My Genealogy Hound

JOHN P. JOHNSTON, farmer and stock-raiser; P. O. Piqua; was born in Shelby Co., Nov. 13, 1837, and is a great-grandson of Stephen Johnston, a native of Scotland, who went as drummer-boy with the Scotch Army to Ireland. If time and space would permit, we could give many interesting scenes of his life; having at one time been engaged in a very laborious task, he became quite fatigued and seated himself on his drum to rest; a cannon ball came rolling and bounding over the stones and elevations of the earth, knocking the drum from under him, leaving the boy for a moment without a drum; soon recovering himself, he seized the drum and was again ready for duty; after the close of the Scotch and Irish struggle, he returned to his native place, where he was united in marriage, and after a few years concluded to make his future home in Ireland. He became the possessor of 8 acres of land, which made him quite a wealthy man. He was the father of two sons, Christopher and Stephen, and, according to the laws of their native country, Christopher, being the eldest son, inherited his father’s estate, where he lived and died. Stephen, the younger son (our subject’s grandfather) learned the cabinet-maker’s trade, and married, in 1810, Ann Armstrong; they had two sons born in Ireland—Christopher, born in 1812, and John in 1814; removing to St. Johns’ New Brunswick, their family increased to eight in number. While in New Brunswick, Mr. Johnston’s eldest son, and several others, one day boated to an island some distance, to cut what was known as bog-hay, taking provisions sufficient to last a reasonable time. After being on the island a short time, the party rowed for home leaving Mr. Johnson and son. In a few days, they were in need of food and suffered much. Finding an old and apparently almost worthless boat that had been washed ashore by the tide, they gathered grass and plugged the holes in it, and were soon rowing for their home to meet their anxious family. Here they remained until 1830, when the family, with the exception of two married members, came to Miami Co.; thence to Mercer Co., Ohio, where Mrs. Johnston died; in 1864, Mr. Johnston and children again came to Miami Co., where Christopher, John’s father, is now living. In January, 1863, John P. married Nancy L. McDaniel, of Mercer Co., and by this union have four children, viz., William R, Fannie, Frank W. and George. During Mr. Johnston’s younger days, he learned engineering and carpentering, but, since 1865, has devoted his attention partially to farming and stock-raising, on his farm of 95 acres, in Sec. 33.