Page:History of Southeast Missouri 1912 Volume 1.djvu/688

 610 HISTORY OF SOUTHEAST MISSOURI his elementary educatiou, and after prose- cuting his studies at that place until about ten years of age he then attended the public schools in Franklin county, Missouri, until entering Carlton Institute, of Farmiugton, Missouri. After a period of study thei'e he became a student at the Missouri State Nor- mal at Warrensburg, and is continuing his work by courses in the University of Chi- cago, correspondence study department, Chi- cago, Illinois. In 1899 he received his degree (that of B. S. D.) at the Normal School and in addition to his other training he at- tended for one year the Missouri State Uni- versity at Columbia. A part of his educa- tiou had been interspersed with his actual pedagogical work and he had taught in va- rious schools, gaining the many advantages which only experience can give. After quite finishing his preparation he was for eight years connected with the public schools of Tipton, Missouri, four years as principal of the high school and four years as superin- tendent of the entire school system. He came to Farmington in 1907 to accept the position of superintendent here and this he retains at the present time, his work here having been of the most satisfactory character. In addi- tion to his general supervision he is instruc- tor in mathematics and science. The new high school building which he was materially instrumental in securing was finished in 1911 and is a model of convenience and modern- ity. Professor Lynch was married on the 5th day of June, 1901, at AVarrensburg, Missouri, to Miss Mary G. Scott, of that place. Mrs. Lynch is a daughter of Rev. William G. Scott, a well-known Presbyterian minister. To their happy union has been born three sons, whose names are Orton, William and Wal- lace. In polities Professor Lynch is a liberal Prohibitionist, voting more for the man than party; he is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church ; and he is sufficiently social in nature greatly to enjoy his relations with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Modern Woodmen of America. Albert L. Johnson. In a history devoted to the representative men and women of Southeastern Missouri who have contributed to its upbuilding and prosperity and whose lives reward closest inspection no one is more appropriately included than that fine citizen, the late Albert L. Johnson. Coming liere as a young man, full of vigor and enthu- siasm, he found his surroundings so congen- ial, his labors so fruitful, that he chose to make it a home for him and his family, and so remained throughout the remainder of a life that exceeded the psalmist's allotment by a number of years. In truth he resided in Dunklin county for over half a century, by his own unaided efforts becoming one of the extensive landholdei-s and prosijerous agri- culturists in the vicinity of Senath, and gain- ing and keeping unchallenged the respect and affection of the community in which he was so well known. A veteran of the Civil war, he met the trying conditions of the "Pe- riod of Reconstruction" with manly cour- age and frankness and was ever aligned with the most public spirited of his neighbors and there was nothing of public import at Senath and its district in which he was not helpfullj' interested. He was essentially a self-made man, at his arrival within the boundaries of Dunklin county having been poor in purse, but by his untiring industry and good man- agement acquiring a handsome competence. His demise occurred on the 18th day of Au- gust, 1911, he being universally mourned and regretted, and his memory will long remain green in this part of the state. Albert L. Johnson was born August 1, 1835, on a farm in Union county, then Knox county, Tennessee. He remained amid the scenes of his birth until the age of fifteen years, acquiring an education in the free and subscription schools of the locality. About the year 1849 his parents removed to Gibson county, Tennessee, and there improved a farm, on which both spent their remaining days, the mother passing away in 1855. Al- though searcel3^ fifteen years of age at the time of the removal to Gibson county, that marked Mr. Johnson's introduction to the serious matter of earning his own livelihood, for his parents were in modest circumstances. For seven years he engaged in the hauling of freight with ox teams and in the summer seasons lent his assistance to the manifold tasks to be encountered upon his father's farm. There was little time to be a boy, but he learned the lessons of industry and self- reliance which proved so valuable to him in after .years. In the fall of 1859 he concluded to establish himself independently and came to Dunklin county, where he purchased one hundred and sixty acres of the land, which he owned at the time of his deatli, all of