12 for 26 – Full-text Search for R. M. Johnston & His Brothers

I left off with the timeline for Reuben M. Johnston who lived in Titus and Comanche counties in Texas, from about 1860s to his death in 1924. 

From an undated Comanche Chief article in the Wagon Wheels column, clipping sent to me by my mother's cousin.

Time now for what I can locate using FamilySearch full-text search function. I searched using “R. M. Johnston,” “Reuben M Johnston,” “Rubin M Johnston” and the same using “Johnson” in Titus and Comanche counties. These are the only records I found.

Children’s Vital Records Named Their Parents
On 7 February 1904, R. M. and Lee Johnston were named as parents of Loyd S. Johnston was born in Gustine. The physician or midwife was D. M. Smith.[1]

      COMMENT: Was Olivia called Lee by family? Or did the doctor or midwife get her name wrong?

Ruby Mack Johnston and Olivia Jane Jones were named as parents on the birth record of Woodie Andrew Johnston, born 6 October 1892 in Comanche County, but recorded in October 1942.[2]

      COMMENT: This is a delayed birth certificate, long after both parents have died. Looks like his brother, Robert Lee Johnston was the informant. He was six years older than Woodie. Here is another nickname for Reuben, and the family named their sixth child Ruby Hardy.

He and Olivia Jones were listed as parents of Lillie Estell Johnston, who died in Gustine on 7 December 1943. Oral Johnston was the informant.[3]

      COMMENT: Oral was younger than Lillie, but would have known his parents. He was six when his mother died, and twenty-six when his father died.

Reuben Mack Johnston and Olivia Jan Jones were named as parents of Robert Lee Johnston on his death record in 1950. The informant was R.B. Johnston.[4]

      COMMENT: R. B. Johnston was his son, Robert Bernell “Mackie” Johnston, who was four when his grandmother died, and fourteen when his grandfather died.

Reuben Mack Johnston and Olevia Jane Jones were named as parents of Rufus Arthur Johnston on his death record in 1954. Oral D. Johnston was informant.[5]

      COMMENT: Oral was younger than Rufus by eighteen years, but as above, Oral would have known his parents.

Ocia Catherine King’s death record named her parents as R. M. Johnston and [blank] Shall. The informant was her husband, Joe P. King.[6]

COMMENT: Joe and Ocia married in 1909 and he would have known her father, but not her mother. This is another spelling of the name. So far, I have Skull, Shull, and Shall. There is even that possibility of the C. S. Shell in the 1860 census in Titus County being Catharine.

On Thomas Newton Johnston’s 1951 death record in Erath County, R. M. Johnston and Olevia Jones were listed as his parents. Thomas’ third wife, Mrs. Rose Johnston, was the informant.[7]

      COMMENT: She would not have known his parents. Who gave her the information?

Deed Records
On 22 October 1903, M. J. Johnston sold land to R. M. Johnston, located in Comanche County, described as:

“being a part of the W. McCrae Six hundred and forty acre (640) survey of land and bounded as follows: beginning at SW corner of said original grant old bearings gone, thence S71E with south line of said grant 850 varas to the SE corner of this tract in said south line, thence N19E 1270 varas to corner of this tract in bed of South Leon River, thence up said stream with its channel to the west line of said grant and a corner of a 180 acre tract sold to E. G. Clark, a Spanish oak marked X bears N53E 17 vars said in bed of Leon River, thence S19W with said west line 412 varas to the place of beginning, containing one hundred and forty acres of land more or less. Also a tract of land situated in Comanche Co, being 100 acres out of patent number 61 vol 3 in the name of Wm McRea, beginning at the SE Corner of a 140 acre tract out of said grant on the south line of same, thence N19E 1270 varas to the south Leon River, thence down said stream as follows viz S19W 64 vars, thence N40E 127 varas, thence S71E 100 varas, thence 78.5E 140 varas, thence S71E 100 varas to corner from which a pecan tree on the north bank bears N3W, thence S19W 1366 varas to a stone pile on south line of said McRea survey for SE corner of this, a live oak bears N46E 1.5 varas, thence N71W 410 varas to the place of beginning.”[8]

On 7 December 1906, D.M. Smith released the 5 promissory notes lien on land executed on 22 Oct 1903 by M.J. Johnston to R.M. Johnston.[9]

      COMMENT: So perhaps, Marion did not sell the land but used it as collateral for a loan. I found no records of Reuben selling this land.

On 19 June 1914, Reuben signed a lease and contract with the G. H. Hodge, trustee of unnamed gas and oil company for the exploration of gas and oil on his property.[10]

      COMMENT: Would he had signed a lease if he did not own the property? There were many entries for this trustee signing gas and oil exploration leases.

Searching for brothers Marion J. Johnston and David N. Johnston.

