Page:Encyclopedia of Virginia Biography volume 2.djvu/89

 56

VIRGINIA BIOGRAPHY

had been broken, and on the refusal of the president to restore the troops he resigned. In September, 1861, he was made brigadier- general, Confederate States army, and held command with General Wise, in West Virginia. He was transferred to Tennes- see, and in February, 1862, by hard fighting extricated his command and escaped with it from Fort Donelson. He fell under the displeasure of President Davis for thus leaving Generals Pillow and Buckner, and was relieved of his command. The legisla- ture o( X'irginia did not approve of this action, and made him major-general in the siate service and directed him to recruit and organize a division of troops from among the classes not embraced in the con- scription of the Southern Confederacy. He laised 2000 men and operated on the Big S»:ndy river with success. He was attacked with cancer of the stomach and forced to return home. He died near Abingdon, Washington county, Virginia. August 26, 1863. General Floyd married early in life his cousin, Sarah Buchanan, but left no is-sue.

Johnson, Joseph, second son of Joseph and Abigail Johnson, was born in Orange county. New York, December 10, 1785. When he was but a lad, his parents removed to Harrison county, Virginia, which was his home for over seventy years. He was captain in the war of 1812; in 1818 was elected to the legislature, and in 1822 was again re-elected and at the end of his term declined re-election. He defeated the able and eloquent Philip Doddridge for Congress in 1823 and 1825 ; in 1835 was again elected, serving six years, as a Jackson Democrat, and declining further service; in 1843 ^^^ obliged by his party to re-enter Congress,

and in 1847 declined re-election. He was in the constitutional convention of 1850, was elected governor by the legislature, and sub- sequently by the people, after the adoption of the new constitution, defeating the emi- nent Judge George W. Summers, who repre- sented the Whig party. In this office he served from January i, 1852, till January i, 1856. "He was, perhaps, the only man in Virginia who had been before the people continuously for forty years and was never Qtfeated in any of his aspirations.'* Upon the expiration of his term as governor, Mr. Johnson retired to private life. When the war between the states broke out in 1861, ht advised his people to stand by their sec- tion. He died in the ninety-second year of his age, F^ebruary 2^, 1877.

Wise, Henry Alexander, born at Drum- mondtown, Accomac county, December 3, 1806, son of Major John and Sarah (Crop- per) Wise. He was orphaned at the age of six years and his early training was by an aunt and Major John Custis, an uncle by marriage. He was a student at Washington (Pennsylvania) College; studied law under Judge Tucker, at Winchester, Virginia ; re- moved to Nashville, Tennessee, soon re- turning to Virginia. He was elected to Congress over Richard Coke, who was sus- pected of nullification tendencies, to which he was opposed; a duel ensued, in which Coke was slightly wounded in the arm. Mr. Wise was returned to Congress for six con- secutive terms, and rose to the highest prominence. He adhered to President Tyler in his controversy with Congress, and with Thomas W. Gilmer and others belonged to what was known as *The Corporal's Guard." In 1843 he was nominated as minister to France, and was rejected by the senate; in

Digitized by

Google