Scope and Contents

The collection consists of a book, artifacts, and an oral history conducted with Sam Johnson.

Biographical / Historical

Colonel Samuel Robert Johnson was born October 11, 1930, in San Antonio, Texas. He grew up in Dallas and graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School in 1947. He graduated from Southern Methodist University in 1951, earning a bachelor's degree in business administration.

Colonel Johnson had a 29-year career in the United States Air Force, where he served as director of the Air Force Fighter Weapons School and flew the F-100 Super Sabre with the Air Force Thunderbirds precision flying demonstration team. He commanded the 31st Tactical Fighter Wing at Homestead AFB, Florida, and an air division at Holloman AFB, New Mexico. He was a combat veteran of both the Korean and Vietnam Wars as a fighter pilot. On April 16, 1966, while flying his 25th combat mission in Vietnam, he was shot down over North Vietnam. He was a prisoner of war for nearly seven years, including 42 months in solitary confinement. He was released on February 12, 1973, during Operation Homecoming.

After his military service, Colonel Johnson entered politics. He was elected to the Texas House of Representatives in 1984 and was re-elected three times, serving a total of seven years in the state legislature. He then served as the U.S. representative for Texas's 3rd congressional district in Congress from 1991 to 2019. Colonel Johnson died May 27, 2020 in Plano, Texas.