Power of Attorney

     I, Dudley D. Johnson, appoint Wilmot H. Kidd III, Charles N. Edgerton and
Marlene A. Krumholz, signing singly, attorney-in-fact to:

     (1) Execute on my behalf and in my capacity as a director and/or an officer
         of Central Securities Corporation, a Delaware corporation (the
         "Company"), Forms 3, 4 and 5 (the "Form" or "Forms") in accordance with
         Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the "Act") and
         the rules thereunder; and

     (2) Perform any and all acts on my behalf which may be necessary or
         desirable to complete and execute any Form and timely file such Form
         with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission and any stock
         exchange or similar authority; and

     (3) Take any other action in connection with the foregoing which, in the
         opinion of such attorney-in-fact, may be of benefit to, in the best
         interest of, or legally required by me, it being understood that the
         documents executed by such attorney-in-fact on my behalf pursuant to
         this Power of Attorney shall be in such form and shall contain such
         terms and conditions as such attorney-in-fact may approve in his
         discretion.

     I grant to each such attorney-in-fact full power and authority to do and
perform any act necessary or proper to be done in the exercise of any of the
rights and powers herein granted, as fully to all intents and purposes as I
might or could do if personally present. I ratify and confirm all that such
attorney-in-fact shall lawfully do by the rights and powers granted by this
Power of Attorney. Each attorney-in-fact shall have full power of substitution
or revocation.

     I acknowledge that the attorneys-in-fact, in serving in such capacity at my
request, are not assuming, nor is the Company assuming, any of my
responsibilities to comply with Section 16 of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934.

     This Power of Attorney shall remain in full force and effect until I am no
longer required to file the Forms with respect to my holdings of and
transactions in securities issued by the Company, unless I earlier revoke it in
a signed writing delivered to the Office of the Secretary of the Company for
distribution to the foregoing attorneys-in-fact.

     IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned has caused this Power of Attorney to be
executed as of this 23rd day of April 2003.



                                      /s/ Dudley D. Johnson
                                   -----------------------------
                                            [Name]