 1811. We also know that his education was supplemented by tutors and teachers such as Peter Carr (1770-1815).

Peter Johnston, Jr. (1763-1831) probably began Charles' formal legal education at the end of the War of 1812, in 1815. When Charles was officially licensed and granted permission to practice law in Virginia by Archibald Stuart (1757-1832), Creed Taylor (circa 1766-1836) and William Daniel, Sr. (1770-1839), he was twenty-two years old. 

About Charles' death on June 17, 1832:

"He had been to see a young lady in Alexandria to whom he was supposed to be engaged and evidently miscalculated in trying to catch the ferry. His body was found in the slip next morning." 

«Cherchez la femme!»  Who was this mystery woman?  Intriguing. 

He was thirty-seven years old at the time of his death. 

[Robert Morton Hughes (1855-1940)
George Higgins Moses (1869-1944).]

[Many thanks to Sue Davis, William Myers, Mary Davy and Sally Young for their ongoing research collaboration.]

Charles Clement Johnston: Last Will and Testament, 1827 and 1832

[Charles Clement Johnston: Last Will and Testament, February 2, 1827 and exhibited in court, August 27, 1832. From a copy provided by Sue Davis from will books, Washington County Court House, Abingdon, Virginia, pages 263-264.]

I Charles C. Johnston do make and ordain this to be my last Will and Testament.

Imprimus.

I direct the land I purchased of Vance Acklin, to be sold, all my personal property, not retained by my wife to be also sold, and the proceeds derived therefrom, as well as from the collection of all debts due me, to be applied as soon as practicable to the payment of all my just debts.

I direct the land I purchased from the Trustees of the Abingdon Academy to be also sold, in such a way as is possible to discharge the purchase money thereof.

I devise my House & Lotts I purchased of Henry St. John Dixon, with all their appurtenances together with the lotts purchased, of Willoughby to Wife as long as she chooses to reside thereon. When she removes permanently elsewhere I direct them to be sold, the one third of the purchase money remaining after the payment of my debts, if it should be necessary to apply any of it to that purpose, to my wife, the remaining two thirds to be equally divided among my children.

I also devise to my wife such of my personal property as she chooses to retain, without her being required to account therefor.

As I presume she will not continue to keep house where we live, I earnestly recommend her, to reside with my father, to whose protection she is confidently committed, where she would not only have a safe abode, but would contribute greatly to render his home comfortable to him. In that event I would advise a sale of all the household furniture.

I  give to my nephew John W. Johnston the rifle gun and its accoutrements which his father gave me.

I give to my brother Beverly R. Johnston my patent Server [Silver?] watch, he paying therefor to my estate forty dollars. The conditions of my family will be such as not to allow me to make it more liberally that is the only reason, and I am sure it will be a sufficient one, that I do not remember my other friends.

I hereby invest my Executors hereafter named with full and unlimited power and discretion, to sell the above described real and personal property, at any time, and in any manner, whether privately or publickly, for cash, or on credit, which they might think most conducive to the interest of my estate, hereby investing the, to make deeds with general warranty, if the same should be required, for the conveyance of such real estate, so as to bind my heirs.

I hearby appoint my kind and trusty friend John H. Fulton and my brother Beverly R. Johnston excrs of this my Last Will and Testament.

In Testimony whereof, I hereunto set my hand and seal this 2nd day of February 1827.

signed as the Last Will and Testament              Chs. C. Johnston SS 
of Chs. C. Johnston, in the presence of us.
Jeremiah Bronaugh
B. R. Johnston

At a Court held for Washington County the 27th day of August 1832.

The last Will and Testament of Charles C. Johnston deceased was exhibited in court and proved by the oath of Jeremiah Bronaugh a subscribing witness thereto and ordered to be recorded. And on the motion of John H. Fulton and Beverly R. Johnston the executors therein named who took the oath of an executor prescribed by law and entered into and acknowledged their bond in the sum of Ten thousand dollars with James White, John S. Preston, John M. Preston, John D. Mitchell and William K. Trigg their securities conditioned as the law directs. A Certificate is therefore granted them for the probate of the said Will in due form.

                                     Teste
                                     Jacob Lynch, D. C.  

