A 200-year-old law office continues to attract attention for its historic significance with the most recent accolade from Georgia Trust in recognition of its preservation and restoration.
The Johnson Law Office was presented the Georgia Trust Historic Preservation Excellence in Restoration Award April 25 during the organization’s spring ramble in Marietta. Old Clinton Historical Society President Earlene Hamilton shared the news as soon as it was permitted after receiving the award.
The award was accepted by Hamilton, David Mitchell and Greg Jacobs. It recognizes the exemplary restoration of historic structures that accurately restore the form, features and character of a historic building as it appeared during a particular period.
The law office building was constructed in the 1830s. It is a single-story, one room building that served as the professional office of Judge Richard Johnson, a prominent attorney and judge in Jones County during Clinton’s early history.
The law office was originally located at 412 Madison St. It was purchased by the Old Clinton Historic Society in 2015 and moved to the Holsenback property on Pulaski Street, owned by OCHS, in January of 2016.
The application for the award included information on the building’s history. Noting that as the county seat for Jones County moved, the building languished. It was the Old Clinton Historical Society that worked to prevent its loss. OCHS was eventually able to relocateand restore the building near its original Madison Street setting.
“The building was carefully investigated using physical evidence such as ghost markings and original materials to guide an evidence-based restoration. Non-historic alterations were removed and missing elements, including windows, doors, stairs, and chimney were reconstructed using appropriate materials and traditional construction methods. Structural components, stone piers, siding, windows and hardware were repaired, and a new wood shake roof installed, ensuring the long-term preservation of this rare building type.”
The story of the preservation of the law office is entwined the history of Clinton, Jones County and OCHS. Johnson is connected to a family that is vital to the community, through his granddaughter Patsy Childs, his closest living relative.
William R. Johnson, the third child of the judge, is the father of Patsy Johnson, who married Frank Childs. Frank and Patsy Childs are the parents of Frank Childs Jr., Richard Childs, Craig Childs and Patty Childs.
Patsy Childs, along with William Cawthon Jr., were in instrumental in the preservation of the office. She is in possession of a scrapbook about her grandfather that was put together by his daughter, as well as a state directory “The Cotton States International Exposition on the South” that contains information about Johnson’s law career and his time as a Georgia legislator.
Cawthon was an attorney and noted historian who dedicated much of his career to the study of Clinton. His masters thesis was titled “Clinton: County Seat on the Georgia Frontier 1808-1821.”
Cawthon lived in Eufaula, Ala., but he was one of the founding members of the Old Clinton Historical Society. The historian was a descendant of some of the early families of Clinton, and it appeared that the town was never far from his heart.
When Cawthon died March 16, 2016, he designated funds in his will for the restoration of the law office. Mitchell of M.H. Mitchell Inc. is a co-executor of the will and oversaw the renovation of the law office.
The renovation of the law office had been a longterm project for OCHS but Cawthon’s endowment brought the project to the forefront.
The building was moved to its new location in 2021. Its renovation was celebrated at a Nov. 16, 2024, event that appropriately also celebrated the 50th anniversary of the organization that fought to preserve it.
The property was received through a private donation, which puts it within two lots of its original location. The Johnson Law Office now has the Clinton address of 426 Madison St.
