Merced County CA Archives Biographies.....Johnston, Leonard F. 1873 - 
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Joy Fisher sdgenweb@yahoo.com February 13, 2006, 5:54 am

Author: John Outcalt (1925)

LEONARD F. JOHNSTON

   One of the substantial ranch owners and a highly respected citizen of the
Hilmar Colony, Leonard F. Johnston is a man of whom it may well be said "His
word is as good as his bond and his bond is of the very best." In many ways he
has proved a valuable citizen of Merced County, contributing to its growth,
fostering its enterprises and promoting its welfare. He has much in common with
his brother, A. O. Johnston, the well-known merchant and rancher at Irwin, who
was a partner of his at Waverly, Nebr.

   Leonard F. Johnston was born in Sweden, January 26, 1873. When nineteen years
of age he set out for America and arrived at Waverly, Lancaster County, Nebr.,
where he found work as a farm hand at twenty dollars, a month. After working
around for a few years he had saved enough money to go in with his brother, A.
O. Johnston, in the purchase of an eighty-acre home place near Waverly; to this
they added 160 acres, and also cut hay on shares on 400 or 500 acres of upland
by which they cleared about twenty-five dollars a day. Their parents were
Johannes and Anna Charlotta (Samuelson) Johnson. It is a peculiarity of the
Scandinavian names to add "son" to the Christian name of the father. The
father's name being Johannes, the surname of the son should have been
Johanneson, or shorter, Johnson. But on account of the confusion of names in the
mails the sons found it convenient to change the name to Johnston.

   While the boys were growing up in Sweden they learned blacksmithing and
carpentering in the shop of their father, who was a mechanical genius. So the
boys became expert machinists, an accomplishment which has been of great service
to them in America. They first bought a Nicholas Shepard thresher, made in
Battle Creek, Mich., and afterwards an Avery, made in Peoria, Ill. They were
operated by a steam traction engine for power. Their corn sheller had a capacity
of 1000 bushels per hour. Being expert machinists, by replacing worn parts at
night, they were able to run a whole season without losing more than three hours
for a breakdown. By frugality and good management they had accumulated
considerable capital when they came to California. A. O. Johnston was the first
to come to California. Leonard has forty acres one mile southwest of Irwin and
another ten acres under a high state of cultivation one mile north of the home
forty acres.

   Leonard Johnston was married in 1917 to Mrs. Alette Dignes, widow of Jens
Dignes of Randsfonden, Norway, and daughter of Borger and Bertie Marie
(Anderson) Gulbrandson of Hadeland, Norway. She had one son by Dignes, Borger,
now a farmer in the Hilmar Colony. Mr. and Mrs. Johnston have adopted John
Vernon Nordstrom a bright lad and the youngest child of Mrs. Johnston's deceased
sister. Though successful as a whole, Mr. Johnston met with a heavy financial
loss by becoming bondsman to the amount of $10,000 with A. T. Anderson for O. C.
Holt, builder, in the erection of the high school gymnasium building at Tracy,
Cal. Mr. Holt died before the building was completed; so the bondsmen had to
make good and Mr. Johnston is out over $11,000 cash.

   Mr. and Mrs. Johnston are hospitable and very highly esteemed in their
community. Mr. Johnston has acquired a vast stock of knowledge through
experience and general reading, and he aims to keep himself posted on the
national, State, county and local issues and he will cast his ballot without
fear or favor for what expresses his honest conviction. An interesting incident
in his life is his acquaintance with W. J. Bryan, which came about through his
enthusiastic admiration of Bryan and free silver in the latter's first campaign
for the Presidency. Bryan heard of it, and when he was in Waverly called on him
and walked up the street with him. His respect for the Great Commonor is as
profound as ever.


Additional Comments:
From:

HISTORY OF
MERCED COUNTY
CALIFORNIA
WITH A
Biographical Review
OF
The Leading Men and Women of the County Who Have Been
Identified with Its Growth and Development
from the Early Days to the Present

HISTORY BY
JOHN OUTCALT

ILLUSTRATED COMPLETE IN ONE VOLUME
HISTORIC RECORD COMPANY
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA
1925


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