John Edward Krout ’41

Body

Born in 1920 in Narberth, Pa., he graduated cum laude from the Haverford School and with honors from Princeton. While at Princeton, John was on The Daily Princetonian staff, serving as advertising manager his senior year, and was president of Cloister Inn. His roommates were Spike Haines, J.J. Gartland, and Robert Cox.

John graduated from Harvard Law School magna cum laude in 1944, where he was editor-in-chief of the Harvard Law Review. John was a partner at Drinker Biddle & Reath in Philadelphia from 1951 to 1959 and then was senior vice president at PSFS until 1970, when he became president, chairman, and CEO of Germantown Savings Bank until 1992. He served on many corporate and charitable boards, including Fannie Mae and Chicago Title & Trust, and was chairman of the National Association of Mortgage Bankers.

John’s first marriage ended in divorce, and he married H. Anne Merriman in 1974. He is survived by Anne; his children, Joanne K. Phillips, John A. Krout, and Robert E. Krout; stepchildren Elizabeth H. Brownback and P. Deal Heppe Jr.; six grandchildren; and one great-grandson.

No responses yet

Join the conversation

Plain text

Full name and Princeton affiliation (if applicable) are required for all published comments. For more information, view our commenting policy. Responses are limited to 500 words for online and 250 words for print consideration.

Paw in print

Image
The February 2026 cover of PAW, featuring a photo of Joseph Nye.
The Latest Issue

February 2026

Lives Lived & Lost in 2025, Saying ’yes’ to more housing; AI startup stars