George D. Johnson

George Donald Johnson passed away on Friday, January 30, 2026. He was an extraordinary man of diverse interests, talents, and accomplishments and truly embodied his belief in taking action to make his community, and the world, better. George was a life-long advocate and leader in both national and local environmental activities and was a recognized expert in ecological preservation and prairie restoration. His projects included the High Point Conservation Area in McHenry County and the Mary Sackett Prairie Preserve near Durand, IL. George also documented and lectured on the history and significance of the Wisconsin Pearl Rush, was a pioneer of the 1960's Rails-to-Trails movement, and his many decades of attentive field work generated an extensive and well documented collection of Native American artifacts he donated to the McHenry County Historical Museum and the Illinois Archeological Survey. For these and other works George was recognized with the Illinois Archaeology Survey Public Service Award, the Council of Wisconsin Writer's Kay Levin Award for Short Nonfiction, the George and Barbara Fell Award from the Natural Land Institute, the Force of Nature Award from the Chicago Wilderness Alliance, and numerous other honors. But these were always secondary to the enormous group of friends, colleagues and correspondents with whom George maintained enduring relationships.

George was born on May 15, 1925 to George Arthur and Caroline Johnson in Rockford, Illinois. He grew up on a farm in Durand, Illinois with his younger brother, Richard and was Senior Class President for his high school. His education at the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, was interrupted by the bombing of Pearl Harbor. He joined the Navy and was aboard the battleship USS Wisconsin on her maiden cruise which delivered him to Ulithi Atoll in the South Pacific where he served through the war’s end as Quartermaster aboard the USS Sepulga. He returned to the University of Illinois where, in chemistry class, he met Marilyn Howard. He graduated from the College of Agriculture with a specialty in Agronomy and a minor in Agriculture Economics. George and Marilyn married shortly after.

George was a gifted writer. His journalism career grew from stories written first for the office of the County Agricultural Agent to becoming a staff writer for various magazines such as Successful Farming and eventually to owning his own agricultural advertising agency, Inter-Ag Inc., of Chicago. George and Marilyn raised three children in Wheaton, Illinois. In later years George and Marilyn moved to Harvard, Illinois and eventually to Madison, Wisconsin in 2006. During retirement George spent several years as an agricultural consultant and manager of several farms. Even at age 100 George was a fixture at Capitol Square markets and demonstrations where he spoke his mind forcefully and carried a sign that got him on national TV news.

George is survived by his daughter, Janis Johnson Packer and spouse, Terrence Packer of Arroyo Grande, California; his son, Mark Howard Jenssen, spouse Martha O'Brien and grandchildren Lily and Owen Jenssen of Madison, Wisconsin; his daughter-in-law Janice Koontz Johnson and granddaughter Kristen Johnson Forbes, spouse Isaac Forbes and great-grandchildren Dylan, Lucas and Chase Forbes all of Orono, Maine. George was preceded in death by his wife of sixty-five years, Marilyn Aileen Johnson, his son, Dr. Bruce Richard Johnson and grandson Brian Richard Johnson as well as his parents and brother. Private family services will be held.

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