Johnson, Jr., Dr. George W.
Class of 1945Born April 6, 1926 graduated from New Hanover High School 1945.
Johnson was First Lieutenant with the U.S. Army in the South Pacific during World War II receiving the Army Commendation Medal. He graduated from Chapel Hill with a B.S. degree receiving a pre-medical certificate. Johnson joined the Chapel Hill faculty as a full professor and was named Roscoe B.G. Cowper Distinguished Professor. During his tenure, he founded the medical school’s division of vascular surgery. The operating rooms in the UNC Hospitals’ Ambulatory Care Center were named for him. In 1995 the university established the George Johnson, Jr. Distinguished Professorship Vascular Surgery in his honor.
He was a leader in establishing ambulance standards. The state’s George Johnson Award for Emergency Medical Services was named for him.
Recipient of the Order of the Long Leaf Pine in 2006 for his service.
Accolades: NC George Johnson Award for Emergency Medical Services named for him, Army Commendation Medal, named Roscoe VB.G. Cowper Distinguished Professor, UNC Hospitals' Ambulatory Care center named for him.