Nancy Maria Donaldson Johnson was the daughter of Dr. Lothario Donaldson and Mary 'Polly' Rider and the wife of Prof. Walter Rogers Johnson. Nancy, along with her sister Mary, was very active as a missionary for the American Mission Society. In 1862 they both participated as missionaries and teachers in the 'Port Royal Experiment' to teach freed slaves in South Carolina. They served there under Edward L. Pierce, who was a noted lawyer, writer, and Republican activist.
Nancy was also an inventor. From "The Lafayette Advertiser," Lafayette, Louisiana, July 18, 1891, p. 3:
"The first ice cream freezer was patented by a woman. This is in accordance with the fitness of things. The inventor, Mrs. Nancy M. Johnson, lived to the age of ninety-five to enjoy the fruits of her genius, and died only a year ago. She was a Washington woman, and the crank process she applied to ice cream making brought her $1500. Previous to her discovery ice cream was made by slow and unsatisfactory stirring with a spoon."
dm wms (#47395868)

About 1833 Nancy's birth family changed the family surname from "Danielson" to "Donaldson."
Nancy's two children were adopted.

Nancy Maria Donaldson Johnson was the daughter of Dr. Lothario Donaldson and Mary 'Polly' Rider and the wife of Prof. Walter Rogers Johnson. Nancy, along with her sister Mary, was very active as a missionary for the American Mission Society. In 1862 they both participated as missionaries and teachers in the 'Port Royal Experiment' to teach freed slaves in South Carolina. They served there under Edward L. Pierce, who was a noted lawyer, writer, and Republican activist.
Nancy was also an inventor. From "The Lafayette Advertiser," Lafayette, Louisiana, July 18, 1891, p. 3:
"The first ice cream freezer was patented by a woman. This is in accordance with the fitness of things. The inventor, Mrs. Nancy M. Johnson, lived to the age of ninety-five to enjoy the fruits of her genius, and died only a year ago. She was a Washington woman, and the crank process she applied to ice cream making brought her $1500. Previous to her discovery ice cream was made by slow and unsatisfactory stirring with a spoon."
dm wms (#47395868)

About 1833 Nancy's birth family changed the family surname from "Danielson" to "Donaldson."
Nancy's two children were adopted.