Jason Johnson was my great-grandfather, but he died long before I was born. Little is known now about his early life.
From records and family anecdotes, I've pieced together a few bare-bones facts. Jason was born to Canadian immigrants Sheriff (his first name, not a title) and Wealthy (Weaver) Johnson in Imlay City, MI. Jason met Canadian immigrant Esther Mitchell and married her at the age of 21. For the next twenty-some-odd years, the couple lived in the Hamtramck, MI, area; they never had children. When Esther died in 1921 at the age of 44, Jason remarried. For his second wife, he chose none other than Esther's niece, Beatrice Leona (or Leona Beatrice) Barham; she was the daughter of Esther's sister Sarah and 18 years younger than Jason.
Jason and Beatrice Leona set up house and started a family of their own. Interestingly, Beatrice Leona appears to have already had a child out of wedlock; she had a son named Bernard Henry, born 1914, whom Jason adopted. Jason and Beatrice Leona together had Jason Jay, Beatrice Saffrona, Henry J., Elaine M., and Ellen in fairly quick succession.
Jason died young. According to his death certificate, he died of myocarditis (inflammation of the heart's muscular myocardium, generally due to bacterial or viral infection). It was 1934, and he was only 57 years old. He was buried at Woodmere Cemetery in Detroit, MI. Interestingly, his death took on a sort of legendary status among his children; his daughter Beatrice, only 6 at the time of his death, was always told that his death had echoes of foul play and was shrouded in mystery. Family lore held (and with some members, still holds) that Jason was a police officer, poisoned in revenge for the arrest of someone important. The death certificate, however, doesn't declare that he was even a cop - rather, Jason Johnson worked for the Roads Department.
From records and family anecdotes, I've pieced together a few bare-bones facts. Jason was born to Canadian immigrants Sheriff (his first name, not a title) and Wealthy (Weaver) Johnson in Imlay City, MI. Jason met Canadian immigrant Esther Mitchell and married her at the age of 21. For the next twenty-some-odd years, the couple lived in the Hamtramck, MI, area; they never had children. When Esther died in 1921 at the age of 44, Jason remarried. For his second wife, he chose none other than Esther's niece, Beatrice Leona (or Leona Beatrice) Barham; she was the daughter of Esther's sister Sarah and 18 years younger than Jason.
Jason and Beatrice Leona set up house and started a family of their own. Interestingly, Beatrice Leona appears to have already had a child out of wedlock; she had a son named Bernard Henry, born 1914, whom Jason adopted. Jason and Beatrice Leona together had Jason Jay, Beatrice Saffrona, Henry J., Elaine M., and Ellen in fairly quick succession.
Jason died young. According to his death certificate, he died of myocarditis (inflammation of the heart's muscular myocardium, generally due to bacterial or viral infection). It was 1934, and he was only 57 years old. He was buried at Woodmere Cemetery in Detroit, MI. Interestingly, his death took on a sort of legendary status among his children; his daughter Beatrice, only 6 at the time of his death, was always told that his death had echoes of foul play and was shrouded in mystery. Family lore held (and with some members, still holds) that Jason was a police officer, poisoned in revenge for the arrest of someone important. The death certificate, however, doesn't declare that he was even a cop - rather, Jason Johnson worked for the Roads Department.
Jason Johnson was my great-grandfather, but he died long before I was born. Little is known now about his early life.
From records and family anecdotes, I've pieced together a few bare-bones facts. Jason was born to Canadian immigrants Sheriff (his first name, not a title) and Wealthy (Weaver) Johnson in Imlay City, MI. Jason met Canadian immigrant Esther Mitchell and married her at the age of 21. For the next twenty-some-odd years, the couple lived in the Hamtramck, MI, area; they never had children. When Esther died in 1921 at the age of 44, Jason remarried. For his second wife, he chose none other than Esther's niece, Beatrice Leona (or Leona Beatrice) Barham; she was the daughter of Esther's sister Sarah and 18 years younger than Jason.
Jason and Beatrice Leona set up house and started a family of their own. Interestingly, Beatrice Leona appears to have already had a child out of wedlock; she had a son named Bernard Henry, born 1914, whom Jason adopted. Jason and Beatrice Leona together had Jason Jay, Beatrice Saffrona, Henry J., Elaine M., and Ellen in fairly quick succession.
Jason died young. According to his death certificate, he died of myocarditis (inflammation of the heart's muscular myocardium, generally due to bacterial or viral infection). It was 1934, and he was only 57 years old. He was buried at Woodmere Cemetery in Detroit, MI. Interestingly, his death took on a sort of legendary status among his children; his daughter Beatrice, only 6 at the time of his death, was always told that his death had echoes of foul play and was shrouded in mystery. Family lore held (and with some members, still holds) that Jason was a police officer, poisoned in revenge for the arrest of someone important. The death certificate, however, doesn't declare that he was even a cop - rather, Jason Johnson worked for the Roads Department.
From records and family anecdotes, I've pieced together a few bare-bones facts. Jason was born to Canadian immigrants Sheriff (his first name, not a title) and Wealthy (Weaver) Johnson in Imlay City, MI. Jason met Canadian immigrant Esther Mitchell and married her at the age of 21. For the next twenty-some-odd years, the couple lived in the Hamtramck, MI, area; they never had children. When Esther died in 1921 at the age of 44, Jason remarried. For his second wife, he chose none other than Esther's niece, Beatrice Leona (or Leona Beatrice) Barham; she was the daughter of Esther's sister Sarah and 18 years younger than Jason.
Jason and Beatrice Leona set up house and started a family of their own. Interestingly, Beatrice Leona appears to have already had a child out of wedlock; she had a son named Bernard Henry, born 1914, whom Jason adopted. Jason and Beatrice Leona together had Jason Jay, Beatrice Saffrona, Henry J., Elaine M., and Ellen in fairly quick succession.
Jason died young. According to his death certificate, he died of myocarditis (inflammation of the heart's muscular myocardium, generally due to bacterial or viral infection). It was 1934, and he was only 57 years old. He was buried at Woodmere Cemetery in Detroit, MI. Interestingly, his death took on a sort of legendary status among his children; his daughter Beatrice, only 6 at the time of his death, was always told that his death had echoes of foul play and was shrouded in mystery. Family lore held (and with some members, still holds) that Jason was a police officer, poisoned in revenge for the arrest of someone important. The death certificate, however, doesn't declare that he was even a cop - rather, Jason Johnson worked for the Roads Department.
Bio by: sweetjuno
Inscription
OUR DAD
Family Members
Sponsored by Ancestry
Advertisement
Advertisement
