From NKAA, Notable Kentucky African Americans Database (main entry)

Johnson, Lyman T. [Johnson v. Board of Trustees]

(born: 1906  -  died: 1997) 

A teacher and assistant principal at Louisville schools, Lyman T. Johnson was a civil rights activist who fought for equal pay for African American teachers. He was head of the Louisville NAACP. His lawsuit desegregated the University of Kentucky (UK) in 1949. To commemorate the occasion, a historical marker was placed in front of Frazee Hall near the Student Center on the UK campus. Brother-in-law to Thomas F. Blue, Johnson was born in Columbia, TN, moving to Louisville in 1930 at the request of his sister, Cornelia Johnson Blue. He was a graduate of Knoxville Academy, Virginia Union College [now Virginia Union University], and the University of Michigan. The personal papers of Lyman T. Johnson are available at the University of Louisville Library. For more see The Rest of the Dream, by W. Hall.


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Cite This NKAA Entry:

“Johnson, Lyman T. [Johnson v. Board of Trustees],” Notable Kentucky African Americans Database, accessed July 27, 2024, https://nkaa.uky.edu/nkaa/index.php/items/show/408.

Last modified: 2023-06-13 17:48:53