David L. Stonehill

1936 - 2025

David L. Stonehill

Peterborough, NH - David Lynn Stonehill died on May 23, 2025, at his home in Peterborough, New Hampshire.

Born on June 10, 1936, to Cyrus and Evelyn (Clifton) Stonehill in Fort Wayne, Indiana, he later graduated from Holten High School in Danvers, Massachusetts in 1954, and from DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana in 1958. After receiving his Ph.D. in Physics from Yale University in 1962, he worked at Brookhaven National Laboratory as a researcher in high-energy particle physics until 1967.

He began his career in information science working for a private New York City firm that provided computing services to NASA. From 1967 to 1971, Dr. Stonehill developed and directed computer systems for research, instruction, and administration. Over the ensuing 17 years, he served as Associate Director for Academic Computer Services at the University of Illinois, Director of the Computer Center at the State University of New York at Binghamton, and Vice Provost for Computing at both the University of Rochester and the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, where he was responsible for all computing services. While at the University of Pennsylvania, he was asked to serve in the Executive Office of the President of the United States. As the Director of Information Resources and Management at the White House, he was responsible for the computing systems that supported 12 agencies.

Simultaneously with his academic positions, Dr. Stonehill was a private consultant for industry, government, and university clients in the United States and abroad.

Interested in returning to an academic setting, he later became the Director of the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL)/Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) Library where he also directed a Scientific Information Research Center that was being established within the MBL/WHOI Library.

In his final years before retirement, Dr. Stonehill joined Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. While there, he oversaw the establishment of the data processing network at the main campus in Oxford, including the Hamilton and Middletown branch campuses.

Throughout his career, David distinguished himself in government, business, and academia. He was admired by his colleagues for his "dignity, kind spirit, and professionalism." He was appreciated by many for his "extraordinary vision, the wisdom of his efforts, and for his vast decency." Working tirelessly to enhance people's ability to interconnect and access information through emerging technologies, David embraced the spirit of Ralph Waldo Emerson's words, "Do not go where the path may lead, Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail."

But monumentally more than his impressive accomplishments, he was a devoted, loving husband and father. He was predeceased by his beloved sister, Judith Stonehill, formerly of Honeoye Falls, New York. David will forever live in the hearts of his surviving family: his wife of nearly 65 years, Jean (Frohock) Stonehill of Peterborough, New Hampshire; his eldest daughter, Linda (Stonehill) Stevens, and son-in-law Paul Stevens, of Jaffrey, New Hampshire; and his younger daughter, Heidi Stonehill of Peterborough, New Hampshire.

A private service was held in June in Lincolnville, Maine. Arrangements were in the care of Burpee, Carpenter & Hutchins Funeral Home, 110 Limerock Street, Rockland, Maine 04841. There is a Memory Wall on the funeral home website (bchfh.com) where you may write thoughts or condolences. If desired, donations may be made to the American Heart Association.