John Houston Barker, born in Chattanooga on June 17, 1933, was living on Amelia Island, Florida when he passed away Saturday, February 27, 2021, at the age of 87 at his home.
John was born in Chattanooga where he attended Baylor Academy and Chattanooga High School and he graduated from Tennessee Technical University. He later obtained a master’s degree in teaching and taught engineering at various schools early in his life. He was a Lieutenant Colonel in the Air Force and served in both the Korean and Vietnam Wars where he was a navigator and bombardier pilot on a B57 Canberra. In California, he worked in the missile silos on Vandenburg AFB.
He traveled extensively in Europe and the United States during his lifetime. John worked as an electrical engineer and draftsman when he retired from the military. He designed new machines for the companies he worked for, drafted, and built several houses and was talented in art, design, and building. He built three small experimental airplanes and enjoyed flying them as a hobby after he retired.
He was preceded in death by his parents David Houston and Katherine Sully Barker of Chattanooga, and his former wife, Nancy Ann Calfee Barker of Colorado.
He is survived by his sister Patricia Bailey of Raleigh, North Carolina, his loving children, John Houston Barker II of Elizabeth, Colorado, daughter, Karen Murphy of Cleveland, Tennessee and grandchildren Nicole Dalton, Adriel Wilcox, and Houston, Lindsey, and Marshall Barker, and great-grandchildren Zaby and Zofie Wilcox.
He will be greatly missed by his family and friends.