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Ward Johnson

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
William W. Johnson
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from California's 18th district
In office
January 3, 1941 – January 3, 1945
Preceded byThomas M. Eaton
Succeeded byClyde Doyle
Personal details
Born
William Ward Johnson

(1892-03-09)March 9, 1892
Brighton, Iowa
DiedJune 8, 1963(1963-06-08) (aged 71)
Long Beach, California
Resting placeForest Lawn Memorial Park (Long Beach)
Political partyRepublican
SpouseGrace Rebecca Songer
ChildrenGeorge Robert Johnson, Mary Jean Johnson, Walter Franklin Johnson
ResidenceLong Beach
ProfessionBanker, Attorney

William Ward Johnson (March 9, 1892 – June 8, 1963) was an American lawyer and politician who served two terms as a U.S. Representative from California from 1941 to 1945.

Biography

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Born in Brighton, Washington County, Iowa, Johnson attended the public schools at Brighton and at Twin Falls, Idaho, and the University of California at Berkeley in 1913 and 1914. He was graduated from the law school of the University of Southern California at Los Angeles in 1925.

Career

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He served as member of the Idaho National Guard in 1910 and 1911. After that, he worked as bookkeeper, stenographer, and manager of an automobile company at Montpelier, Idaho, and Price, Utah from 1912 to 1918. He engaged in the mercantile business in Idaho and Utah from 1918 to 1922. He also engaged in the banking and oil business at Twin Falls, Idaho, and Long Beach, California.

He was admitted to the bar in 1925 and commenced practice as a lawyer in Long Beach.

Congress

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Johnson was elected as a Republican to the Seventy-seventh and Seventy-eighth Congresses (January 3, 1941 – January 3, 1945). He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection in 1944 to the Seventy-ninth Congress.

Later career and death

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He resumed the practice of law in Long Beach, California, until his death there on June 8, 1963. He was interred in Sunnyside Mausoleum.

Electoral history

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United States House of Representatives elections, 1940[1]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican William Ward Johnson (inc.) 73,932 54.4
Democratic Byron N. Scott 60,764 44.7
Communist George R. Ashby 1,355 0.9
Total votes 136,051 100.0
Turnout  
Republican hold
United States House of Representatives elections, 1942[2]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican William Ward Johnson (inc.) 53,136 56.8
Democratic Francis H. Gentry 40,339 43.2
Total votes 93,475 100.0
Turnout  
Republican hold
United States House of Representatives elections, 1944[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Clyde Doyle 95,090 55.7
Republican William Ward Johnson (inc.) 75,749 44.3
Total votes 170,839 100.0
Turnout  
Democratic gain from Republican

References

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  1. ^ "1940 election results" (PDF). Retrieved November 20, 2022.
  2. ^ 1942 election results
  3. ^ 1944 election results
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by
Vacant since September 1939
last held by Thomas M. Eaton
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from California's 18th congressional district

January 1941 - January 1945
Succeeded by

Public Domain This article incorporates public domain material from the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress