Jed Johnson (Oklahoma)

Jed Johnson
Johnson as an Oklahoma State Senator, 1921
Judge of the United States Customs Court
In office June 25, 1947 – May 8, 1963
Appointed by	Harry S. Truman
Preceded by	William John Keefe
Succeeded by	James Lopez Watson
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Oklahoma's 6th district
In office March 4, 1927 – January 3, 1947
Preceded by	J. W. Elmer Thomas
Succeeded by	Toby Morris
Member of the Oklahoma Senate
In office 1920–1926
Personal details
Born	Jed Joseph Johnson (1888-07-31)July 31, 1888 Waxahachie, Texas
Died	May 8, 1963(1963-05-08) (aged 74) New York City
Resting place	Rose Hill Cemetery 35°1′54″N 97°56′45″W / 35.03167°N 97.94583°W / 35.03167; -97.94583 (Jed Johnson Burial Site)
Political party	Democratic
Alma mater	University of Oklahoma College of Law LL.B.
Profession	Judge
Military service
Allegiance	United States of America
Service/branch	United States Army
Years of service	1918-1919
Unit	Company L of the 36th Division
Battles/wars	World War I

Jed Joseph Johnson (July 31, 1888 – May 8, 1963) was a politician from the state of Oklahoma and served as a Judge for the United States Customs Court.^[1]

Early life and education

Johnson was born in Waxahachie, Texas and he graduated from the University of Oklahoma's law department, class of 1915, receiving a Bachelor of Laws degree, with postgraduate work at l’Université de Clermont at Clermont-Ferrand, France. He was admitted to the bar in 1918 and began practicing law in Walters, Oklahoma. Johnson served overseas as a private in World War I in Company L of the 36th Division in 1918 and 1919. He edited a newspaper in Cotton County, Oklahoma, from 1920 to 1922.^[2]

Political career

He was first elected to public office to the Oklahoma State Senate in 1920 as a Democrat and served until 1926, when he was elected to the House of Representatives. He served as a delegate to the annual peace conference of the Interparliamentary Union at Paris, France, in 1927 and 1937, and at Geneva, Switzerland, in 1929, and was chairman of the speakers’ bureau for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. He served 20 years in Congress until losing the Democratic primary election in 1946.

Federal Judicial Service

Johnson was appointed to the United States Customs Court by President Roosevelt in 1945, but declined it. On April 7, 1947, President Truman nominated him to serve as a Judge on the Customs Court, to the seat vacated by Judge William John Keefe. He was confirmed by the Senate on June 23, 1947 and received his commission on June 25, 1947. He served on the court until his death and was succeeded by Judge James Lopez Watson.

Death

Johnson died in a New York City hospital on May 8, 1963. Johnson was buried at Rose Hill Cemetery in Chickasha, Oklahoma.^[1]

Jed Johnson Lake in the Wichita Mountains National Wildlife Refuge is named in honor of Jed Johnson.^[2]

His son Jed Johnson, Jr. served one term in Congress.

Notes

References

• Jed Joseph Johnson at the Biographical Directory of Federal Judges, a public domain publication of the Federal Judicial Center.
• "Jed Johnson". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. 

External links

• Jed J. Johnson Collection at the Carl Albert Center
• "Jed Joseph Johnson". U.S. Congressman. Find a Grave. October 5, 2005. Retrieved February 17, 2013.