ANDREW JOHNSON 

Johnson was born December 29, 1808, in a one-story log cottage on the grounds of Casso’s inn in Raleigh, North Carolina. His father was Jacob Johnson (1778-1812) and his mother was Mary “Polly” McDonough Johnson (1783-1856). He had one brother-William Johnson, a carpenter, settled in Texas, where he opposed Secession. 

Andrew married Eliza McCardle when he was 18 and she was 16 years of age, on May 17, 1827, at the home of the bride’s mother in Greenville, Tennessee. They had Three Sons and Two Daughters, all born in Greenville, Tennessee-Martha Johnson (1828-1891), Charles Johnson (1830-1863), Mary Johnson (1832-1883), Robert Johnson (1834-1869) and Andrew Johnson Jr. (1852-1879). 

Andrew Johnson did not attend a single day of school. Johnson taught himself to read. He served in the military when appointed by president Abraham Lincoln Military Governor of Tennessee on March 4, 1862 and served until 1865. Johnson served in other public positions-Alderman of Greenville, TN (1828-1830); Mayor of Greenville, (1830-1833), Tennessee State Senator (1841-1843), U.S. Representative (1843-1853), Governor of Tennessee (1853-1857), U.S. Senator (1857-1862), Military Governor of Tennessee (1862-1864) and Vice-president (march to April 1865). 

Since he was the Vice-president, Johnson succeeded Abraham Lincoln to the presidency after his assassination. He served as a president until the end of the period (March 3, 1869). During his presidency, The United States bought Alaska from Russia (1867) for 7.2 Million. Residents were granted three years in which to decide whether to remain in Alaska as Americans or Move to Russia to retain their citizenship 

Johnson died July 31, 1875. Andrew was a victim of the Cholera epidemic of 1873 for which he never recovered. On July 28, 1875, while talking to his granddaughter at his daughter Mary Brown hose, he suffered a stroke. He regained consciousness; he ordered that no doctor or minister be called. The next day he suffered a second stroke and two days later he died.

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