Dr. J.H. Johnson 1948-1954
Joseph Harker Johnson was born in Dunmanway, County Cork, Ireland on June 19th, 1899 ("Joseph Harker Johnson," n.d.). He attended the Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario, and graduated in 1925 ("Joseph Harker Johnson," n.d.). While he was a student, Johnson was a reporter for the Varsity and a member of the Psi Omega Fraternity ("Joseph Harker Johnson," n.d.). He had a general practice between the years of 1925-1930 (Joseph Harker Johnson, D.D.S., n.d.). He was than appointed as a Demonstrator at the Faculty of Dentistry in 1930, and by 1945, he became Professor of Dental Surgery and Head of the Department (Joseph Harker Johnson, D.D.S., n.d.). In 1948, Johnson became a member of the University Senate (Joseph Harker Johnson, D.D.S., n.d.).
Johnson was a very accomplished professional and held many esteemed positions. He has presented papers to local societies in Ontario and most of the United States (Joseph Harker Johnson, D.D.S., n.d.). He was secretary of the Academy of Dentistry from 1946-1947, and became its President from 1948-1949 (Joseph Harker Johnson, D.D.S., n.d.). He was Chairman of the Fellowship Committee from 1946-1947, member of the Ontario Society of Dental Oral Surgeons, Chairman of the Winter Clinic, and Academy of Dentistry from 1947-1948 (Joseph Harker Johnson, D.D.S., n.d.).
During his appointment as librarian from 1948 to 1954, he accomplished many milestones for the library, including working with the central library system to better manage journals subscriptions, forming and chairing a library committee to discuss operations, arranging donations of books from the University of McGill, Northwestern University, Pennsylvania University, and New York State University (RCDS. 1952). He was also responsible for expanding the collection of the Dental Museum by collecting specimens from various places around Canada and the United States (RCDS. 1952). He begun the collection of biographies of prominent dentists in Canada and by the end of his appointment the library clerks were able to complete 300 biographies of Canadian dentists. He hired the first full-time professional librarian, Miss Phyllis Smith, in 1954 (RCDS, 1954).
Dr. Johnson was the last professor to be appointed librarian. He was instrumental in the hiring of the first professional librarian on a full-time basis to oversee the library administration and collections.
References
Royal College of Dental Surgeons. (1952). Annual announcement of the Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario, Canada, 1952.
Royal College of Dental Surgeons. (1954). Annual announcement of the Royal College of Dental Surgeons of Ontario, Canada, 1954.
University of Toronto Dentistry Library. (n.d.). Joseph Harker Johnson. Unpublished manuscript, Faculty of Dentistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.
University of Toronto Dentistry Library. (n.d.). Joseph Harker Johnson, D.D.S. Unpublished manuscript, Faculty of Dentistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.