author
Harold Stanley Johnson
Best known for compiling an early World War I record of the famed Rainbow Division, this little-known writer left behind a work that is still useful to military historians and family researchers. His book captures the scale, structure, and human detail of a division drawn from National Guard units across the United States.
1 Audiobook
Roster of the Rainbow division (Forty-Second) Major General Wm. A. Mann commanding
by Harold Stanley Johnson
About the author
Harold Stanley Johnson is remembered for Roster of the Rainbow Division (Forty-Second) Major General Wm. A. Mann commanding, a 1917 volume focused on the 42nd Infantry Division of the American Expeditionary Forces. The book has remained in circulation through archives and digital editions, which is why his name still appears in library and public-domain catalogs today.
The surviving record suggests that he was not just writing about the division from a distance. The book identifies him as Lieutenant Harold Stanley Johnson of the 151st Field Artillery (1st Minnesota), giving his work the feel of a firsthand military compilation rather than a later historical summary.
Very little biographical information about his wider life was readily confirmed from reliable public sources, so most attention stays on this one substantial contribution. Even so, that single book has had lasting value: it preserves names, units, and organization details that continue to matter to readers interested in World War I history, genealogy, and the story of the Rainbow Division.