In 1914 Johns was appointed a member of the State Hansard staff, of which he subsequently became the leader. In 1920 Johns published a small collection of patriotic verses, In Remembrance, which was followed two years later by A Journalist's Jottings, a collection of essays dealing mostly with well-known Australians. Johns also edited the South Australian Freemason 1920–25.
Johns died at Adelaide aged 64. He was survived by a daughter. Under his will the sum of £1500 was left to the University of Adelaide to found "The Fred Johns Scholarship for Biography". Johns' An Australian Biographical Dictionary was not quite finished at the time of his death. It was completed by his friend B. S. Roach and published by his daughter in 1934, two years after his death. It contains about 3000 short biographies of eminent Australians. His work is marked by great conscientiousness and care, and as a general rule is remarkably accurate.
Members of Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander and Maori communities are advised that this catalogue contains names and images of deceased people. All users of the catalogue should also be aware that certain words, terms or descriptions may be culturally sensitive and may be considered inappropriate today, but may have reflected the author's/creator's attitude or that of the period in which they were written.