1900 Biography - Robert L. Johnston

ROBERT L. JOHNSTON, one of the substantial farmers of Kidder county, may be numbered among its pioneers, and deserves mention in the history of the early settlement of that section of North Dakota.

Mr. Johnston was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in January, 1850. His father, Robert Johnston, was, in his younger days, a cotton-goods manufacturer. He was born in Scotland, and came to America while still a young man. The mother of our subject was Mary Ann Kirk, before her marriage. She was reared to womanhood in Philadelphia. Her father, William Kirk, was a native of Scotland. The parents of our subject were married in Philadelphia. They became the parents of four children of whom Robert L. was the eldest. His parents moved to Ohio when he was a small child, and he was reared to manhood in Clinton county of that state, on a farm. He attended the public schools, and at the age of twenty-one years accompanied the family to Knox county, Missouri, where he began farming on his own account. In 1883 he went to Dakota, and located in Kidder county, taking up government land. For a time he worked for others, and in 1884 broke a portion of his own land, preparatory to putting in a crop. He met with many discouragements, common to pioneers, and in 1885 lost fifty acres of his first wheat crop by prairie fire. However, he afterwards regained rapidly, as he has raised some excellent crops, that of 1891 yielding twenty-two bushels of wheat to the acre. The crop of 1882, while only yielding only fifteen bushels to the acre, sold at $1.06 to $1.10 per bushel and made him a large profit. He now has one hundred acres of land under a high state of cultivation, and about eighty acres in pasture for his stock. He has fifteen head of grade horses, and is well-to-do in a financial way.

Mr. Johnston takes an active interest in public affairs, and is a stanch supporter of good government. He is Democratic in party faith, and has twice been the nominee for county offices. He takes a strong interest in educational matters, and has been a member of the school board for several years. He is a member in good standing of the Masonic fraternity, and is a popular citizen and valuable member of the community in which he lives.

Extracted 22 Nov 2020, by Norma Hass, from Compendium of History and Biography of North Dakota published in 1900, page 881.