Lycurgus Johnson

Lycurgus Johnson (March 22, 1818 – August 1, 1876) was an American cotton planter and large slaveholder in the Arkansas Delta during the antebellum years. Born to the powerful political and planter Johnson family in Scott County, Kentucky, he became the owner and developer of the Lakeport Plantation in Chicot County, Arkansas. It bordered the west bank of the Mississippi River.

Although Johnson declared bankruptcy after the Civil War, he retained his land. After clearing his debts, he re-established his fortune. By 1870 he was the largest cotton producer in Chicot County. In 1874 he was elected to and served as a Democrat in the Arkansas House of Representatives.

Early life Lycurgus Johnson was born on Easter Sunday, March 22, 1818, in Scott County, Kentucky, to Joel Johnson and Verlinda (Offut) Johnson. His father Joel Johnson was also from Scott County and part of a powerful and influential family there. Like many other planters, his father acquired property in the Deep South, in his case, along the shores of Lake Chicot in the Arkansas Delta.

A major planter In 1857, Johnson finally gained title to his father's plantation, known as Lakeport.

By the end of the war, Johnson still retained ownership of his land. In 1867, he filed for bankruptcy, and was able to waive his debts. He hired many former slaves, now freedmen, in the free labor market. He paid wages to some and offered others a share of the crop they picked, as sharecroppers. The freedmen generally no longer agreed to work for wages in large gangs. By 1870 Johnson succeeded in being the largest producer of cotton in Chicot County.

In 1874 Johnson was elected as a Democratic member of the Arkansas House of Representatives. He served on the Committee on Agriculture and the Committee on Cities and Towns.

Johnson died on August 1, 1876, in Wilmington, Delaware.