Sheldon & LaVerna Johnson

WASHINGTON COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY     (Washington County, Utah)

SHELDON B. JOHNSON

(optometrist)

BIOGRAPHY

Sheldon B. Johnson was born on April 27, 1926 in the town of Tropic, Utah. He moved to St. George at the age of fourteen.

Sheldon served as a staff sergeant in the U.S. Army during World War II.

Afterwards, he became a successful Doctor of Optometry and active member of the community in the St. George, Utah area.

Sheldon served for 42 consecutive years on the Washington County School Board. He led the creation of Millcreek High School, developed the first classroom unit for children with disabilities, and pioneered innovative school construction methods still in use today.

Sheldon married Leatrice Sproul in the St. George Temple. Together they raised five sons. Leatrice passed away on January 10, 1991 and was buried in Plot C_25_15_5 of the St. George City Cemetery.

Later, Sheldon married LaVerna Laub Bringhurst.

Sheldon bought a farm in St. George as a work project for his sons. He discovered petrified dinosaur tracks on the property and developed it into the St. George Dinosaur Discovery Site at Johnson Farm (aka Dinosaur Tracks Museum).

Sheldon passed away of acute leukemia on August 17, 2016, at his home in St. George. He is buried in the St. George City Cemetery.

Also see the documents referenced below.


FAMILY

Parents and Siblings:
    Joseph Hills Johnson
    Mabel Watson Jolley Johnson
        Mark Watson Johnson
        Mazel Kay Johnson
        Grant Douglas Johnson
        Metta Johnson
        Sheldon B. Johnson

(7/28/1891-1/9/1978)   (married 6/19/1912)
(5/31/1887-2/11/1964)
(6/12/1913-12/10/1998)   (married Hannah Shumway)
(8/13/1915-10/21/1973)   (married Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx)
(11/4/1918-5/3/1989)   (married Lorraine Mason)
(2/18/1923-11/7/2008)   (married Van Abbott George)
(4/27/1926-8/17/2016)   (married as shown below)

First Wife and Children:
    Leatrice Sproul Johnson
        Kerry Johnson
        Layne Johnson
        Kris Johnson
        Gale Johnson
        Brett Johnson


(11/4/1929-1/10/1991)   (married xx/xx/xxxx)
(xx/xx/xxxx-xx/xx/xxxx)   (married Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx)
(xx/xx/xxxx-xx/xx/xxxx)   (married Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx)
(xx/xx/xxxx-xx/xx/xxxx)   (married Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx)
(xx/xx/xxxx-xx/xx/xxxx)   (married Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx)
(xx/xx/xxxx-xx/xx/xxxx)   (married Xxxxxxx X. Xxxxxxxx)

Second Wife:
    LaVerna Laub Bringhurst Johnson  


(xx/xx/xxxx-xx/xx/xxxx)   (married xx/xx/xxxx)


PHOTOS

WCHS photos:
WCHS-03163   Photo of Dr. Sheldon B. & LaVerna B. Johnson at the Dinosaur Tracks Museum

Photos on the web:
L-R:   Aaron Jolley, Agnes Wilson (Sheldon's favorite teacher), and Sheldon B. Johnson
Sheldon & Leatrice Wedding Portrait
Sheldon & Leatrice Wedding Day at the St. George Temple


REFERENCES

Pioneer Ancestors
by Dr. Sheldon B. Johnson (as told to wife LaVerna Johnson, 1996)

My Early Recollections of Life in Tropic, Utah
by Dr. Sheldon B. Johnson (as told to LaVerna Johnson 1996)

Dr. Sheldon B. Johnson: Memories of World War II
as told to wife LaVerna, 1996

Sheldon Johnson Remembers the Dinosaur Site and the Farm History
Written August 2002 at the Request of Kerry Bate, Director of Community Development, State of Utah Division of Community and Economic Development

FamilySearch collection for Sheldon B. Johnson

Obituary of Sheldon Johnson

Find-A-Grave entry for Sheldon B Johnson

Find-A-Grave entry for Leatrice Sproul Johnson

Meet LaVerna Johnson of Dixie Poets Chapter
in the Utah State Poetry Society's official BLOG,   November 17,2015