Daniel B. Primmer

BOSTON -- Daniel B. Primmer, 88, of Pine Lodge Park, Williamstown, and former longtime resident of Henderson Road, Williamstown, died Tuesday, Dec. 14, 2004, at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston.

He was born in Williamstown, on April 16, 1916, a son of the late Daniel B. Primmer and Jennie Jane (Brown) Primmer. He moved to North Adams as a child and attended schools there.

He was employed for several years for the Boston & Maine Railroad. He then was a farmer on the family farm on Bee Hill Road, Williamstown. For many years, Mr. Primmer was employed by the town of Williamstown highway department and served as superintendent at the time of his retirement in 1980. After his retirement, he owned and operated his own construction company for several years. He also worked part-time as a butcher of livestock.

He was a communicant of St. Patrick and Raphael parish in Williamstown. He was a founding member and past president of the East Mountain Sportsman Club. He served on the board of directors of Friends of the Renal Dialysis Unit (FORD) at Berkshire Medical Center in Pittsfield. He was an avid deer and raccoon hunter and loved woodworking. In his younger years, he was an accomplished boxer.

His wife, Livia Mary (Benedetti) Primmer, whom he married April 25, 1937, died May 27, 1996.

Survivors include two daughters, Elisabeth Louise Primmer Carmen of Spencerport, N.Y., and Margaret Mary Calagy of Lynbrook, N.Y.; three sons, David Daniel Primmer of Pembroke, John Anthony Primmer of Pownal, Vt., and Michael Bruce Primmer of Oneonta, N.Y.; 16 grandchildren; three great-grandchildren; two sisters, Elizabeth Gorman of North Adams and Annabelle Metcalfe of Cranston, R.I.; and a brother, Donald Primmer of Clarksburg. He was predeceased by two brothers, I. Weston Primmer and Lewis Primmer.

A liturgy of Christian burial for Daniel Primmer will be celebrated Saturday morning at 11:30 at St. Patrick’s Church, Williamstown. Burial will follow in Eastlawn Cemetery, Williamstown. Calling hours will be at the Flynn & Dagnoli-Montagna Home for Funerals, West Chapels, 521 West Main St., North Adams, on Friday from 3 to 7 p.m. Memorial donations are suggested for the FORD dialysis unit at Berkshire Medical Center or to the St. Patrick & Raphael Food Pantry through the funeral home.