Sam Houston Johnson

Samuel Houston Johnson (January 31, 1914 – December 11, 1978) was an American businessman. He was the younger brother of President Lyndon B. Johnson.

Early life

Sam Houston Johnson was born in Johnson City, Texas on January 31, 1914, to Samuel Ealy Johnson Jr. and Rebekah Baines. He attended Southwest Texas State Teachers College, as had his brother Lyndon, and the University of Texas at Austin. He received a law degree from Cumberland School of Law in 1934.

Early career

For most of his life, Johnson was an aide and adviser to his older brother Lyndon B. Johnson; he was part of a network of supporters his brother used to maintain awareness of and control over political activities in Texas. When Lyndon Johnson was appointed Director of the National Youth Administration in Texas in the 1930s, Sam Houston Johnson replaced him as chief aide to Congressman Richard M. Kleberg.

Johnson later worked for the National Youth Administration in Texas. He also worked as an appraiser for the Federal Land Bank in Houston, and reported to his brother on its activities.

During World War II, Johnson worked on the staff of the War Production Board. In addition, he was employed as a member of his brother's Senate staff and worked on Lyndon Johnson's campaigns.

Besides working for and with his brother, Johnson also worked as an insurance executive and as the Mexico representative of a Texas international trucking company.

Later career

Johnson was an alcoholic. In his later years, his drinking, coupled with physical disability caused by a broken hip, limited his effectiveness as a member of his brother's organization.

In 1970 Johnson wrote a memoir, ''My Brother Lyndon'', which praised his brother in most respects, but was critical in others. At the time, Johnson indicated that he was estranged from his brother, but said his book was not the cause. The two reconciled before Lyndon Johnson's death.

According to published accounts, Johnson stopped drinking in 1972 and underwent a religious conversion, becoming a regular attendee at services of Austin's non-denominational Community Church.

Historian Robert Caro interviewed Johnson as one of his numerous sources while conducting research for ''The Years of Lyndon Johnson.'' According to Caro, he at first considered Johnson to be unreliable, largely as a result of his drinking. Caro said that he considered Johnson more credible in their subsequent encounters, largely because of his sobriety and religious conversion.

Death and burial

In 1976 Johnson was diagnosed with cancer and had a malignant tumor removed from his lung. His lung cancer returned, and Johnson died at Holy Cross Hospital in Austin, Texas on December 11, 1978. He is buried in the Johnson Family Cemetery in Stonewall, Texas.

Marriage and family

In 1940, Johnson married Albertine Summers. They divorced in 1944. Their children included a daughter, Josefa Roxane (or Roxanne) (born 1941), and a son, Samuel Summers (born 1942).

In 1955, Johnson married again to Mary Jane Michelson Fish. They later divorced.Rebekah Baines Johnson, ''A Family Album''

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Sam Houston
1914 births
1978 deaths
Cumberland School of Law alumni
Texas State University alumni
University of Texas at Austin alumni
Texas Democrats
Writers from Austin, Texas
Businesspeople from Texas
Sam Houston
Deaths from cancer in Texas
Deaths from lung cancer
Burials in Texas
20th-century American businesspeople
20th-century American politicians