George Bissell

George Bissell 1922 - 2009 PUTNEY, VT George Henry Bissell, 87, died on June 18, at his home in Putney. He was born on June 12, 1922, in New York City. He was the son of Pelham St. George Bissell, President Justice of the Municipal Courts of the City of New York and Mary Valentine Yale (Bissell) Bissell. In June 1942 he was married to Elvira F. Perrotta, also of New York City. They spent the next 67 years happily married. She survives him. Mr. Bissell served his country with the Marines during World War II from 1942-1946. As a marine he participate in the landing on Okinowa on Easter Sunday 1945 and was with American forces in Sing Tao, China when America accepted the surrender of the Japanese at the end of the war. He completed his education at Columbia University under the GI bill and received a degree in Architecture in 1954. He worked as an architect in New York City until 1975 Then in Cambridge, Mass., until his retirement. He first came to Southern Vermont in 1960 bringing his family to Putney for summer vacations. His career as an achitect was heavily influenced by the "Modern" school in which materials such as iron, steel and glass dictated a simplification of form and elimination of ornamentation. An example of this can be seen in the old Putney, Vt., Public Library which he designed in the mid 1960s. He was also involved in the design of The Wisconsin state office building in Madison, Wis., as well as a series of hotels in the mideast during the energy crisis of the 1970s, about which he liked to say he was "recycling petro-dollars". At the end of his career he was working for Benjamin Thompson & Associates in Cambridge, Mass., on projects such as the Faneuil Hall Marketplace in Boston and South Street Seaport in New York. He was a member of the Sons of Revolution in the state of New York and the Mayflower Society. As throughout his life, so through to the very end, Mr. Bissell bore the challenges of Parkinson's disease with dignity and a will of steel maintaining and using a clear and precise mental focus and keeping his family and caregivers entertained with his fabulous sense of humor. The family would like particuarly like to thank his team of caregivers who showered him with love and appreciation. George Henry Bissell leaves his wife, Elvira F. (Perrotta) Bissell of Putney, Vt.; three sons, George "Hank" Henry Bissell Jr. of Starksboro, Vt., Pelham St. George Bissell IV of Burlington, Vt., Richard Warren Bissell, and his wife, Elizabeth of Putney, Vt.; two daughters, Annette Woodcock Abel, and her husband, Jonathan of East Dover, Vt., Beatrice Yale Bissell of Key West, Fla., a sister, Ophelia Louise Bissell Molla of West Newton, Mass.; four grandchildren, Siobhan Woodcock, Isaac & Mary Clare Bissell of Putney, Samuel Bissell of Starksboro, Vt. and several nieces and nephews. Mr. Bissell was predeceased by a grandson, James Bissell Woodcock; a brother, Pelham St. George Bissell III; and four sisters, Nancy Wemple Bissell Lawrence, Ruth Mason Bissell Gallagher, Helen Alsop Bissell Stout, Mary Sackett Bissell Masone. FUNERAL NOTICE: Services for Mr. Bissell will be on Thursday, June 25, at 10 a.m. at Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Church in Putney, VT, followed by a private burial service at the Dartmouth College Cemetery in Hanover, NH. There are to be no calling hours at this time. For those who wish, memorial contributions in Mr. Bissell's memory may be made to "The Putney General Store Building Fund" or "Brattleboro Area Hospice". Arrangements are under the care of the KER WESTERLUND FUNERAL HOME AND CREMATION SERVICE 57 High St. Brattleboro, VT, 05301