John Newton and William Wilberforce supported the choice of an evangelical chaplain for the colony, and Richard Johnson sailed with his wife Mary on the First Fleet. His duties included convict education as well as worship. Arthur Phillip prioritized food and shelter and did not provide labor for a church, so Johnson held services outdoors and worked a productive farm on his land grant. He planted orange and lemon seeds obtained in Rio de Janeiro. Claims that farming made him wealthy are doubted, although he later sold his land and stock to good advantage. In 1793 Johnson completed a church capable of holding 500 people, and the building served as a school before it burned in 1798. After leaving Australia, he retained an interest in transportation and appeared before House of Commons select committees in 1812 and 1815.
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Richard Johnson's church, school, and farm
Chaplain Richard Johnson also farmed, provided schooling, and built a church that could hold 500 people after colonial authorities denied him labor.