William Harold Scragg ’53

Bill died March 5, 2021, in El Paso, Texas, after a long career in medicine both in the military and in civilian life.

Bill grew up in Paterson, N.J., and came to Princeton after graduating from Eastside High School. He joined Cannon Club and majored in biology, writing his thesis on “The Effect of Ultra-Violet Radiation on General Metabolism of E-Coli.”

After graduation Bill went to New York Medical College and then interned at the Valley Forge Army Hospital in Pennsylvania. He did his residency in obstetrics and gynecology at Walter Reed General Hospital in Washington, D.C., and continued his career in the Army, serving as assistant chief or chief of OB/GYN units in such duty stations as Honolulu and Munich, Germany. He received the Legion of Merit in 1976 and retired from the Army that year to help open the new Texas Tech University medical school campus in El Paso.

At Texas Tech University, Bill served as interim regional dean, assistant dean, associate department chairman, clinical director and residency director for OB/GYN, and medical director for family planning. He was appointed professor emeritus by the Texas Tech Board of Regents to honor his 40-year contributions to the medical school, and retired in August 2013.

Bill is survived by his wife of 66 years, Anne; their three children (including daughter Dana Scragg Frank ’80); seven grandchildren (including grandson Emilio Campos ’12); and five great-grandchildren.