Samuel S. ("Sam") Johnson

Infobox_Politician
name = Sam Johnson


imagesize = 80px
office = Member of the Oregon House of
Representatives
term_start = 1965
term_end = 1978
predecessor =
successor =
constituency = Crook, Deschutes, and Jefferson counties 1965-72; Deschutes and Klamath counties 1973-78
office2 =
term_start2 =
term_end2 =
predecessor2 =
successor2 =
constituency2 =
office3 =
term_start3 =
term_end3 =
predecessor3 =
successor3 =
party = Republican
date of birth = September 1 1911
place of birth= Berkley, California
date of death = 1984
place of death= Redmond, Oregon
spouse = Elizabeth ("Becky") Johnson
profession = Plywood Manufacturer
religion =
footnotes =

Samuel S. "Sam" Johnson (1911-1984) was an American businessman, legislator, and philanthropist in the state of Oregon. He owned saw mills and large tacks of timber land near the Metolius River, Black Butte, and Sisters, Oregon. He served seven terms in the Oregon House of Representatives; and along with his wife, founded the Samuel S. Johnson Foundation.

Early life

Johnson was born on 1 September 1911, in Berkeley, California. He was named after his grandfather, a sawmill owner from Minnesota. His father, Samuel Orie Johnson was a timber broker in California. Around 1903, his father moved to Central Oregon and began acquiring timber land in the area. His father bought what is now Black Butte Ranch, the Indian Ford area near Sisters, most of Green Ridge north of Black Butte, and the Wurzweiller Ranch, which included Camp Sherman and the headwaters of the Metolius River. [http://www.sisterscountryhistoricalsociety.org/People/SamJohnson.htm Interview with Elizabeth H. Johnson] (transcribed from tape by Maret Pajutee), Sisters Watershed History Fest, Sisters Country Historical Society, 2006.]

After graduating from the University of California at Berkley’s School of Forestry in 1934, Johnson returned to Central Oregon to act as his father’s agent, buying and selling timber and land. During that time, Johnson lived in the old Sisters Hotel. In 1935, his father sold the 160 acres that included the Metolious headwaters to him for one dollar. In the early 1930’s, the Johnsons opened a saw mill in Sisters in partnership with Bert Peterson, the first of six Central Oregon mills the Johnson family owned over the years."History of Deschutes County in Oregon", Deschutes County Historical Society, Bend, Oregon: 1985, pp. 300-2.]

During the World War II, Johnson served in the Army Corps of Engineers. As an Army Captain, Johnson ran the Corps of Engineers' procurement office in Portland, Oregon that bought lumber and wood products from around Oregon and shipped them from the port of Astoria to Army engineer and Navy Seabee units in the Pacific. While serving in Portland, Captain Johnson met his future wife Elizabeth (known as Becky). She was a Navy recruiter for the Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service (commonly know as WAVES). They married in 1944. [http://www.lclark.edu/dept/chron/facmourneds07.html "Former Faculty, Staff, Friends of College Mourned"] , Chronicle, Lewis and Clark College, Portland, Oregon, Summer 2007.]

Businessman

After the war, the Johnsons opened a new saw mill in Redmond, Oregon. The mill had direct access to the railroad so the operation could be greatly expanded. In 1948, Johnson bought his father's Oregon timber holdings and mills, and opened his own office in Sisters. Johnson was successful at negotiating timber sale contracts with the United States Forest Service. As a result, his operations continued uninterrupted while many of Central Oregon's saw mills were closing.

In 1967, Johnson sold his Jefferson Plywood Company mill at Warm Springs to the Warm Springs tribal council for $1.34 million and provided additional plywood and veneer-making equipment to help the tribe establish Warm Springs Forest Products Industries. This new tribal business improved the economic conditions on the Warm Springs Reservation. [Binus, Joshus, [http://www.ohs.org/education/oregonhistory/historical_records/dspDocument.cfm?doc_ID=D3EC54FF-F85F-F35B-CBE8C55C8BC8F6EB "Warm Springs Reservation Mill"] , The Oregon History project, Oregon Historical Society, 2003.]

Public service

In 1965, Johnson was elected to a seat in the Oregon House of Representatives, and was re-elected six more times, serving continuously through the 1977 legislative session. He represented Crook, Deschutes and Jefferson counties from 1965 to 1972, and after re-districting in 1973, he represented Deschutes and Klamath counties. [ [http://arcweb.sos.state.or.us/legislative/histleg/legislatorintroduction/intro.htm "Oregon Legislative Assembly Legislators and Staff 1841-2005"] , Oregon State Archives (Tim Backer, Reference Archivist), Oregon Secretary of State, February 2006.] While he was a conservative Republican, he was also a well know champion of progressive government and a mentor to legislators of both parties. [http://www.earlblumenauer.com/cgi-bin/display.cgi?page=ORleaders "Showcasing the Faces of Oregon Leadership – Sam Johnson"] , Earl Blumenauer for Oregon web-site, 2007.] He retired from the legislature undefeated in 1978, and ran for mayor of Redmond. He was elected for a two year term in 1979, and was re-elected in 1981 and 1983, [Clark, Keith, "Redmond Where the Desert Blooms", Oregon Historical Society Press, Redmond, Oregon: 1985.] serving in that position until his death in June 1984.

Legacy

.

Perhaps Sam Johnson's greatest legacy was preserving the headwaters of the Metolius River, also known as Metolius Springs. The headwaters are just north of Black Butte, and are unusual because the Metolius River emerges from an underground volcanic lava tubes as a full flowing river. For many years, the Johnsons allowed public access to the scenic headwaters viewing area. The Johnsons gave the Metolius Springs viewing site to the United States Forest Service in 1965. Today, the area is managed as a Forest Service park.

References

External links

* [http://arcweb.sos.state.or.us/ Oregon State Archives]
* [http://www.bluebook.state.or.us/ "Oregon Blue Book"]
* [http://www.ci.redmond.or.us/internet/index.php City of Redmond, Oregon]