Thomas & Emmie Johnson
1929 - 1929 - 2020
Thomas Johnson graduated from Emory University in 1950 and from the Candler School of Theology in 1953. He served for 29 years as a pastor in the South Georgia Conference, nine years as district superintendent, and four years as superintendent of the Conference Center, Epworth by the Sea. As district superintendent, he guided the founding of a primarily African-American church in Albany. He was the founding pastor of White Bluff Methodist Church in Savannah and helped start five other churches and served on the Board of Missions. Johnson also served as pastor of Park Avenue United Methodist Church. It was during his tenure there that a new 1,000 seat sanctuary was built.
Johnson served on the board of directors of the Oxford Historical Shrine Society and president of the Oxford Historical Cemetery Foundation. It was in this later capacity that Johnson put together the register cemetery map and directory with the help of John Burson, Anderson Wright, JP Godfrey, the Graphic Information System of Newton County, and the City of Covington. As part of this project, the northeast section of the cemetery was scanned with radar in order to identify occupied graves as many of the grave markers had been destroyed.
Johnson’s wife, Emmie Carlton Johnson, daughter of Wilbur “Squire” Carlton Johnson, was a native of Oxford. She graduated from Wesleyan College in 1949 with a bachelor’s degree in English. She earned a master’s degree in religious education from Emory University’s Candler School of Theology in 1950. She then worked as the director of religious education at the Sam Jones Methodist Church in Cartersville, Georgia.
Emmie was a long-time pianist at Allen Memorial Church.
Tom and Emmie married in 1951 and had three children.
Johnson served on the board of directors of the Oxford Historical Shrine Society and president of the Oxford Historical Cemetery Foundation. It was in this later capacity that Johnson put together the register cemetery map and directory with the help of John Burson, Anderson Wright, JP Godfrey, the Graphic Information System of Newton County, and the City of Covington. As part of this project, the northeast section of the cemetery was scanned with radar in order to identify occupied graves as many of the grave markers had been destroyed.
Johnson’s wife, Emmie Carlton Johnson, daughter of Wilbur “Squire” Carlton Johnson, was a native of Oxford. She graduated from Wesleyan College in 1949 with a bachelor’s degree in English. She earned a master’s degree in religious education from Emory University’s Candler School of Theology in 1950. She then worked as the director of religious education at the Sam Jones Methodist Church in Cartersville, Georgia.
Emmie was a long-time pianist at Allen Memorial Church.
Tom and Emmie married in 1951 and had three children.