George Alonzo Johnson

George Alonzo Johnson
Born	August 16, 1824 Palatine Bridge, Montgomery County, New York
Died	San Diego, California
Residence	Johnson House
Spouse(s)	Maria Estéfana Alvarado

George Alonzo Johnson (1824-1903) 49er, Colorado River steamboat entrepreneur, California politician.

George Alonzo Johnson was born in August 16, 1824, in Palatine Bridge, Montgomery County, New York. In 1849 as a sailor he heard of the discovery of gold and left New York drawn by the California Gold Rush and came to San Francisco, in June 1849. There he worked unloading ships, except for a short trip to the mines, until May 1850. Hearing news of the Glanton Massacre he got together a small group of partners, (including Benjamin M. Hartshorne) with things necessary to build a ferry and traveled to the Yuma Crossing via San Diego. There they built and began operating a ferry, then sold it and returned to San Francisco.

Seeing the opportunity in bringing supplies to the isolated post of Fort Yuma, in 1852 Johnson and his partner Benjamin M. Hartshorne contracted to carry supplies up the Colorado in poled barges. This failed due to the strong current and many sandbars in the river. After a steam tug, the 20 hp Uncle Sam was successfully used to ascend the river in 1853, Johnson formed George A. Johnson & Company with Hartshorne and another partner Captain Alfred H. Wilcox. They brought the disassembled side-wheel steamboat General Jesup to the Colorado River Delta. There in the estuary he assembled this more powerful 70 hp steamboat and began successfully shipping cargo and carrying passengers on the Colorado River from its mouth, up to Fort Yuma. His steamboat carried 50 tons of cargo to the fort in 5 days and brought the cost to supply the fort down to $75 a ton from the $500 a ton shipped across the desert from San Diego. It made the Company $4,000 per trip to ships in the mouth of the Colorado River.

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