 When the Confederacy was deciding on a national flag, William's wife and Ben's mother Nancy was part of the committee that chose the Stars and Bars, and was first revealed to the public at the Johnson House in 1861 in front of 5,000 people.When John Hunt Morgan and Thomas Hines escaped from the Ohio Penitentiary in 1863, they spent a night at the House before continuing to Confederate lines.For some time it was "The Mansion" bed and breakfast, but it has since stopped being a hostelry.