William J. O'Neal

1933 - 2020

(News story) William J. O'Neal, 87, a former University of Toledo history department chairman and director of graduate studies who found endless corners of the past to plumb, died Oct. 29 at home in central Toledo's Westmoreland neighborhood.

He survived coronavirus, but other health problems and his decline were exacerbated by the death 10 months earlier of his wife, Fran, said niece Maryalice Crislip.

He became a professor emeritus in June, 2014, according to the UT website.

Mr. O'Neal worked most summers from 1978 onward in the Vatican Library, exploring the works of 15th and 16th century poets. Neo-classical Latin and ancient Greek and Roman constitutional histories captured his scholarly interest.

"For him, it was the love of the research and the discovery," Mrs. Crislip said.

Fran O'Neal, who taught at St. Francis de Sales High School, joined him on those trips. Those the couple got to know in Rome became like family, Mrs. Crislip said. This year, she got texts and calls and emails from students and others, inquiring after him.

"There was something about him. You fell in love with him," Mrs. Crislip said.

Mr. O'Neal in 1969 accepted a joint appointment in UT's history and foreign language departments. He'd been at the University of Missouri, from which he received his doctorate, specializing in ancient history and Augustan-age poetry.

He taught a range of courses on the ancient world, as well as Latin and ancient Greek languages.

In 1978, he was among four faculty members to receive UT's Outstanding Teaching Award.

His approach was traditional. He spoke from hand-written notes, said Casey Stark, who took every class he taught - and received private tutoring from him in Latin and Greek and had him as her master's thesis adviser. He emphasized a solid base of reading of primary sources, a foundation Ms. Starks credits to helping her entry to the doctoral program at the University of Wisconsin.

"Those who liked him just loved him," said Ms. Stark, now an assistant teaching professor in history at Bowling Green State University. "He and Fran were very welcoming as far as having faculty and graduate students in their home and having those relationships."

Ginny Rodeman, a longtime neighbor, said: "His students came first. They'd have graduate students over for dinner. They'd have parties for them."

Foreign students became the O'Neals' holiday guests, Ms. Rodeman said, adding that "many of them cooked in their kitchen, just so they felt they were home and had a place to go."

He'd intervene on behalf of students trying to get answers on matters like financial aid, said Debbie MacDonald, retired secretary for the history department.

"He was a gentle man, dedicated to his students," Mrs. MacDonald said. "When he retired, that's what he missed the most, being around young people and being in class."

He was born July 13, 1933, in Kokomo, Ind., to Alice and Wilson O'Neal, the youngest of five boys. After Kokomo High School, he attended St. Meinrad Seminary, as he considered a vocation in the priesthood.

But the classics and the prospect of teaching captured his interest, Mrs. Crislip said. He proceeded with secular studies, receiving a master's degree from Indiana University.

Toledo easily became home, Mrs. Crislip said.

"It was the university and the people," she said. "They were very close to people in Westmoreland and at the university - friends for life."

He and the former Fran Alvey married June 8, 1963. She died Dec. 20, 2019.

There are no immediate survivors.

Funeral services will begin at noon Saturday in Gesu Church, with visitation after 11 a.m. Arrangements are by the Walker Funeral Home.

Tributes are suggested to the Fran A. O'Neal Scholarship at St. Francis de Sales High School.

This is a news story by Mark Zaborney. Contact him at mzaborney@theblade.com or 419-724-6182.