Barclay G. Johnson

1934 - 2018

Barclay Johnson lived as a literary artist and a teacher. Barclay died peacefully on July 3, 2018 after some years of dementia and with excellent care at the Broadmead retirement community in Cockeysville, MD. Barclay was fortunate to have his son, Matthew, daughter-in-law, Sarah, and grandchildren, Clay and Harper, living nearby. He also had visits from his son, Paul, his daughter-in-law, Susan, and his granddaughter, Tess. Barclay had a knack for amicable divorce. He died with fondness in the hearts of his first wife, Sabra, and his second wife, Patricia. Each marriage lasted 9 years. His second marriage also brought him joy with the Bradley children from Patricia's first marriage: Chris, Tim, Marion, and Ruth. He was born Barclay Giddings Johnson Jr. on July 21, 1934. He grew up in Plainfield, NJ with his younger sisters now, Alden Byrholdt and Susan J Moseley. He proudly loved his practical father, a Navy veteran of WWII, and his very funny mother, the former Susie Milne Laing. With a fascination for military history that helped him relate to his father, spiritually he leaned toward his mother. Like his father, Barclay attended The Taft School. He graduated with the class of '53 after putting on a theatrical roast of the faculty. Barclay studied literature at Middlebury College where he met Sabra and graduated with the class of '57 after writing and producing two musical comedies. As a 1st Lieutenant of the U.S. Army Armored Corps in '58, Barclay led a squadron of tanks. He would have been honored to see combat, and he presumed that he would have been killed. Instead, Barclay and many of his peers lived long and with survivor's guilt. During postgraduate study at Trinity, he and his wife, Sabra, along with her brother, Tony, started a franchise location of King of Pizza. Barclay liked to tell of getting caught by his students as they walked by the restaurant and saw him tossing pizza dough. Barclay took great pride in teaching and coaching at The Taft School. He started in '61 teaching English and coaching football and track. He led the school's Independent Learning Programs and served as Dean of Faculty. He finished as Faculty Emeritus. A long time friend, peer, and headmaster, Lance Odden recalled, "For nearly 40 years Barclay Johnson was Taft's beloved teacher, coach and school master. Great characters make great schools and Barclay Johnson stood at the foremost of that group of inspirational leaders touching the lives of thousands of Taft students". Women were much more than a physical attraction for Barclay. He truly loved the company of women. Barclay lived with only one profound sadness. In 1972 his 9-year-old son, Clay, was hit by a car and killed. Just two years ago, Barclay rallied for a trip to see his dear and dying best friend, Chip Spencer. Recently, Barclay expressed gratitude for the good fortune in his life. He said that his sons were 'at the center' of his mind. With the expectation of dying soon Barclay offered, "The World has been good to me". A Celebration of Barclay's life will take place at The Taft School in Watertown, CT on Saturday October 20, 2018 during halftime of the 3 pm football game and adjacent to the field.