David M. Matheson

Col. David M. Matheson, formerly of Dingmans Ferry, passed away on Oct. 10, 2005, at Pine View Good Samaritan Center in Valentine, Neb.

Born on April 29, 1915, in Honolulu, Hawaii, he was a son of Col. John Roy Matheson and Ethel Mason Matheson.

Growing up in an Army family with three brothers and two sisters, he graduated from high school in Sacramento, Calif.

After serving in the Virginia National Guard, he enrolled at the United States Military Academy at West Point where he studied physics, advanced mathematics and other subjects that prepared him to serve in the Army Corps of Engineers following his graduation in 1939.

He married Joan Transue of Shawnee-on-Delaware on Dec. 1, 1941. Their time together was cut short by the entrance of the United States into World War II and they were apart for 44 months while he served first in the Pacific and later in Europe.

During the years following the war, he and his wife lived in California, Hawaii and Fort Belvoir, Va. They were living in Baltimore, Md., when their only daughter, Hedda, was born in 1955. The family moved to Dingman's Ferry in 1959, then to northern France from 1962 to 1966 where he served with the American Battle Monuments Commission. They returned to Pennsylvania in the summer of 1966.

He retired from the Army in the spring of 1967. That summer, he attended Wake Forest University in North Carolina and East Stroudsburg State College. After receiving his teaching degree, he taught senior physics and freshman introductory physical science for nine years at Newton High School in Newton, N.J.

In Pennsylvania, he took a stand in opposition to the Army Corps of Engineers as he and his wife fought the proposed Tocks Island Dam project on the Delaware River. They were active participants in the Delaware Valley Conservation Association DVCA until their move to Nebraska in 1973, a move made necessary by massive appropriations of property, including theirs, by the government.

His interests reflected the richness and diversity of his experience and the many places he lived. In addition to the DVCA, he was a member of the Sussex County Bird Club and was active in the American Legion in Dingmans Ferry. An avid sports fan, he was a strong supporter of the home team, from West Point to Newton to Valentine Rural High School, where he also substitute taught for a number of years.

In Valentine, he was also a member of the Valentine Area Arts Council and a supporting member of the Valentine Art Club. During his later years, he became active in the Valentine Senior Center and he contributed to various environmental and cultural organizations.

He is survived by his daughter, Hedda Matheson of Valentine, Neb.; sisters Page Niles of Albuquerque, N.M., and Jean Henriksen of San Diego, Calif.; a brother, William Q. Matheson of Oslo, Norway; and a large extended family of nieces, nephews, great-nieces and great-nephews.