According to online information there is mention of a Richard H. Johnson in this book : "The Blacks In Canada: A History" (p. 272) There are also several pages detailing life in St. Catharines at the time. Perhaps you can obtain a copy at your own library through inter-library loan.
Author: Robin W. Winks
Publisher: McGill-Queen's University Press, Montreal, 1997 (2nd ed.)
The book can be purchased from this address:
http://www.mqup.ca/blacks-in-canada--second-edition--the-pro...($32.95 CAD for paperback: $100 for cloth....576 pages)
Sharon
Welland, Ontario