Howard Frederic Whitney III ’53

Mike Whitney died of a massive brain aneurysm July 1, 1998, doing what he loved best, as his sister Carlin Scherer said, "sailing at sea." He was skippering a 60-ft. yawl from Virginia to Boston.

Born in NYC, Mike and his father Howard F. Jr. '28 were educated at St. Paul's School and were in Colonial Club at Princeton. Like F. Scott Fitzgerald '17, Mike was handsome, extremely literary-minded, loved a good time, and missed too many classes. Unlike Fitzgerald, Mike was athletic. He rowed on the freshman heavyweight crew, was a competitive skier, and his passion was sailing. Roommate Sandy Lambert recalls one summer they went to Europe on a student ship. Mike would delight the passengers nightly with poetry readings.

After college Mike taught history at Miss Porter's School, studied library science, and became a librarian in Massachusetts. He had had a quintuple bypass, but at our 45th he was tanned, trim, and high-spirited. His fellow oarsman, Charlie Rooney, told Mike to sign him up as a crew member on his next voyage. Our deep sympathy to Carlin, daughters Catherine Welles, Hope Wu, and Tatiana, another sister, Lansing Moran, stepmother Mrs. H.F. Whitney Jr., and five grandchildren.

The Class of 1953