Edwin "Ted" Merrill Bailey

Edwin ‘Ted’ Merrill Bailey, life-long Amesbury resident, passed away on May 18, 2025 after a period of declining health. He was predeceased by his wife of 66 years, Mary Terry (Whitten) Bailey, who died in 2023.

Born in Amesbury in 1934, Ted was the second child of David C. Bailey and Anna (Merrill) Bailey. He attended Amesbury Schools and graduated from Amesbury High School in 1953.

During his high school years Ted was introduced to Terry while she was visiting her aunt and uncle just down the street. They were married a few years later in August of 1956 and honeymooned aboard their Friendship sloop the ‘Polly’ on a cruise to Newport, RI. After Ted graduated from the University of New Hampshire in 1957 with a degree in English Literature, they made their home on Point Shore in Amesbury, raising three children on the street where Ted had grown up.

Ted joined the family business, the Bailey Company, moving through several positions from time study engineering to production control and then to data processing in the early days of computers. After the company was sold, Ted established his own free-lance computer consulting business and served clients in the Boston area for over twenty years.

He was involved in several local organizations, acting as Trustee of the Provident Bank, District Chairman of the Boy Scouts Lone Tree Council, and serving as Sunday School director, Youth Group leader, Moderator, and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Main Street Congregational Church.

When new neighbors Harold and Ginny Aldrich invited Ted ‘s family to their cottage on Long Island off Portland, ME, they all had such a great time that it wasn’t long before Ted and Terry bought a cottage of their own there. Many wonderful memories were created while enjoying idyllic Maine island summers with new friends, especially their neighbors and boating companions John and Patty Ingham.

Throughout his life, Ted had the good fortune of being able to pursue his many interests and became deeply adept in many fields. In his workshop, on the Merrimac River, in the mountains to the north, and in the skies above, he learned all that he could, mastering subjects such as carpentry, photography, navigation, orientation, and flying. He was proficient on many musical instruments, and his playing brought joy to many occasions.

Ted was a fitness buff before it was popular and enjoyed running, boating, bicycling, hiking, and skiing. He piloted his cabin cruiser the ‘Bangor Packet’ along the coast from Mount Desert Island to Martha’s Vineyard and canoed the Merrimac River from Manchester to Amesbury with his daughter Beth; led extended family bike trips in Pennsylvania and England and biked across the country with his daughter Sue; and was the driving force behind many family ski trips to Sunday River in ME and skied with his young son Jamie on his shoulders. He frequently led neighborhood kids on summer bike trips, going as far as Canobie Lake Park, and on fall hiking trips that were often up mountains over 4,000’ high.

Ted enthusiastically shared the knowledge he had gained from his diverse interests, taking the time to teach his family and many of the neighborhood kids how to build, use, maintain, or repair a wide range of things including boats, bikes, cars, small engines, and home appliances; and skills such as carpentry, scouting, sailing, and knot tying. Over the years, Ted received letters of gratitude from some of the adults that he had mentored as kids, which noted both the knowledge they had gained and the impact of Ted’s time, attention, and philosophy of life on their young lives.

Ted is survived by his three children, Beth Hodgdon of Mason Township, ME; Susan Bailey and husband Alan Eaton of Amesbury and Barrington, NH; and James Bailey and his wife Raybecca of Amesbury; and four grandchildren, Doug Hardy, Sarah Hardy, Keniston Bailey, and Anna Bailey, as well as his older brother David Bailey. He was predeceased by his younger brother Jonathan Bailey.

Friends and family are invited to a Celebration of Life to be held on Saturday, July 12th at 11am at the Main St Congregational Church, 145 Main St, Amesbury. Interment will be immediately afterward at the Bartlett Cemetery, 257 Main St, Amesbury, followed by a reception at the family home (call Sue at 978-771-8542 for directions). In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Lowell’s Boat Shop. 459 Main St, Amesbury, MA 01913.