William Edward Johnson

"I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith"

William Edward Johnson, “Edward” age 87, of Clayton, NC, went home to be with his Lord and Savior on Wednesday, June 10, 2026.

Born in Clayton, NC on May 21, 1939, he was a son to the late Madison M. Johnson and Bessie L. Sherrod Johnson.

Edward grew up in Clayton, where he attended Clayton schools and worked on the farm with his parents. He married the love of his life, Rebecca Caprell, at age 19 on November 27, 1959. In the 1980s Edward started his own residential building company, William Johnson Builders, where he built a lot of homes in the Johnston and Wake County areas. Edward retired his business in the early 2000s.

In 2007, which started as a hobby, he had a spot at Harper's Flea Market that he maintained for 10 years where he sold used furniture and whatnots.

In the last few years, you could find him at Bojangles for breakfast every morning. On many nice days he would sit on the front porch enjoying the birds, squirrels, and an occasional thunderstorm. In Edward’s earlier years, he enjoyed grilling a pig for family and friends, fishing at the river in Swansboro or down at Santee Cooper and raising cows and chickens.

In addition to his parents, Edward is preceded in death by his grandsons, William (Clay) Johnson and Paul C Houghton III; his siblings, Junior Johnson, James Johnson, Spencer Johnson, Ralph Johnson, Cornelia Harris, Iona Lane, and Maybelle Spence.

He is survived by his loving wife of 67 years, Rebecca Johnson; son, Frank Johnson (Genean) of Kenly; daughters, Tammy Houghton (Paul) and Amanda Johnson (James Stancil) both of Clayton; grandchildren, Ryan Johnson (Stacie), Derek Johnson, Aaron Houghton (Bridget), Jonathan Tew (Jamie) Thomas Guadalupe-Johnson, and Adalene Stancil; and

great grandchildren, Aidan Johnson and Oliver Tew.

A Celebration of Life will be held at 3:00pm on Saturday, June 20, 2026.

For location details please reach out to Amanda Johnson at 919-320-6441 by call or text.

"He who works with his hands is a laborer. He who works with his hands and head is a craftsman. He who works with his hands and his head and his heart is an artist" - St Francis of Assisi