Person Page - 2402

       Capt. Edward/1 Johnson married Sarah (–?–). His name was included on a list of "such as desire to be made ffreemen" of Massachusetts Bay," 19 Oct 1630, and he was so admitted 18 May 1631.¹ 5 Nov 1640, the Church of Charlestown chose seven men, Edward Johnson among them, as commissioners or agents for the erection of a church and town upon the recent grant of Charlestown Village, which became Woburn.² At a quarterly Court of Assistants, 1 Jun 1641, Edward Johnson of Charlestown was fined 6s 8d for failure to appear for jury duty.³ He was the first town clerk of Woburn, a fact which figures in the following court record.⁴
     "In the suit of Captain Johnson vs. Ensign John Carter, Dec., 1658, Henry Tottingham, aged 50, testifies. Other witnesses were: William Simonds, aged about 47, Robert Peirce about 38, Joseph Knight about 34, William Locke about 30, William Johnson about 30, Matthew Johnson about 26 (?), Richard Holden, about 50, Thomas Dutton about 39, Francis Kendall about 38, Edward Converse about 68, John Mousall about 63, James Thompson about 65, Josiah Converse about 40, James Converse about 38, Henry Brooks about 66 and Richard Gardner about 39. The following account of this suit is taken from the Court Record:—"
     Captain Edward Johnson plaintiff, against Ensign John Carter, for slanderous speeches against him, upon attachment, on file, dated Dec. 22, 1658, both parties appeared personally in Court, and joined issue in the case, the which being fully heard, with the witnesses presented by both parties which are on file with the records of this Court, the jury…brought in their verdict, finding for the plaintiff in manner following, (i.e.) that the defendant both publicly and solemnly in the front of the military company at Woburn, upon their next training day, in the former part of the day, as soon as the clerk of the band hath called over the list, shall make this following acknowledgment, in these following words, viz.:—
     I, John Carter do acknowledge that I have wronged, slandered & defamed, Capt. Edw: Johnson in saying that he the said Capt. Johnson, did falsify the Town Records, for which I am sorrowful.
     And in case the defendant shall refuse or neglect to make the said acknowledgment in manner as is above expressed, he the said defendant shall pay unto the plaintiff or his assigns, five pounds sterling in current pay of New England. Also the defendant is to pay unto the plaintiff costs of Court, two pound eighteen shillings and nine pence.'—County Court Records, Vol. 1, page 161. Dec. 1658.^5,6
     Edward Johnson died at Woburn 23 Apr 1672 at age 73.⁷ Author of the celebrated tract Wonder-working Providence of Sion's Saviour in New England, published in London in 1654, which can be found in Miller and Johnson, eds., The Puritans: A Sourcebook of their Writings (Dover, 2001). A reproduction of his handwriting, in the form of a tavern license entry, can be seen in Woburn Deaths, 6.^8,9