San Francisco County
Biographies
J. EDWARD
JOHNSON
Among the ranking members of the bar in San Francisco is J. Edward Johnson, who is an officer of and the attorney for the Pacific Coast Joint Stock Land Bank of San Francisco. He was born in Murray, Utah, October 2, 1890, and is a son of John and Edla (Lundell) Johnson, who were born in Sweden, came to the United States in the late ‘80s, and were married in Salt Lake City, Utah. Later the family moved to Utah county, where the father has been in civic and political affairs for many years. Mr. and Mrs. Johnson are the parents of ten children, five sons and five daughters, of whom J. Edward is the eldest.
J. Edward Johnson attended the grade schools of Benjamin and the high school in Provo, Utah. He then took up his advanced studies at Brigham Young University, which institution conferred upon him the Bachelor of Arts degree in 1915. He did not secure his education easily, for he was compelled to earn his own way toward the goal he had set for himself in boyhood, namely, to be a successful lawyer. He worked in the mines near Eureka, Utah, during his vacation periods, and taught school. From 1915 to 1917, following his graduation from Brigham Young University, he was principal of the Snowflake Academy in Snowflake, Arizona, and then took up the study of law in the University of California. In 1920 he received the degree of Juris Doctor and in the same year was admitted to practice in the state of Utah. He first became a member of the law firm of Booth, Brookbank & Johnson in Provo, and retained this connection until 1922, in which year he was admitted to the bar in California. He accepted the position of assistant attorney for the Federal Land Bank of Berkeley, where he remained from 1921 to 1926. In 1922 he became chief counsel for said bank and from 1923 to 1926 was attorney for the Federal Intermediate Credit Bank of Berkeley. In 1926 he became general counsel and secretary of the Pacific Coast Joint Stock Land Bank, of which he is now a director; and of the Mercantile Mortgage Company, well known corporations of San Francisco. In 1929 he severed his connections with the Mercantile Mortgage Company. Mr. Johnson has given his attention especially to real property and banking law, and is widely regarded as a dependable authority in this phase of his profession. In 1931 he organized the law firm of Johnson, Ruggeri and Harmon, consisting of Mr. Johnson, Henry Ruggeri, and W. Glen Harmon. Mr. Johnson’s rise in the practice of law has been uncommonly rapid, but has been brought about by extraordinary ability and close application. He holds membership in the San Francisco and the California State Bar Associations. His offices are situated in the Federal Reserve Bank building on Sansome street.
Mr. Johnson was married June 22, 1916, in Salt Lake City, to Miss Mamie Huish, who was born in Payson, Utah, a daughter of James W. and the late Mary Elizabeth (Fillmore) Huish, who were both members of pioneer families of Utah. Mr. and Mrs. Johnson have four children: Robert, who was born October 30, 1918; Marion, born December 16, 1922; Carolyn, born July 13, 1928; and Thomas, born February 7, 1931. The family residence is at 900 Spruce street in Berkeley.
Mr. Johnson is a member of the Church of Latter-Day Saints, in the teachings of which he was reared. In politics he has accorded his support to the democratic party, and he belongs to the Phi Alpha Delta law fraternity; to the Alumni Associations of Brigham Young University and the University of California; the University of California Law School Association, and the Pacific Spirit Club of San Francisco.
Transcribed by: Jeanne Sturgis Taylor.
Source: Byington, Lewis Francis, “History of
San Francisco 3 Vols”, S. J. Clarke Publishing Co.,
Chicago, 1931. Vol. 2 Pages 448-452.
© 2007 Jeanne Sturgis Taylor.
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