Henry was an energetic and ambitious man; driven to
make a name for himself and prolific in his writing and accomplishments.
Jane, by contrast appears to have written almost exclusively for the
pleasure of writing, with no particular goals in mind with not thought
of publication. If Henry
failed to give her all the credit due, neither would her work likely
have survived today without his promotion. Indeed, he seems to have been instrumental in
her retelling of Native American stories which he collected and
published, and which were read widely in the day.
In fact, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's Song of Hiawatha
borrows strongly from Henry's Algic Researches which contains
several of Jane's works including,
The Story of Corn.
Henry and Jane lived first in an addition built
onto the Johnston home and later in Elmwood, a rather large home that
Henry caused to be built, which he felt appropriate to his position, both
in Sault Ste. Marie. After 1833 they moved to Mackinac, which was
also had a large métis community, more developed even than that
of Sault Ste. Marie.
Henry and Jane had four children but only two
lived to adulthood. One babe was still-born, but their first-born,
Willy was much coddled and beloved by both before he took ill and quickly
died at the age of two.
This death
seems to have been a cruel blow for Jane in particular who wrote several
sad and beautiful poems in morning. There is some indication that
Willy's death may have also put a strain on their relationship, but life moved
on, and there was much to do.
In later
years, Henry was occupied with affairs of state and
spent much time away from home leaving the rather frail Jane with the
children and an unruly staff to mind in his absence, sometimes for
months on end.
Henry's ambitions and accomplishments gained
him greater influence in the Andrew Jackson administration and was
appointed Superintendent of Indian Affairs, but in 1840,
Henry got into a fierce battle with his younger brother, William and the
federal government, the outcome of which resulted in his being
investigated for corruption and removed from office when the Whigs came
to power.
Jane, having been in poor health most of her
life began using laudanum, an opium and morphine tincture to relieve her
symptoms and eventually became addicted, which in turn had further ill
effects on her health.
After Henry lost
his position with the government, He and Jane decided to leave Mackinac
Island ie for New York City, and then, without a job and needing to
promote his writing, Henry decided to make a trip to Europe. Jane,
in frail heath as usual, and remembering the miserable time she had in
Ireland and England, decided to stay behind once again and went to stay
with her sister Charlotte in what is now Ontario in 1842, when she was
42.
There, on May 22 of that year,
Charlotte found Jane sitting in a chair dead.
She was survived by two children and a large
body of literature, some of which is still being discovered today.
