James Johnson and his brother Robert worked for Joseph Fleming at the Bremer Steaming Establishment in the 1850s. The Sydney Morning Herald reported on 24 October 1857:
A fatal accident occurred on the River Bremer on the evening of Sunday last. Four men in the employment of Mr. Fleming, of the Bremer Steaming Establishment, were proceeding down the river in a boat on their return to the station, when, owing to the darkness of the night (which prevented them from seeing the obstructions to their progress), the boat came in contact with a fallen tree, capsized, and precipitated the four men into the water. Two brothers named Robert and James Johnson, and a man named David Dagleish, were unfortunately drowned, but the fourth succeeded in reaching the land.
The Empire provided further detail on 24 October 1857:
A man named Douglas, and two brothers named James and Robert Johnson, the latter married men with families, were drowned; but the fourth, whose name we have not learned, succeeded in getting ashore. We understand that up to Monday afternoon the bodies of the two brothers had been recovered, but that of Douglas had not been found; persons were making diligent search for it.
