DUANE
Duane's take
Now, I'm gonna tell you this one the way the official marker tells it — so settle in, because this story's got more chapters than most folks get in a lifetime. William Whipple Johnson was born on October 11, 1843, in Ionia, Michigan, the oldest of seven children, to Ethan S. and Jane B. Johnson.
Oldest of seven — so right from the start, this man knew something about carrying a load. He attended school in Ypsilanti, and by 1860, young William had already partnered up in business with his father and his younger brother Harvey. Three men, one enterprise, providing merchandise to the people of Ionia.
And for a while, it worked. They expanded into real estate and a hotel operation. Things were looking solid.
Then came 1873. The Panic of 1873. The national economy collapsed, and the business suffered greatly.
Now, the marker doesn't dress that up, and neither will I. When it was over, the men moved from Michigan — leaving their debts behind them. That's the phrase right there on the marker.
Leaving their debts behind them. Sometimes a new start requires a long road south. By 1880, William and Harvey had landed in Strawn, Texas.
And wouldn't you know it — that same year, the T&P Railroad reached Strawn. They opened a business in the name of Anna Fatzinger Campbell, who became William's second wife. William and Anna both served as postmasters, and the family established Campbell and Company, a mercantile that catered to local railroad workers.
The Johnson brothers also secured a contract with the railroad to provide crossties for the line, and in doing so, they created many jobs in the area for cutting cedar posts. People working, a town taking shape — the Johnsons were building something real. But here's where the story gets heavy, and you need to hear it that way.
In 1885, William and Anna's three-year-old daughter Marion died. Grief like that doesn't have a workaround. The couple built a mausoleum right there on their own property.
Then Harvey — the brother who'd been there from Michigan to Texas, through the panic and the railroad days — Harvey died in 1888. He was interred there too. And in 1894, a son, William Harvey, was laid to rest in that same mausoleum.
The Johnsons kept going. William expanded into coal and other mining operations, and livestock trading. In 1905, he and Anna bought a 4,200-acre ranch outside of Gordon and erected a new mausoleum, so they could bring their children's remains there.
Then in 1914, Anna placed William's body in that mausoleum. She had outlasted him, and she set aside money for a more permanent structure on Salt Point. Anna died in 1922.
The structure she funded was completed in 1923 — a year after she was gone. She never saw it finished, but she made sure it got done. The Johnsons are remembered, the marker says, for creating communities and business opportunities throughout Palo Pinto County.
From Ionia to Ypsilanti to Strawn to Gordon, through panics and railroads and loss upon loss — they kept building. That's the kind of legacy that earns a permanent structure on Salt Point.
What the marker says
William Whipple Johnson, the oldest of seven children, was born on October 11, 1843 in Ionia, Michigan to Ethan S. and Jane B. (Whipple) Johnson. He attended school in Ypsilanti, Michigan and in 1860 formed a business partnership with his father and his younger brother Harvey. The three men provided merchandise to the people of Ionia and within several years expanded their interests to include real estate and a hotel operation. During the Panic of 1873 and the collapse of the national economy the business suffered greatly, and the men moved from Michigan, leaving their debts behind them. By 1880, William and Harvey were in Strawn, Texas, where they opened a business in the name of Anna Fatzinger Campbell, who became William's second wife. The T&P Railroad reached Strawn that same year. William and Anna both served as postmasters, and the family established Campbell and Company, a mercantile that catered to local railroad workers. The Johnson brothers also secured a contract with the railroad to provide crossties for the line, and they created many jobs in the area for cutting cedar posts. In 1885, with the death of their three-year-old daughter Marion, William and Anna built a mausoleum on their property. There, they later interred Harvey (d. 1888) and a son, William Harvey (d. 1894). William Johnson expanded his business interests to include coal and other mining operations, and livestock trading. In 1905, he and Anna bought a 4,200-acre ranch outside of Gordon and erected a new mausoleum for their children's remains. Anna placed William's body there in 1914 and set aside money for a more permanent structure here on Salt Point. It was completed in 1923, a year after her death. The Johnsons are remembered for creating communities and business opportunities throughout Palo Pinto County. (2004)