Joseph Johnson was born in 1922 in Chicago. His parents eventually moved to Downer Grove a few years later. He graduated from St Josephs parochial school and Downers Grove High School. He was a National Honor Society Member and a member the America Technical Society. He was extremely involved in St Joseph’s church.
He was tragically killed piloting aP-47D Thunderbolt #43-25372 in a mid-air collision and crash ten miles north of Harding Field, near Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He is buried at St Mary’s Cemetery in Evergreen Park, IL
His name is engraved on the plaque at Memorial Park in Downers Grove honoring local servicemen who never returned home from World War II.
