Andrew N. Johnson’s service to Minneapolis’s night law schools and William Mitchell College of Law spanned more than 60 years. Born on a farm in Wisconsin, he worked his way through Northwestern University in Chicago. He graduated with honors from that university’s law school in 1915.
After graduation Johnson entered private practice in Minneapolis, and in 1917 he began teaching contracts at Minnesota’s Northwestern College of Law. Johnson remained connected to the Northwestern, Minneapolis, and Minneapolis-Minnesota colleges as teacher, trustee, and dean for decades. In 1941, he participated in the merger of Minneapolis College of Law and Minnesota College of Law. Fifteen years later he was one of six who drafted the merger agreement between Minneapolis-Minnesota College of Law and St. Paul College of Law that formed William Mitchell College of Law. He was the first president of the new institution’s board of trustees.
After stepping down as board president in 1970, Johnson remained a trustee for the next 10 years. He was, for many years, Danish consul for Minnesota and the surrounding area, and was decorated by the governments of Denmark and Sweden for his service to those countries.