John Charles Johnson, 95, formerly of Winter Street Ext., in Claremont, died Thursday afternoon, May 14, 2009 at the Elm Wood Nursing Home.

He was born in Claremont, NH on March 27, 1914 the son of Halvard and Pauline (Pedersen) Johnson and resided in Claremont most of his life except for twenty years in Florida.

He received his education, eight years in the public schools of Claremont, six of those years in one of the last of the one room schools, (Barttlet School). He later attended Worcester Boy’s Trade School in Worcester, MA serving apprenticeship and working at the W.M. Steel Co., as a machinist.

In 1939 he became an employee of Cone Automatic Machine Co. in Windsor, VT as a machinist, later transferred to Tool & Jig Room including special tooling.  As the war effort had peaked and was winding down, he established a lumber business with portable mills and later a stationery mill in West Claremont.  This operation covered a period of twenty years.  In 1962 he moved to West Palm Beach, Florida and became employed for Mal-Tool and Engineering Co.  In 1970 he moved to Ocala, FL and established his own Ocala Machine-Tool Co., working on mining machinery, dredging pumps and saw mills.  He sold this business in 1979 and retired.

He became a member of Hiram Lodge #9 F&AM in 1951.  In 1959 he was installed Worshipfull Master of Hiram Lodge and is currently the Most Senior Past Master of the Lodge.  He was a former member of the York-Rite Bodies Webb Chapter #6, Columbian Council #2, Sullivan Commandery #6.  He was made a Scottish Rite Mason, receiving the Thirty-Second Degree in May of 1953.  He has been a member of Bektash Temple of Shriners in Concord since 1955.

He was the widower of Hazel Evelyn (Rice) Johnson whom he married on November 17, 1934 and she died in 2001.  He was also pre-deceased by a son, Halvor Johnson in 1965 and two grandsons, Arnold “Spunky” Howland and Michael Johnson.

The surviving family includes one daughter, Joyce Searles of Spofford; two sons, Arnold A. Johnson of Claremont and Robert R. Johnson of Spofford; eight grandchildren; several great-grandchildren and several great-great-grandchildren; one sister, Irene J. St. Pierre of Claremont and nieces and nephews.

Friends may call at the Stringer Funeral Home, 146 Broad Street in Claremont on Monday evening from 6 to 8 PM.

Members of Hiram Lodge #9 F&AM will conduct services at the Funeral Home Monday evening at 6:30 PM.

Funeral Services will be held at the Funeral Home on Tuesday, May 19^th at One O’clock with Pastor, Priscilla Hull, officiating.

Interment will follow in the West Claremont Burying Grounds.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in his memory to Connecticut Valley Home Care/Hospice, 958 John Stark Highway, Newport, NH 03773-2609.