Harold E. Williams, Jr., 84
Dateline: Norton, MA
Harold E. “Bill” Williams, Jr., age 84, of Norton, passed away on Monday, September 14, 2015 at the Sturdy Memorial Hospital in Attleboro. He was the beloved husband of Marilyn A. (King) Williams.
Born in Attleboro, MA on March 19, 1931, he was a loving son of the late Harold E. Williams, Sr. and Hariett R. (Lincoln) McRae.
He attended Attleboro schools. As a youngster he was a boy tenor and along with his sister Phyllis, sang and danced for the USO during WWII.
Since childhood he was always interested in airplanes. He enjoyed building and flying model airplanes, and during WWII he was issued a gas ration card so he could continue to fly them. He flew radio control airplanes with the Lazy Loopers and in later years with his son Andy.
As a teenager he also became interested in stock cars and raced under the name of “Wild Bill” Williams at Lonsdale Race Track.
Bill worked at Metals & Controls in Attleboro before joining the United States Marine Corps, serving in the Korean Conflict. While in the service he learned to speak fluent Japanese and earned his G.E.D.
He married Marilyn on April 13,1955 and the couple recently celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary. Bill was still interested in airplanes and learned to fly on the G.I. Bill at Wilkins’ Airport in North Attleboro. He earned his private license, commercial and glider ratings Bill also learned to fly ultra light crafts and was a former glider tow pilot at Mansfield Airport.
After the Marine Corps, he worked as a mechanic, first at Achins Garage in North Attleboro and at Anson Motors in Attleboro. Mr. Williams then worked for 33 years as a field service technician for C.I. Hayes Inc. in Cranston. His company sent him to Russia 3 times, to Japan, China, Mexico, Jamaica, Israel, Italy, Ireland, England, France, Canada, Puerto Rico, India and many trips across the U.S. He enjoyed trying new foods and sampling the local cuisine of the countries he visited.
Bill’s hobbies included scuba diving and fishing. He and his wife loved to travel-first with a Chris Craft boat moored at Buttermilk Bay in Buzzards Bay, then in a motor home, visiting every state except North Dakota. They traveled to Mexico, Alaska and Canada, and in recent years spent winters in Florida and summers on Cape Cod. He belonged to several camping clubs- Winnebago Itasca Travelers, Plymouth Winnies, Bradford Brigade, Quinebagos, Good Sam, Herring Runners and Fox’s Den.
In addition to his beloved wife, he is survived by his dear and devoted son Everett “Andy” Williams and his wife Robin of Cumberland, RI. He was the loving father of the late Patricia D. Titus and George Everett Williams. He is also survived by his sister Phyllis Campbell of Attleboro, his son in law Joseph C. Titus of Norton, and several nieces and nephews.
Relatives and friends are cordially invited to attend graveside services on Saturday, September 19th at 11:00 at the Timothy Plain Cemetery, Plain St., in Norton.
Visiting hours will be held on Friday, September 18th from 6:00-8:00 P.M. at the Norton Memorial Funeral Home, 19 Clapp St. (Off Route 140, Taunton Ave.) Norton.
To send the William’s family a message of condolence, please visit www.nortonmemorial.com