Johnson, Richard M

Johnson, Richard M(entor)

(born 1780, near Louisville, Va., U.S.—died Nov. 19, 1850, Frankfort, Ky.) U.S. politician. He practiced law in Kentucky before being elected to the U.S. House of Representatives (1807–19, 1829–37). As a colonel in the War of 1812, he was wounded in the Battle of the Thames, where he reputedly killed Tecumseh. He returned to his congressional seat and later was elected to the Senate (1819–29). He was a loyal supporter of Pres. Andrew Jackson, who chose him as Martin Van Buren's running mate in the 1836 election. None of the four vice-presidential candidates won an electoral-vote majority, and the outcome was decided by the Senate, the only such occurrence in U.S. history. Johnson served one term in the office.