Tommy Johnson

David Evans, Gayle Dean Wardlow, and the descendants 

of Johnson at the 2001 Unveiling Ceremony

A headstone for Tommy Johnson was commissioned by members of his family and was generously paid for by a grant from Bonnie Raitt in the spring of 2001. An elaborate unveiling ceremony was arranged by Vera Johnson Collins, the niece of Tommy Johnson, and was held in the town square of Crystal Springs, Mississippi on October 20th, 2001, presided over by the Mayor of Crystal Springs, Walter Riley. In attendance at the event were twelve members of Johnson’s family, Johnson’s biographer Dr. David Evans, and over two hundred spectators including a contingent from New Orleans Jazz and Heritage radio station WWOZ led by musician and musicologist John Sinclair.

This narrative about the headstone of Tommy Johnson was accepted for publication by the Association for Gravestone Studies Quarterly. Thus, we pulled it from the site and replaced with the most recent articles about his grave.