Kermit Peter Johnson was born March 31, 1919. He was one of nine children born to John and Christine Johnson, who farmed near Stanchfield, Minnesota. Johnson's paternal grandparents came to the United States from Sweden in 1867 and homesteaded the farm which was located near Rush Point. Johnson attended school at Grandy, Minnesota until 1932. He worked for his father on the family farm until 1939. He moved to Minneapolis, and until April 1941 he worked for an electrician doing motor repair work and for Jacobs Wind Electric Company, a Minneapolis firm that manufactured wind chargers.
Johnson served as a medic while in the army, performing various duties in a combat clearing station, including giving emergency medical treatment and preparing casualties for evacuation. He entered active service at Fort Snelling on April 29, 1941, and in May was shipped to Camp Claiborne, Louisiana where he was assigned to Company B of the 136th Medical Regiment, 34th Infantry Division. The 34th Division was initially made up largely of national guardsmen from Minnesota, Iowa, and North and South Dakota. In January and February 1942 Johnson was stationed at Fort Dix, New Jersey. On March 2, 1942 he arrived in Northern Ireland, where he remained until December 1942. He saw combat service in North Africa (January-September 1943) and in Italy (September 1943-March 1945). Johnson left Italy for a furlough in the United States in March 1945. The war in Europe ended during his furlough (May 8, 1945), and on May 18, 1945 he was honorably discharged at Fort Snelling as a member of Company D of the 109th Medical Battalion. Later in life (1990s) Johnson made his home at North Branch, Minnesota.
Biographical information was taken from materials in the collection and from Johnson's book Letters Home.
From the guide to the Kermit P. Johnson Papers., 1940-1994 (bulk 1941-1945)., (Minnesota Historical Society)
