Missouri State University is organizing a two-day symposium in honor of Thomas Moore Johnson, which will be held in MSU’s Duane G. Meyer Library and at the Johnson Library & Museum in Osceola, Missouri, November 7-8, 2019.

Johnson (1851-1919) was born in Osceola, where he served as mayor, prosecuting attorney, and school superintendent. An ardent Platonist, he was actively involved in both philosophical and esoteric circles, producing translations, publishing journals, and collecting rare books. He corresponded with dozens of intellectuals and prominent figures worldwide, and amassed a library of nearly 10,000 volumes — hundreds of which were printed in the 16th and 17th centuries.

2019 marks the 100th anniversary of TMJ’s passing, as well as the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the Johnson Library and Museum non-profit corporation. Thomas Moore Johnson also was a member of the site selection committee for the Fourth State Normal School, which has become Missouri State University. 

To celebrate this occasion, we are organizing a day of scholarly presentations in Duane G. Meyer Library, inviting all the major TMJ experts, followed the next day by a visit to the Johnson Library and Museum — all in the spirit of the symposia TMJ and his circle organized from 1888 to 1890 for Plato’s supposed birthday (November 7).