Marion Jackson Johnston died 10 September 1938 as a single man in Comanche County. Robert Lee Johnston, his nephew, was the informant. Marion’s parents were named Sam Johnston, born in Mississippi, and Elizabeth McCormick, born in Alabama. His birth was recorded as 10 July 1846 in Mississippi.[11]

      COMMENT: We cannot comment yet of the knowledge of Robert Lee Johnston about his grandparents. He was born in 1884. A search for a death notice at the Portal to Texas History turned up nothing.

Searching for David N or D N Johnston/Johnson turned up no records. He was last seen in Bandera County in 1910 living with brother Marion and niece Lula.[12]

Johnson, Marian J., head, male, white, 62, single, Alabama, SC/SC, English, farmer, farm.
Johnson, Neton, brother, male, white, 60, single, Mississippi, SC/SC, English, farmer, laborer, wage earner.
Johnson, Lula, niece, female, white, 32, single, Texas, Al/GA, English, none.

A global search at Ancestry gave a hint to a Find a Grave memorial that might be him. The tombstone photo reads:

D. N. Johnston
Born Sept. 5, 184
Died Dec. 11, 1911
Gone but not forgotten[13]

COMMENT: The 1900 census gave his birth month and year as September 1849, which matches the tombstone photo. He was living in Bandera County in 1910 with his brother, Marion. Further searching on the Portal to Texas History did not turn up a death notice. There are no death records for Bandera County at FamilySearch catalog. I feel spoiled that Comanche and Erath Counties records are open from home.

Summary
No death record was found for Reuben or David, so no clues to their parents’ names. Only Marion’s was located, giving the names of their parents: Samuel Johnston and Elizabeth McCormick. So, future searching for the family of Reuben, Marion, and David, will start in Mississippi, looking for a family with head of Sam, wife, Elizabeth, and these three sons.

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[1] Comanche Co, Texas, Birth Record, v. 1 & 2, p. 58, no. 627, Loyd S. Johnston, 1904; imaged, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:9Q97-Y937-2XN : accessed 19 Aug 2026), IGN 004472390, image 103 of 320.

[2] Comanche Co, Texas, Birth Record Delayed, v. 13, p. 351, Woodie Andrew Johnston, 1892, filed 1842; imaged, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:9Q97-YSS9-T1R : accessed 20 Aug 2026), IGN 004476234, image 407 of 706.

[3] Texas State Department of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics, standard certificate of death, in Death Record, v. 4, p. 237, Lillie Estell Johnston, 1943; imaged, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:9Q97-YSZS-QHK : accessed 19 Aug 2026), IGN 004478834, image 413 of 610.

[4] Comanche Co, Texas, Record of Deaths, v. 5, p. 116, Robert Lee Johnston, 1950; imaged, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:9Q97-YSZS-99Z : accessed 19 Aug 2016), IGN 004478831, image 171 of 594.

[5] Comanche Co, Texas, Record of Deaths, v. 5, p. 328, Rufus Arthur Johnston, 1954; imaged, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:9Q97-YSZS-MFZ : accessed 20 Aug 2026), IGN 004478831, image 383 of 594.

[6] Erath Co, Texas, Record of Deaths, v. 4, p. 16, Ocia Catherine King, 1937; imaged, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89VW-N4BX : accessed 20 Aug 2026), IGN 007609224, item 3, image 65 of 374.

[7] Erath Co, Texas, Record of Deaths, v. 6, p. 196, Thomas Newton Johnston, 1951; imaged, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-L9VW-8XPK : accessed 20 Aug 2026), IGN 007609223, image 1072 of 1621.

[8] Comanche Co, Texas, deeds, v. 55, p. 289, warrant deed, M.J. Johnston to R.M. Johnston, 1903; imaged, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:9Q97-YSX4-KM : accessed 19 Aug 2026), IGN 004493284, image 290 of 639.

[9] Comanche Co, Texas, deeds, v. 68, p. 564, release, D.M. Smith to Johnstons, 1906; imaged, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:9Q97-YSNG-M4 : accessed 19 Aug 2026), IGN 004499590, image 566 of 646.

[10] Comanche Co, Texas, deeds, v. 102, p. 114-116, lease, R.M. Johnston to G.H. Hodges, 1914; imaged, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:9Q97-YSJJ-F7T : accessed 19 Aug 2026), IGN 004506557, images 115-17 of 641.

[11] Comanche Co, Texas, Record of Deaths, v. 5, p. 91, Marion Jackson Johnston, 1938; imaged, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:9Q97-YSZS-3V4 : accessed 20 Aug 2026), IGN 004478834, image 167 of 610.

[12] 1910 U.S. census, Bandera Co, Texas, prec 3, ED 10, sht 8b, dwel 146, Neton Johnson.

[13] Find a Grave (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/103243554/d.-n.-johnston : accessed 20 Aug 2026), tombstone photo of D. N. Johnston (1849-1911), photo added by Ed Barnhart, memorial 103243554; citing Goodman Cemetery, Medina, Bandera Co, Texas.

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