Dr. Fred Ridley Gamble Jr.

Dr. Fred Ridley Gamble, Jr (1941-2025) passed away on July 20 after a brief illness, his beloved children by his side. Fred was born in Dallas and attended the St. Mark's School, where he made life-long friends. This was to be a theme in his life. He graduated from Harvard University and went on to obtain a PhD in physical chemistry from Stanford University. At Stanford, he did ground-breaking research on two-dimensional materials. The advances he made are of central importance to modern progress on high-temperature superconductivity. Exxon-Mobil recognized his talent and recruited him to lead research into breakthroughs in energy generation and storage. At Exxon-Mobil, Fred's team developed the lithium-ion battery. Ever the humble scientist, he gave his key employees first authorship on papers and patents summarizing their discoveries. One employee would later win the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for developing the lithium-ion battery. Fred next became the Vice President of Research at Schlumberger, the fifth largest company in the world at the time, while residing in Connecticut. He then finished his career in science as a co-founder of Superconductor Technologies Inc. in Santa Barbara, CA. His role in science took a backseat when he fell in love with sailing in 1990. Fred sailed the Santa Barbara Channel Islands hundreds of times, where he found (and photographed) unspoiled beauty and tranquility. He was soon living on his 41' flush-hull racing sloop, Iris. Fred wrote, but did not publish, a multi-volume book on sailing these remarkable islands. Never one to settle for average, Fred set his mind on single-handedly racing across the Pacific Ocean. Fred placed third in his division in his first and only single-handed race, the Singlehanded Transpac, from San Francisco, CA to Kauai, Hawaii.
Fred married Anne McCord (Miller), another Dallas native, in 1964 and they had two children, Katherine and John. After Fred and Anne divorced, Fred spent 28 years with his life partner, Barbara Dunaway, who preceded him in death. During their relationship Barbara was diagnosed with cancer and given a short window to live. Fred did not accept this for the woman he loved and employed his impressive research skills to save her. He met with doctors across the country and was able to enroll Barbara in the most promising trials. As a result, she defied the odds and lived more than a dozen bonus years of a good life.
Fred loved to help others throughout his life, whether family, friends, coworkers, or a janitor at the harbor. He sponsored many recovering alcoholics after successfully battling the disease himself. He never met a stranger, never considered himself better or above another person, no matter their walk of life. He instilled this mentality in his children.
Fred is survived by his daughter, Katherine; his son, John; his son-in-law and daughter-in-law, Frank Shirley and Olivia (Vining) Gamble; his grandchildren, Emily Gamble, Ollie Shirley, Elias Shirley, and Quinn Gamble; his brother and sister-in-law, David and Barbara (Clanton) Gamble; five beloved nephews and nieces, and many great nephews, great nieces, and cousins. He was preceded in death by his parents, Fred and Leona Gamble; his sister and her husband, Elizabeth "BJ" and Fred Miller; and his niece and her husband, Janice and Rob Jones.
A celebration of Fred's life will take place on August 9 in Rockwall, Texas at 501 @The Yacht Club, 501 Yacht Club Drive at 1:30 in the afternoon followed by a reception. Guests are invited to wear a plaid, short-sleeved, button-down shirt in Fred's honor if they wish. Donations can be made to the ACLU or The Channel Islands Park Foundation.