IN MEMORIAM

Bill Smith, 88, Civic, Business

Leader In Cooperstown, Norwich

Ran Dealerships, Raced Cars, On Boards Of Colleges, Banks

COOPERSTOWN – Harry William (Bill) Smith Jr., civic leader, racing enthusiast, and an owner or partner in Ford dealerships in Cooperstown, Norwich and Burlington, Vt., died on Aug. 10, 2016, at his home in Cooperstown. He was 88.

He was born Oct. 22, 1927, in Utica, and raised in Richfield Springs and Cooperstown. He was the son of Evelyn Watley Wheeler of Cooperstown and Harry William Smith of Minneapolis, Minn.  He was an Eagle Scout and graduated from Richfield Springs High School.

He earned a B.S. in 1945 from Union College through the Navy V-12 Program and studied business at Syracuse University. His Richfield Springs science teacher, Dr. Brandt, involved his class in various eye-opening scientific experiments, including making and detonating explosive devices, igniting his lifelong love of pyrotechnics, engineering and mechanization, and instilling an appetite for challenge and excitement.