Elizabeth Bryant Johnston

Elizabeth Bryant Johnston (July 12, 1833 in Mason County, Kentucky,[1]– January 13, 1907) was an American historian and author of several books on George Washington and his residence at Mount Vernon, including numerous editions of the Visitors' Guide to Mount Vernon.

Johnston was also a founding member of the Historical Society of Washington, D.C.,[2] Historian General of the Daughters of the American Revolution, and Associate Editor of American Monthly Magazine.

She published the book in 1877 and entered into a contract with the MVLA shortly thereafter.

Johnston continued to write updated editions of the guidebook for over twenty years, until her partnership with the MVLA ended in 1898.

After her death, the members of the Historical Society of Washington, D.C. paid tribute to her life, writing, "Her labors in journalism, her faculty for art criticism, her interest in history and advancement of Washington City, her researches in genealogy, with her eminently social qualities, were noteworthy elements in the record of a long and useful life.