[Eliza Madison Preston Johnston (1803-November 27, 1828) married Charles Clement Johnston (1795-1832), at Greenfield, on December 29, 1822. 
John Preston Johnston (1824-1847) was born on February 1, 1824. Eliza Mary Johnston (1825-1909) was born on July 3, 1825. 
Her sister Susan Louise (or Louisa) Johnston was born in December 1826 and died on September 23, 1827. 
Vance Acklin = James Vance Acklin (born 1780). The Acklin family owned a tavern in Abingdon, still standing. There is a picture of it here.
Henry St. John Dixon (1773-1846)John Warfield Johnston (1818-1889)
My father = Peter Johnston, Jr. (1763-1831)
His father = Dr. John Warfield Johnston (1790-1818)
Beverly Randolph Johnston (1803-1876)
John H. Fulton = John Hall Fulton (1792-1836), brother of Andrew Steele Fulton (1800-1884).
Jeremiah Bronaugh (born 1802)
James White (1770-1838). Family papers, including some additional Johnston information, here.
John S. Preston = John Smith Preston (1809-1881)
John M. Preston = John Montgomery Preston (1788-1861)
John D. Mitchell = John Davis Mitchell (1799-1859)
William K. Trigg = William King Trigg (1807-1877)
Jacob Lynch (1798-1862), Clerk of Court since 1830. 
No specific mention is made of enslaved servants Dolly Claibourn, Franky or any other people who were classified as part of Charles' "personal property."]

[Many thanks to Sue Davis, William Myers, Mary Davy and Sally Young for their ongoing research collaboration.]

The Death of Charles Clement Johnston (1795-1832): Take III

[James Patton Preston at Washington City to "My Dear Friend" [one of Charles Clement Johnston's brothers] at [Virginia], June 18, 1832. Floyd-Johnston-Preston Papers, Special Collections Research Center, Swem Library, College of William and Mary, Series I: Mss. Acc. 2002.37, folder 21. These are my rough notes with some transcription, based on images made by Sue Davis, who graciously made them available. Long "s" in original text modernized for easier reading.] 

A calamity has this day occurred in which our country has by a spontaneous feeling in Congress, acknowledged by an universal sentiment of regret, that this feels almost as much as we can feel, the loss, which by . . . providence it becomes my duty to communicate.

Your brother Charles is no more. His dear little children are indeed orphans. But who has he not left to deplore his loss, no human being . . . that ever knew him, but will hear his sad fate with . . . grief.

Yesterday in fine health in the enjoyment of every . . . endowment in the possession of every virtue which could elevate the most promising character, he left the place for Alexandria and this . . . by a . . . Note to the Speaker of the House of Representatives from the Mayor of Alexandria, it is stated that his corpse was found floating in the muck.

He supped at the Inn in Alexandria and rising from the table when the Steam boat bell rang he attempted to return to the place; it is supposed he missed the wharf in the storm, and slipped over into water above 8 feet deep, having a considerable depth of soft mud at the bottom.

The excessive sharp thunder of the evening caused the body to rise. These painful details are written in haste to satisfy you and his friends, that he has lost his life, by a scrupulous endeavor to be at his post in the performance of his public duty.

I write under the pressure of limited time, that this letter may go by the mail, and in a state of mental anguish, which  none but those who look around and see the universal consternation produced, will imagine.

                                                  Your fr'd
                                                    James P. Preston 

[Charles Clement Johnston (April 30, 1795-June 17, 1832)
Your brother = the most likely recipient of this letter, in this order of probability, was either Beverly Randolph Johnston (1803-1876), Peter Carr Johnston (1793-1877), or Joseph Eggleston Johnston (1807-1891). The mention of "Col. Preston" in a sequel letter here suggests that Beverly was the recipient. See also this letter, which mentions "Govr Preston." 
James Patton Preston (1774-1843), former Governor of Virginia who had also served in the Virginia House of Delegates with Charles' father, Peter Johnston, Jr. (1763-1831).
Speaker of the House = Andrew Stevenson (1784-1857), who had, like Preston, served in the Virginia House of Delegates with Charles' father.]

[Many thanks to Sue Davis, William Myers, Mary Davy and Sally Young for their ongoing research collaboration.]  
  

Charles Clement Johnston to Eliza Mary Johnston, April 8, 1832

[Charles Clement Johnston at Washington City, to Eliza Mary Johnston at Abingdon, Virginia, April 8, 1832. Floyd-Johnston-Preston Papers, Special Collections Research Center, Swem Library, College of William and Mary, Series I: Mss. Acc. 2002.37, folder 20. These are my rough notes with some transcription, based on images made by Sue Davis, who graciously made them available. Long "s" in original text modernized for easier reading.]

I send my beloved daughter what I hope she will value more than any I could send: a profile of her father.

This profile was by a poor woman without arms: it was cut with scissors held in her mouth: the writing beneath was written by her with a pen held in the toes of her left foot. Her foot had a ruffled sleeve and she had rings, elegant gold rings, on her toes; ain't she a curiosity?

Father will soon be home to clasp his children to his heart -- He has seen nobody this winter that he cares a pin for and is vastly happier at home with his darling daughter.

[Cover addressed "free" from Ch. C. Johnston to Miss Eliza M. Johnston, Abingdon, Virginia, date stamped City of Washington APR 10].

[Charles Clement Johnston (1795-1832)
Eliza Mary Johnston (1825-1909), later taken in by the Floyds until she married Robert William Hughes (1821-1901). Her brother was John Preston Johnston (1824-1847).]

