William G. Downs III, 84, died Thursday, October 25 at his daughter’s home in Mansfield, Massachusetts.
Born in Evansville, Indiana, he completed high school in Greenwich, Connecticut and attended college at the University of Connecticut. He served in the Coast Guard during World War II. He and his wife, Barbara, managed a farm in Cowdersport, Pennsylvania, where he learned to love farming and he later received his Master’s degree in agronomy from Pennsylvania State University.
For nearly 30 years, he managed Penn State University’s Southwestern Field Research Laboratory, in Rector, Pennsylvania field testing new varieties of corn, vegetables, and flowers. He organized the annual Chamber of Commerce corn roasts and he was a great supporter of local theater, both on stage and off.
In retirement, he and Barbara moved to Mashpee, MA, where he enjoyed golf, bridge, and tending his home garden.
He was the husband of the late Barbara W. Downs, father of the late William Downs IV, and leaves 4 surviving daughters, Katherine Downs of Washington, DC; Mary Downs of Silver Spring, MD; Martha Downs of Mansfield, MA; and Barbara Tyree of Lebanon, PA. He also leaves a grandson, Luca Medina-Downs of Silver Spring, MD.
A memorial service will be held a later date. In lieu of flowers, please make donations in his name to The Arboretum at Penn State, The Pennsylvania State University, 336 Forest Resources Building, University Park PA 16802-3604