William Field Herman, 95, of Georgetown, Maine, died peacefully on Sunday, March 6, 2016, in Bath, Maine.

Bill was born in Boston on November 5, 1920, to Dr. Edwards W. and Gladys Field Herman of Lincoln, Mass. He grew up in Lincoln, went to Concord High School and graduated from M.I.T. in the class of 1942. His major technical interests were optics and photography. He volunteered into the Naval Reserve, specializing in ordinance and fire control equipment at the Charlestown Navy Yard. He retired as a lieutenant commander at the end of the war.

In 1943 Bill married Emily L. Rand. In 1946, when he took a job at the American Optical Company, they moved to Sturbridge, Mass., where they lived for the next ten years. During this time they had four children, Louise, Lucy, Emily and Geoffrey. In 1956 the family moved to Hingham, Mass. and later Lincoln, and Bill worked at Polaroid Corporation in Cambridge and Waltham, Mass.

In 1967, Bill and Emily purchased an old farm property in Georgetown with water frontage on Robinhood Cove. They enjoyed the land as a camp until his retirement in 1982, when they built a year-round house there and established what he called his salt-water farm. He took great pleasure in growing vegetables, planting fruit trees, cutting and splitting firewood, tending his blueberries (and keeping careful records of firewood burned and blueberries picked). He became active in town affairs, serving at different times as town meeting moderator, selectman, and member of various committees. Throughout his retirement, and indeed throughout his life, Bill always made time for sailing and exploring the coast, puzzle-making and painting, horseshoes and harmonica. He is survived by Emily, his wife of almost 73 years, and his four children: Louise Herman of Jamaica Plain, Mass., Lucy Kirshner and her husband Kenneth Pauley, of Acton, Mass., Emily Herman and her husband David Polito, of Georgetown, and Geoffrey Herman and his wife Susan Herman, of Mt. Vernon, Maine. He also left ten grandchildren and six greatgrandchildren. The family would like to thank the staff of HillHouse, of Bath, for making Bill’s last fifteen months so comfortable and happy.

A celebration of Bill’s life will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Georgetown Historical Society, the Georgetown Community Center, the Georgetown Volunteer Fire Department, or HillHouse Inc. of Bath, Maine.

Arrangements are under the care of Direct Cremation of Maine, 182 Waldo Ave, Belfast. Memories and condolences may be shared at www.directcremationofmaine.com.


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