Alvin J. Johnson

These atlases were published under his name alone or with Browning (1860–62) and Ward (1862-1866), and are fascinating because the sequence of atlas maps documented the growth of the United States during this quarter century, showing the step-by-step expansion of railroads and the development of new states, counties and towns.

[3] Johnson described his early life as coming from a poor family in which he was the eldest of 12 children.

[4] Only a little detail is available about Johnson's early life as a book canvasser and it remains unclear as to where and exactly when it began and what products he was selling.

This Fairchild letter also indicates that Johnson moved to Ohio after working for Colton in Boston.

The New York City Directory first lists Johnson in their 1855-56 edition, describing him as a publisher living in Ohio.

[7] He indicates further in the same letter, that one of his helpers in Ohio was Browning, who was a joint publisher with Johnson from 1859 through 1862.

Neither Johnson's nor Browning's name shows up in a city directory of Cleveland in the year immediately before either of them came from Ohio to New York.

Illustrated & Embellished Steel Plate Map of the World on Mercator's Projection.

Johnson was probably as a financial backer, similar to what appears to have been his original relationship with Gaston.

Johnson's name disappears from both map attributions and directory listings, and he died five years later in 1863.

[18] By the time he retired and handed over his business to his son, S. Augustus Mitchell, Jr., in 1860, he was the major publisher of atlases and maps in America.