George E. Hartwell Jr.

1940 - 2020

George E. Hartwell Jr.
George E. Hartwell Jr., 80, of Midland, passed away the morning of Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2020. George was born in Port Jervis, N.Y. on Aug. 1, 1940, son of the late George E. Hartwell Sr. and Henrietta (Dunn) Hartwell.
George's education included a bachelor's degree in chemistry from Union College, Schenectady, N.Y., master's and doctoral degrees in Inorganic Chemistry, working with Professor Theodore L. Brown at the University of Illinois, Urbana, Ill., and a NATO postdoctoral fellowship with Nobel Laureate Sir Geoffrey Wilkinson at Imperial College of Science and Technology, London, England.
George was an associate professor at Indiana University, Bloomington, Ind., from 1966-1974, teaching both graduate and undergraduate students. In 1974, George joined The Dow Chemical Co. at its research laboratory in Wayland, Mass. In 1979, George and his family moved to Midland where he conducted research in catalysis that contributed to new businesses. Throughout his career, he authored 36 publications and received 30 patents. He continued as a research scientist until he retired at the end of 2001.
In retirement, George continued to meet with his Dow colleagues for weekly lunches. He also enjoyed pursuing his hobbies of railroading, genealogy and coin and stamp collecting. Additionally, he spent time with his grandchildren and shared his love for science and his hobbies.
George is survived by his wife of 55 years, Dr. Ieva (Ogrins) Hartwell; and his two sons, Dr. Peter George Hartwell (Caitlin Darke) and Erik Karl Hartwell; and his grandchildren, Alida Laney Hartwell, Peter Perreten Hartwell and Henry Dunn Hartwell. He is also survived by his sisters, Sylvia (Harold) Brigham of Hernando Beach, Fla. and Mary Jane (John) Millspaugh of Port Jervis, N.Y.; and many nieces and nephews and their families. George will be remembered as a loving husband, father and grandfather.
The family has elected to hold a family ceremony on Saturday, Nov. 7, 2020 at Ware-Smith-Woolever Funeral Home. In accordance with George's wishes, he will be cremated and buried next summer with his parents in New York. In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent in his honor to the Steam Railroading Institute at P.O. Box 665, Owosso, MI 48867-0665 (http://www.michigansteamtrain.com/contribute) or to the donor's charity of choice.