Morris Oldham

Morris Oldham

Morris Marling Oldham, 98, died February 1 at the Ginger Cove retirement community in Annapolis.

He was born July 14, 1912, in Cambridge, Ohio, to Chauncey and Lola Oldham, the oldest of four children. The Oldhams were among the first settlers in Guernsey County, Ohio, arriving in 1983. Morry graduated from the College of Wooster in Wooster, Ohio in 1936, receiving a B.A. in chemistry. It was there that he met and married his wife, Portia Wylie, in 1939, and together they had three children. He went on to attend graduate school at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, where he obtained a M.S. degree in 1945. Morry completed post-graduate work at the University of Michigan during the summer of 1948.

After graduation, he returned to his alma mater, the College of Wooster, where he was an instructor of chemistry from 1945 to 1949. From 1949 to 1951, Morry taught chemistry at the elite prep school, Phillips Exeter Academy in Exeter, N.H. Through recommendations from a member of the board of trustees at Exeter, he was offered a faculty appointment at the United States Naval Academy. It was on January 2, 1951 that he began his 28-year career, retiring as Associate Professor of Chemistry.

He was a member of the American Chemical Society and the New England Association of Chemistry Teachers and published with others several research articles. He was a resident of Annapolis, spending his last 12 years at Ginger Cove. Morry was a lifelong Presbyterian and a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Annapolis for 60 years. He served as deacon, elder and Synod of the Chesapeake representative. In 1960, he chaired the search committee that brought the Rev. William Hudnut III to the church as pastor. He was a benefactor of the church library and church organ, two of his fondest interests.

After retiring from the USNA in 1979, he took up picture framing, played golf, and attended many concerts and plays. He traveled extensively and always enjoyed visiting his family. Morry took great delight in his later years collecting Cambridge Glass with Portia. Most recently, he donated his cherished collection to the Cambridge Glass Museum.

He was preceded in death by his wife of 49 years, Portia, who died in 1988; second wife of 8 years, Dorothy Gilley, who died in 1997; and three siblings, Walter, who died during World War II in 1944, Robert, who died in 1998, and Alice Wilson, who died in 2007.

He is survived by three children, Kathleen Beauchesne (Gerald) of Towson, Judith Majcen (Charles Berkey) of Chagrin Falls, Ohio and John Oldham (Suzanne) of Annapolis; four grandchildren, Keriann Oldham, Gregory Beauchesne, Liza Oldham and Michael Majcen; five step-grandchildren; and 28 nieces and nephews.

Relatives and friends are invited to attend a Memorial Service celebrating Morry's life at 2 p.m. on Saturday, February 26 at the First Presbyterian Church of Annapolis, 171 Duke of Gloucester St. A reception will immediately follow in the church's Fellowship Hall. Internment will be private. In lieu of flowers, those who wish to make a contribution in remembrance of Morry may do so to the First Presbyterian Church of Annapolis. Online condolences may be made at www.johnmtaylorfuneralhome.com