Rienzi Melville JOHNSTON, Congress, TX (1849-1926)

JOHNSTON, Rienzi Melville, (cousin of Benjamin Edward Russell), a Senator from Texas; born in Sandersville, Washington County, Ga., September 9, 1849; attended the public schools; during the Civil War served in the Confederate Army; moved to Austin, Tex., in 1878 and engaged in journalism; moved to Houston in 1883 and established the Houston Post; member of the Democratic National Committee 1900-1912; appointed on January 4, 1913, as a Democrat to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Joseph W. Bailey and served from January 4, to January 29, 1913, when a successor was elected and qualified; resumed his former activities as editor and president of the Houston Post; elected to the State senate in 1916; relinquished the active management of his newspaper business in 1919 and lived in retirement until his death in Houston, Tex., February 28, 1926; interment in Glenwood Cemetery.

Bibliography

Welch, June Rayfield. “Rienzi Johnston Managed the Houston Post.” In The Texas Senator, pp. 114-15. Dallas: G.L.A. Press, 1978.

Source: Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1771-Present