Sergeant First Class Johnson was a veteran of World War II. In Korea, he was a member of the 38th Field Artillery Battalion, 2nd Infantry Division. He was taken Prisoner of War while fighting the enemy near Kunu-ri, North Korea, on 30 November 1950 and died while a prisoner on 1 July 1951.

Johnson was awarded the Combat Infantryman's Badge, the Prisoner of War Medal, the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Korean Presidential Unit Citation, the Republic of Korea War Service Medal, the Pacific Theater of Operations Medal and the World War II Victory Medal.