Johnson's Restaurant

Johnson’s Restaurant appeared in the Green Book from 1947-1957 and 1959-1967.  It was located at 1007 Chestnut Street in Wilmington, North Carolina. It was listed in the Green Book as “Johnson’s--1007 Chestnut St.” Green Book listings after 1956 did not include a category; prior to 1956, Johnson’s was listed in the “Restaurants” section. The restaurant was owned by Oscar Johnson. Despite continuing to appear in the Green Book, the restaurant closed after Johnson’s death in 1959.¹

World War I veteran Oscar T. Johnson operated Johnson’s Restaurant from the mid-1940’s until his death in 1959. Johnson was born in 1896 in Duplin County, North Carolina. At the time that Johnson registered for the draft in 1917 he was working as a hotel porter and Central Hotel in Wallace, NC, and lived in a home on Main Street his mother, Ida, who relied on him for support. He married Esther Johnson in Duplin County on February 14, 1918, then entered the United States Army.²

Johnson served as a Private First Class in Company A, 304th Battalion Quartermaster Corps during World War I, including a tour of duty in France. Following the war, Oscar moved with his wife and mother to Wilmington. Although he would one day operate his own restaurant, Oscar was enumerated in the census as a laborer at a shipyard in 1920 and as a Pullman Porter in 1930. His mother, Ida, worked as a cook for a private family until her death in 1943.³

After Esther’s death in 1934, Oscar remarried to school teacher Miraetta Johnson. Oscar is first enumerated in the census as a cook in 1940; city directory records indicate that he worked at Saffo’s Restaurant. By 1947 Johnson had opened his own restaurant, Johnson’s Restaurant. The restaurant was located at his home on 1007 Chestnut Street.⁴

Oscar T. Johnson continued to operate Johnson’s restaurant from his home until his death in 1959. 1007 Chestnut Street currently serves as a private residence.⁵

Essay by Brandie K. Ragghianti, 2019

Notes

1. Victor Green, 1947 Green Book, 66; Green, 1948 Green Book, 63; Green, 1949 Green Book, 57; Green, 1950 Green Book, 64; Green, 1951 Green Book, 55; Green, 1952 Green Book, 55; Green, 1953 Green Book, 55; Green, 1954 Green Book, 54; Green, 1955 Green Book, 54; Victor Green, 1956 Green Book, 47; Green, 1957 Green Book, 47; Green, 1959 Green Book, 52; Alma D. Green, 1960 Green Book, 74; Green, 1961 Green Book, 72; Green, 1962 Green Book, 75; Green, 1963-1964 Green Book, 59; Green, 1966-1967 Green Book, 59.
    
2. Oscar Thomas Johnson, May 9, 1959, Wilmington, New Hanover County, North Carolina Deaths, 1931-1994, North Carolina State Archives; Raleigh, North Carolina, accessed from www.familysearch.org; Hill’s 1947 Wilmington (New Hanover County, NC) City Directory, Hill Directory Company, Inc.: Richmond, VA, city directory, p. 178, classified directory, p. 500, street directory, p. 11; [tombstone image], Oscar Johnson, May 9, 1959, Wilmington, New Hanover County, North Carolina, accessed from https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/31062581; Oscar Johnson, Wallace, Duplin County, North Carolina, U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918, accessed from www.ancestry.com; 1920 United States Census, Ward 3, Wilmington, New Hanover County,, NC, digital images s.v. "Oscar Johnson,” accessed from www.ancestry.com; 1930 United States Census, Ward 3, Wilmington, New Hanover County,, NC, digital images s.v. "Oscar P. Johnson,” accessed from www.ancestry.com; 1940 United States Census, Ward 3, Wilmington, New Hanover County,, NC, digital images s.v. "Oscar Johnson,” accessed from www.ancestry.com; Hill’s 1943 Wilmington (New Hanover County, NC) City Directory, Hill Directory Company, Inc.: Richmond, VA, city directory, p. 360.
3. Oscar Thomas Johnson, May 9, 1959, Wilmington, New Hanover County, North Carolina Deaths, 1931-1994, North Carolina State Archives; Raleigh, North Carolina, accessed from www.familysearch.org; Hill’s 1947 Wilmington (New Hanover County, NC) City Directory, Hill Directory Company, Inc.: Richmond, VA, city directory, p. 178, classified directory, p. 500, street directory, p. 11;  Oscar Johnson and Esther Johnson, February 14, 1918, Duplin County, North Carolina, Marriage Records, 1741-2011, accessed from www.ancestry.com; Oscar Johnson, Wallace, Duplin County, North Carolina, U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918, accessed from www.ancestry.com; Oscar Johnson, Wallace, North Carolina, U.S., Army Transport Service, Passenger Lists, 1910-1939, accessed from www.ancestry.com.
4. Hill’s 1947 Wilmington (New Hanover County, NC) City Directory, Hill Directory Company, Inc.: Richmond, VA, city directory, p. 178, classified directory, p. 500, street directory, p. 11; Hill’s 1943 Wilmington (New Hanover County, NC) City Directory, Hill Directory Company, Inc.: Richmond, VA, city directory, p. 360; 1940 United States Census, Ward 3, Wilmington, New Hanover County, NC, digital images s.v. "Oscar Johnson,” accessed from www.ancestry.com; Esther Johnson, January 22, 1934, Wilmington, New Hanover County, North Carolina Death Certificates, 1909-1976, North Carolina State Archives; Raleigh, North Carolina, accessed from www.ancestry.com.
5. Oscar Thomas Johnson, May 9, 1959, Wilmington, New Hanover County, North Carolina Deaths, 1931-1994, North Carolina State Archives; Raleigh, North Carolina, accessed from www.familysearch.org; listing for 1007 Chestnut Street, Wilmington, NC, accessed September 27, 2019 from www.realtor.com.