JOHN I. MATTILL

1921 - 2019

MATTILL, John I. MIT Editor Dies at 97 John Isham Mattill, 97, died March 10, 2019, after a long life and a short decline. He was born September 12, 1921, and grew up in Iowa City, Iowa where his parents, Drs. Helen and Henry Mattill taught at the University of Iowa. It was there that John first met his future wife, Anne Waterman. John graduated from Carleton College and served in the U.S. Army Signal Security Corps during World War II. After earning an M.A. in technical writing from the University of Iowa he joined the news service of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1948. For fourteen years John directed the M.I.T. Publications Department before settling in to a 22-year tenure as Editor of Technology Review, the Institute's alumni publication. During his editorship he transformed the Review into an exemplary magazine of scientific reporting and alumni affairs, widely copied and earning national awards for design excellence. John retired in 1988, following 40 years of service to the Institute. In 1952 John and Anne were the second buyers in the neighborhood called Conantum - now hailed as a model of mid-century modern community design. The Mattill's lived in Conantum for 52 years, sharing their talents and affinities with the greater community – Anne through artwork at the Concord Toy Shop and the Concord Free Public Library; John as a founding farmer of Conantum's community garden where he became a trustworthy source of advice on the foibles of land and critters. Following their move to a retirement community in southern New Hampshire, John cajoled the new development into installing garden plots and he made weekly visits to volunteer at the Spellman Museum of Stamps, where he shared his life-long love of philately with many others. He is survived by cousins, Nancy Smith, Sunny Cross, and Susan Cross; godchildren, Judi Gleason and John Tritsch; and by a host of "adopted" family members. John Mattill has been described as an "old-fashioned gentleman" and he was that – courteous to a fault, gracious, interested in others and other ideas. With his wife, he was constant in support of justice, environmental protection, democratic government, public support of the arts, and help for those in deepest need. Private Memorials will take place during the spring and summer. Those who wish to make memorial contributions are encouraged to consider the Massachusetts Audubon Society, the Spellman Museum of Stamps & Postal History, or the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Student Scholarship Fund.

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