Henry Johnson (railway executive)

Sir

Henry Cecil Johnson

KBE

Born| (1906-09-11)11 September 1906

Lavendon, Buckinghamshire, England

Died| 13 March 1988(1988-03-13) (aged 81)

Great Missenden, Buckinghamshire, England

Nationality| British
Education| Bedford Modern School
Known for| Chairman of British Rail

Sir Henry Cecil Johnson KBE (11 September 1906 – 13 March 1988), was Chairman of British Rail.[1] Johnson astutely began the sale and development of surplus railway land and established the British Rail Property Board in 1970.[1] The finances of British Railways improved under Johnson's chairmanship and when he left in 1971, British Rail had a surplus of £9.7 million.[1] Sir Peter Parker, a later Chairman, ‘admired his honesty and courage', describing him as ‘straight as a gun barrel’.[1]

## Early life

[edit]

Henry Cecil Johnson was born in Lavendon, Buckinghamshire on 11 September 1906, the son of William Longland and Alice Mary Johnson of Lavendon, Buckinghamshire.[1] He was educated at Bedford Modern School.[2]

## Career

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Johnson joined the London and North Eastern Railway (LNER) as a traffic apprentice in 1923.[1][3] After various posts in the Operating Department of LNER, Johnson was appointed Assistant Superintendent of Southern Area, LNER, in 1942.[1] In 1955 he became Chief Operating Superintendent of the Eastern Region and later General Manager in 1958.[1]

In 1962, Johnson became General Manager of the London Midland Region, and was also its Chairman between 1963 and 1967.[1] He ‘took charge of the electrification of the Euston to Manchester and Liverpool line, the first main-line electrification, completed in 1966’.[1][4] Johnson became Vice-Chairman of the British Railways Board in 1967 and was appointed its Chairman in 1968, a position he held until 1971.[1]

The finances of British Railways improved under Johnson's chairmanship and when he left in 1971, British Rail had a surplus of £9.7 million.[1] Although this was largely as a result of the Transport Act 1968, when grants were made to unprofitable passenger services providing a public service, Johnson astutely began the development of surplus railway land and established the British Rail Property Board in 1970.[1] In the 1970s British Railways earned £20 million a year from land sales.[1]

After British Railways, Johnson became Chairman of MEPC (1971–76) and held board positions at Lloyds Bank, the Trident Life Assurance Company and Imperial Life of Canada.[1]

## Awards and honours

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Johnson was appointed CBE in 1962, made Knight Bachelor in 1968 and KBE in 1972.[1]

## Personal life

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Always known as Bill Johnson, ‘he had a friendly and relaxed manner, but he was shrewd, a good listener, and expert at delegating’.[1][3] Sir Peter Parker, a later Chairman, ‘admired his honesty and courage', describing him as ‘straight as a gun barrel.[1] He was ‘extremely popular with the railway employees, who admired him as [then being] the only railwayman to have started at the bottom and worked his way up through the ranks to become Chairman of British Railways’.[1]

Johnson was a member of the Marylebone Cricket Club and The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews.[1] The BBC's Your Paintings Series has a portrait of Johnson.[5] In 1932 he married Evelyn Mary Morton; they had two daughters.[1] He died on 13 March 1988 in Great Missenden, Buckinghamshire.[1]

## References

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1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v "Johnson, Sir Henry (Cecil), (11 Sept. 1906–13 March 1988), Chairman: MEPC Ltd, 1971–76; Development and Property Associates Ltd, since 1984". WHO'S WHO & WHO WAS WHO. 2007. doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U165819. ISBN 978-0-19-954089-1.
2. ^ Bedford Modern School of the Black And Red, Andrew Underwood 1981
3. ^ a b "Managers, board members, etc (second file)". steamindex.com. Johnson, Sir Henry Cecil [Bill]. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
4. ^ Your New Railway, LONDON MIDLAND ELECTRIFICATION, April 1966, p. 7
5. ^ "Art UK - Sir Henry Johnson, Chairman, British Railways Board (1968–1971)". Art UK. Retrieved 5 July 2015.

## External links

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* Sir Henry Johnson at Art UK

Business positions

Preceded by

Sir Stanley Raymond

|  Chairman of the
British Railways Board
1967–1971  | Succeeded by

Sir Richard Marsh

Business positions
Preceded by

|  Chairman of the
MEPC plc
1971–76  | Succeeded by