John Howard McClellan Jr.

1927 - 2014

John Howard McClellan Jr., 87, of 13406 Buena Vista Road, Waynesboro, Pennsylvania, died Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2014, in his home, after many years of ill health. He was a lifelong resident of Franklin County.
Born July 8, 1927, at 322 W. Second St., Waynesboro, Franklin County, Pennsylvania. He was the son of the late John Howard and Margaret Adams McClellan.
His wife, Pauline Ness Johnston, preceded him in death on May 23, 1991.
Mr. McClellan was a graduate of Waynesboro High School, Hagerstown Junior College, and The American University and studied at Carnegie Institute, now Carnegie-Mellon University, Pittsburgh.
He served in the United States Navy in the Asiatic-Pacific Theater during World War II.
As a young man, he was an assistant planning engineer on the Chesapeake Bay Bridge (First Span) and was later a planning engineer on the National Capital Beltway (Inner Loop) in Washington, D.C.
He taught Mathematics and English in the Washington Township High School before starting his own surveying and engineering business. He was also Borough Engineer for the Borough of Waynesboro for several years. He became County Surveyor for the County of Franklin in 1961 and served in that capacity until 1974. As County Surveyor he trained a number of young men in the surveyor's vocation and laid out many residential subdivisions in the Tri-State area. When the county office was discontinued, he engaged in consulting engineering on large shopping centers and industrial developments, including Grove Manufacturing's large 1970s expansion and many industrial and commercial developments in the Harrisburg and Washington, D.C. metropolitan areas.
He was a School Director of the Waynesboro Area School District during its consolidation and post-war expansion and was later a Supervisor of Washington Township during the establishment of its sewer and water projects and the formation of its long range planning and zoning ordinances.
Mr. McClellan was well known throughout Franklin and the Tri-State area.
Before becoming disabled in 1987, he enjoyed hunting, fishing and sailing, as well as golf and tennis. After he became disabled, he turned his interests to crafts and historical research and was active for a number of years with county and state historic societies and was a past president of the Waynesboro Historical Society and a director of the Kittochtinny Historical Society. He was a Scoutmaster of Troop 44 of the Boy Scouts of America in Rouzerville for a number of years.
Mr. McClellan was involved in many community projects including the acquisition of Red Run Park. He was a member of the Historic Restoration Advisory Committee of Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission. He and his family restored the large stone Christian Frantz House on South Welty Road. His ancestors were the first settlers in the early frontier Mercersburg area. In 1991, he organized and supervised the restoration and replication of the historic Benjamin Franklin Statue that stands atop the Franklin County Courthouse in Chambersburg.
He was well versed in local history and wrote books and historical papers on Blue Ridge Summit, Buena Vista, the Civil War and other subjects of local interest.
He was a stained glass artisan and a silversmith and over the years worked on many commissions.
Mr. McClellan was a member of the National Chapter of the AARP, the Friends of the Western Maryland Room of the Washington County Library and the Mason Dixon Knife Club.
He was a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, Waynesboro.
Surviving him are five sons, John Kramer McClellan of New Bloomfield, Pennsylvania, Brian Glenn McClellan, Thomas Keith McClellan and Richard Edward McClellan, all of Buena Vista, Pennsylvania, and Robert Michael McClellan of Acworth, Georgia. Ten grandchildren and a niece and a nephew, children of the late D. Jean Foster survive him.
The funeral will be held at graveside at Buena Vista at the discretion of the family. There will be no public viewing.
Grove-Bowersox Funeral Home, Waynesboro is in charge of the arrangements. Online condolences may be expressed at
www.bowersoxfuneralhomes.com