PROMINENT PERSONS
227
1S30; "Solidification of Gypsum," 1833; and
"Formic Acid," 1837. To these are to be
added others touching upon a line of investi-
gation in which he was among the earliest
and ablest — "A Description of a New Mode
01 Producing Electro-Magnetic Currents,"
1833, and **An Inquiry into the Probable
Cause of Electro-Magnetic Currents," 1835.
He attained a profound knowledge of Latin
and Greek, spoke fluently French and
Italian, and had some knowledge of Ger-
man. He was by nature a skillful mechanic,
and possessed an unusual inventive turn of
mind. Dr. Emmet married, in 1827, Mary
F.yrd Tucker, a native of Bermuda. He
died in New York City, August 12, 1842.
Johnston, Peter, son of Peter and Martha Johnston, of "Long\vood," Prince Edward county, Virginia. He was educated at Hampden-Sidney College, receiving a class- ical education. At the age of seventeen he left home and joined Lee's Legion, and was made a lieutenant. In 1782 he resigned and joined the light corps formed by Gen. Greene, as adjutant, with the rank of cap- tain. At the close of the revolutionary war he returned home, studied law. and prac- ticed his profession in Prince Edward and adjoining counties. He was elected a mem- ber of the Virginia house of delegates sev- eral times, and was a member at the time of the celebrated resolutions of 1798-1799, and the speech that he made upon this occa- sion was considered so able that it was pub- li.<hcd in full in the "Register." then the leading paper in the United States. In 181 1 he was elected a judge of the general court, and assigned to the Prince Edward circuit, but he cxchancfed with Judge William nrockenbrough. who had been assigned to
the southwest Virginia circuit, and came to
Abingdon to live, and for twenty-one years
lived at **Panicello," east of Abingdon, and
presided over the superior court of law for
this district with distinguished ability for
more than twenty years. He died Decem-
ber 8, 1831, and was buried near his home,
in this county. He was commissioned a
brigadier-general by the legislature in early
life. His wife, Mary Johnston, was the
daughter of Valentine Wood and Lucy
Henry, his wife, a sister of Patrick Henry,
and a woman of distinguished ability.
Some of his descendants were John W.
Johnston, Peter Carr Johnston, Edward
Johnston, Gen. Joseph E. Johnston, Bever-
ley Randolph Johnston. Charles C. John-
ston, Benjamin Johnston, Mrs. Jane C.
Mitchell and Algernon Sidney Johnston.
Minor, Lucian, born in Louisa county, Virginia, in 1802, son of Launcelot Minor and Mary O. Tompkins, his wife, and grandson of John and Elizabeth (Cosby) Minor, of "Topping Castle," Caroline county, Virginia ; after preparatory educa- tion, he became a student in the law depart- ment of the College of William and Mary, from which he was graduated in 1823 ; from 1828 to 1852, almost a quarter of a century, he served as commonwealth's attorney for Louisa county. Virginia, then removed to Charlottesville and edited a paper there; in 1855 he was appointed professor of law at William and Mary College and served until 1858: he contributed extensively to the "Southern Literary Messenger.** in which paper his notes of travel on foot in New England were revised and published in 1834, and he was the author of a part of John A. G. Davis's "Guide to Justices'* (1838);
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