The Johnson Monument
Memorial to Lewis Johnson
Unveil Memorial to Lewis Johnson,
True City Builder;
Addresses at Ceremony Held in Newly Named Park
Fit Deeds of Honored Dead:
Friends of the late Lewis Johnson gathered in numbers in Johnson Park Thursday afternoon to witness the unveiling of the memorial recently erected to Mr. Johnson by his friends and fellow citizens. The ceremonies were brief but impressive and the tributes spoken in commemoration of the unselfish civic work performed by Mr. Johnson during his life were received gratefully by members of the family present.
Captain T.J. Woodward, a close friend of Mr. Johnson, and one of the most active workers in procuring the memorial opened the ceremonies by reading a brief history of how the memorial was procured. He said contractors who demolished the old Hibernia Bank building in Camp Street had given the fine piece of Georgia granite, Ernest L. Jahncke had given the sand for the base and friends had contributed to the expense of having the copper-bronze tablet cast and the memorial erected.
When Captain Woodward had finished he signalled to Miss Bessie Johnson and Johnson Richardson, grandchildren of Lewis Johnson who climbed the mound and removed the cloth, exposing the tablet, which bears the inscription: "Erected to Commemorate the Name of Lewis Johnson for Civic Services Rendered to the city of New Orleans."
Mayor Behrman accepted the monument on behalf of the city, and in doing so said that he felt had Mr. Johnson been alive and compelled to design a memorial, he would have chosen just such an unostentatious one as that unveiled. The mayor referred to the unselfish service, day and night, of Mr. Johnson in the establishment of the sewerage and water service for Audubon Park and said these two were memorials in themselves had no other been erected.
The mayor commended Captain Woodward for his forethought in conceiving the idea of erecting a memorial. He said the park had been named by the Sewerage and Water Board the Johnson Park. M.J. Sanders declared that in erecting the memorial the friends of Mr. Johnson were honoring themselves by recognizing that there is merit and credit in altruistic work. He said those who remembered events of thirty years ago could appreciate how valuable were the services of Mr. Johnson in procuring for the city the greatest water plant in the world and excellent sewerage service.
In behalf of the family, Wilmer H. Johnson expressed deep gratitude for the honor conferred upon his father. The members of the Johnson family present were: Mrs. Lewis Johnson, Warren Johnson, Wilmer H. Johnson and Mrs. Johnson, Mrs. H. H. Stearn, Mrs. L.J. Richardson, Mrs. Malverna Beals, and a number of grandchildren. Among those present were: Commissioner Ricks, Superintendent Reynolds, H.H. Stearn, George G. Earl, John L. Porter, Peter Lawton, Dr. Joseph Holt, Col. Alden McLellan, W.H. McLellan, and others. Just before the ceremonies Captain Woodward placed upon the mound a large memorial wreath, and his son strewed the mound with Shasta daisies and California poppies.
[Times-Picayune: Friday, October 13, 1916]
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Last updated: 14 July 2020.