William Harvey Johnson Jr. (May 10, 1919 – March 22, 2004) was an American politician and lawyer from Mississippi. He served for Newton County in the Mississippi House of Representatives from 1952 to 1964.

Biography

William Harvey Johnson Jr. was born on May 10, 1919, in

Ball, Louisiana Ball is a town in Rapides Parish, just north of Pineville, Louisiana, United States. Established in 1972, it is part of the Alexandria, Louisiana Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 4,000 at the 2010 census, an increase of 8.7 pe ...

, to William Harvey Johnson Sr. and Lela Johnson. He attended Harperville High School, graduating in 1935. He then graduated from East Central Junior College in 1937 and received his

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

from

Mississippi College Mississippi College (MC) is a private Baptist university in Clinton, Mississippi. Founded in 1826, MC is the second-oldest Baptist-affiliated college or university in the United States and the oldest college or university in Mississippi. Histor ...

in 1939. Johnson enlisted in the

U.S. Army Air Corps The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical ri ...

in 1941 and served for four years in the

European theatre of World War II The European theatre of World War II was one of the two main theatres of combat during World War II. It saw heavy fighting across Europe for almost six years, starting with Germany's invasion of Poland on 1 September 1939 and ending with the ...

. He started as an aviation cadet but rose to the rank of major, and ultimately earned two Distinguished Flying Crosses, four

Air Medal The Air Medal (AM) is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. It was created in 1942 and is awarded for single acts of heroism or meritorious achievement while participating in aerial flight. Criteria The Air Medal was establish ...

s, and a Presidential Citation. Johnson enrolled at University of Mississippi Law School in January 1946, and earned his

LLB Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

in January 1948. Later that year, he opened his own law office in Decatur, Mississippi. In 1952, he was elected to the Mississippi House of Representatives representing Newton County. According to his campaign ads, he was pro-

segregation Segregation may refer to: Separation of people * Geographical segregation, rates of two or more populations which are not homogenous throughout a defined space * School segregation * Housing segregation * Racial segregation, separation of humans ...

. He served in the house for twelve years. He also was elected as district attorney for the 8th Circuit Court District of Mississippi in 1963. Johnson continued to run his private practice until his retirement in 1999. On March 22, 2004, Johnson died at St. Dominic Jackson Memorial Hospital in

Jackson, Mississippi Jackson, officially the City of Jackson, is the capital of and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Mississippi. The city is also one of two county seats of Hinds County, along with Raymond. The city had a population of 153,701 at t ...

. His funeral was held on March 25, and he was buried in Decatur Cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, William Harvey Jr. Members of the Mississippi House of Representatives 20th-century American politicians People from Newton County, Mississippi 1919 births 2004 deaths 20th-century American lawyers East Central Community College alumni Mississippi College alumni University of Mississippi School of Law alumni United States Army Air Forces personnel of World War II People from Ball, Louisiana Deaths in Mississippi