[Many thanks to Sue Davis, William Myers, Mary Davy and Sally Young for their ongoing research collaboration.]  

Charles Clement Johnston to John Buchanan Floyd, March 7, 1832

[Charles Clement Johnston at Washington City, to [John Buchanan Floyd at Richmond], March 7, 1832. Floyd-Johnston-Preston Papers, Special Collections Research Center, Swem Library, College of William and Mary, Series I: Mss. Acc. 2002.37, folder 19. These are my rough notes with some transcription, based on images made by Sue Davis, who graciously made them available. Paragraph breaks added for easier reading.]

"I send at your request two notes ready drawn for $2.000 each with my endorsement . . ."  [Discussion of details with niceties added.]

"I am grieved to see how you despond. It proves the truth of my fears that you are all going on badly in Richmond. Our present distractions have been principally produced by the impudence of our own friends: the causeless . . . produced by the agitation of the Slave question at the worst possible time and in the blunder of Calhoun in bringing Van Buren back among us by rejecting him. I had rather have given him double salary to stay away.

My only hope in the present condition and affairs is founded in the certainty that the Northern party is carrying on such a war, so flagrant and undisguised, against all the opinions, institutions and interests, and rights of the South, in every possible shape, that every minor difference amongst ourselves will (if things go on as they inevitably must from present appearances) soon be lost in one common sense of wrong v. determination of resistance.

As soon as the struggle begins all those who like Ritchie forget or betray their principles & their party from personal views, will be put down. We must shoot all deserters & spies.

We are all exceedingly anxious to hear minute information of what is going on in Richmond. Let me beg you to impart frequently from time to time the speculation as well as the news of the day -- I mean that news & speculation in regard to the undercurrent of affairs that we never see in the papers. Tell me too of your family now, if you have a family.

With my kindest regard to Cousin Sally Aunt Floyd your father & family I remain cordially your friend & relative

Ch. C. Johnston 

[p.s.] Rees B. spent the evening with me he is well.

[$2,000 in 1832 = about $54,000 in early 2017. 

Personal politics by this time had gotten quite Byzantine. Charles Clement Johnston (August 30, 1795-June 17, 1832) had been elected as a Jacksonian and began his term in the House of Representatives in March, 1831. The brutal Nat Turner slave uprising began in August 1831, and was mercilessly repressed.  Peter Johnston, Jr., a Jacksonian and moderate who delicately balanced his loyalties to Virginia with his loyalty to the United States, died on December 8, 1831. In his wake, Charles held a significant investment in enslaved people, far more than his siblings. All of these factors, plus the rising Nullification Crisis, tilted him to a harder line pro-South sectional position. In any case, he would be dead in three months. His wife, Eliza Madison Preston (circa 1803-November 27, 1828) preceded him. Her father was John Preston (1764-1827), a brother of Francis Smith Preston (1765-1836). Two children survived them: John Preston Johnston (1824-1847) and Eliza Mary Johnston (1825-1909). Eventually, the Floyds became their guardians.

In 1830, John Buchanan Floyd (1806-1863) married Sarah "Sally" Buchanan Preston (1802-1879). He had graduated from South Carolina College in Columbia, so was plugged into the Prestons and Johnstons there from the late 1820s. His father was John Buchanan (1783-1837), Governor of Virginia at the time of this letter. John the Governor was married to Letitia Preston (1776-1852). Sally was apparently pregnant and expecting at the time of the letter. However, they had no surviving children. But Floyd may certainly have had children by a "servant" or servants, i.e. enslaved laborers, given their classification as "mulatto." For more on Frank, Sarah Ann and Frank Trigg, Jr., see here. Nicketti Buchanan Floyd (1819-1908), one of John Buchanan Floyd's siblings, later married John Warfield Johnston (1818-1889), a nephew of Charles Clement Johnston.]

Calhoun = John Caldwell Calhoun (1782-1850), who was one of a group of senators (he was still Vice President, presiding over the Senate) that blocked Van Buren's official confirmation as US Minister to Great Britain, even though he was already on the job. Calhoun is in the news again today: Yale University removed his name from Calhoun College, one of its eight residential colleges. 

Van Buren = Martin Van Buren (1782-1862), who became the next President of the United States, serving from 1837 to 1841. From 1833 to 1837, he served as Andrew Jackson's Vice President. Calhoun was Vice President from 1825 to 1832.

Ritchie = Thomas Ritchie (1778-1854), pro-Jackson, anti-Calhoun editor of the Richmond Enquirer. His son later killed Edward William Johnston's (1799-1867) friend and associate, John Hampden Pleasants (1797-1846) of the Richmond Whig, in a wild duel. 

Rees B. = Rees Bowen (1809-1879), brother of Louisa Smith Bowen Johnston (1800-1873), who was the mother of John Warfield Johnston (1818-1889)].  

[Many thanks to Sue Davis, William Myers, Mary Davy and Sally Young for their ongoing research collaboration.]