Hilary R. W. Johnson
| Hilary R. W. Johnson | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| 11th President of Liberia | |
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In office January 7, 1884 – January 4, 1892 |
|
| Vice President | James Thompson |
| Preceded by | Alfred Francis Russell |
| Succeeded by | Joseph James Cheeseman |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Hilary Richard Wright Johnson June 1, 1837 Monrovia, Liberia |
| Died | 1901 Monrovia, Liberia |
| Political party | True Whig |
Hilary Richard Wright Johnson (June 1, 1837 – 1901) served as the 11th President of Liberia from 1884 to 1892. He was elected four times. He served as Secretary of State before his presidency, under the administration of Edward James Roye.
An Americo-Liberian, Johnson was the first Liberian president born in Africa. His father was Elijah Johnson, one of the original African-American settlers who founded the colony at Cape Mesurado. His son Frederick Eugene Richelieu Johnson was Liberia's longest serving Chief Justice.
Nominated by both the Republican Party and True Whig parties, Johnson ran unopposed in his first election and then declared himself a True Whig after winning the election. The endorsement of Johnson by the two political parties — which stood on opposite sides of the color divide — signaled a truce regarding colorism between mulatto Americo-Liberian settlers and darker-skinned Americo-Liberian settlers and was replaced on concentrating overall Americo-Liberian political power and economic wealth.
In the decades after 1868, escalating economic difficulties weakened the state's dominance over the coastal indigenous population. Conditions worsened, as the cost of imports was far greater than the income generated by exports of coffee, rice, palm oil, sugarcane, and timber. Liberia tried desperately to modernize its largely agricultural economy.
In 1885, Johnson agreed to the annexation of the Gallinas territory after the US Government had advised him to yield to the British demands. In November of that year, the Havelock Draft Convention, which finalized the boundary between Liberia and Sierra Leone, was ratified by both Liberia and Great Britain. Since then, the Mano River has formed the boundary between Liberia and Sierra Leone.
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