I posted this on Vinton County, Ohio list in answer to several questions. I thought the Johnson listers might have something to add. My Samuel Johnston 1784-1861, the progenitor of a Washington Township tribe, arrived before 1820. Before that he married Elizabeth Kerr in Ross County. I believe he was born at Mt. Ephraim, Hopewell Township, Washington Cty., PA. For years I was side tracked by the t in his name since I only looked at johnsons - later I found out that many of his records and his parents records were johnson. In case you haven't noticed there are examples in the Ohio early census of townships with only johnson in one decade and then that same township will have only johnston in another decade-- There were many early johns(t)on coal miners in the Hocking/Athen and I suppose Vinton area. I often wondered why my gggrandfather Samuel ever came to New Mt. Pleasant - and I convinced myself that he scratched at coal deposits which were near the surface - making enough money to buy more property scratch out the coal - sell it - and get more property. He started with nothing but the family always lived well and his grandchildren always thought they were a bit better than most folks - and maybe they were. Very few of them were farmers. If you get to New Mt Pleasant Methodist church or Logan Library look up our book - I attempted to take the line back into Scotland and England. I had to make a lot of assumptions - but I am close enough to the truth to give my children an idea of what that part of their family was probably like. Some true blue genealogists would add. "And yes his books my show you how not to do it!" Well my wife and I have published a memorial to six of our eight Grandparents and we might just get the last two done. And we never would have done that if we hadn't limited our time to several years on each one. One of my wilder speculations was that a line of Johnsons became Quaker and dropped the T because it was a symbol of the sword and dagger and there was one story that the T had been conferred upon a Johnson for some heroic, bloody deed. Later when some of the line were no longer Quaker they brought back the T. It can probably never been proven, but then none to date has disprove it - although there have been cries of hogwash and so forth. Good luck to all of those who attempt to pass on a little ancestral lore to their descendants. Hal