Thomas Dillard JOHNSTON, Congress, NC (1840-1902)

JOHNSTON Thomas Dillard , a Representative from North Carolina; born in Waynesville, Haywood County, N.C., April 1, 1840; attended the common schools and Col. Stephen Lee's Preparatory School, Asheville, N.C.; entered the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1858, but left in the spring of 1859 on account of failing health; studied law; entered the Confederate Army in the spring of 1861; was admitted to the bar in 1867 and commenced practice in Asheville; mayor of Asheville in 1869; member of the State house of representatives 1870-1874; declined to be a candidate for reelection; served in the State senate in 1876; elected as a Democrat to the Forty-ninth and Fiftieth Congresses (March 4, 1885-March 3, 1889); was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1888 to the Fifty-first Congress; resumed the practice of law; died in Asheville, N.C., on June 22, 1902; interment in Riverside Cemetery.

Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1771-Present