E. Otis Dyer Jr.

E. Otis Dyer Jr. passed away unexpectedly early Sunday morning on September 25, 2016. A lifelong resident of Fairview Avenue, Rehoboth, he was the son of E. Otis Dyer, Sr. and Jean (Palmer) Dyer and a direct descendent of the founders of Rehoboth and Truro, and of the Pilgrim fathers. Otis grew up and lived all his life on his familys 200-year-old ancestral farm on Fairview Avenue. He attended local schools and graduated from Dighton-Rehoboth Regional H.S. in 1978 and the University of Maine in 1982 with a B.S. in Civil Engineering. He was employed as an assistant engineer in the City of Attleboros Engineering Department, a land surveyor for Hayward Boynton and Williams Inc. in Taunton MA, and, for many years, as a Massachusetts Registered Land Surveyor in the surveying office of E. Otis Dyer Sr. in Rehoboth. Otis enjoyed farming: caring for a herd of cows, a flock of hens, and raising the hay and grain for them on his familys farm. He enjoyed studying and researching local history. He was a trustee and past Vice President of the Rehoboth Antiquarian Society, a strong supporter and volunteer of the Carpenter Museum, and a member of the Rehoboth Historical Commission for many years, serving as its Chairman several times. He researched and wrote many articles on Rehoboths history for the Antiquarian Society Newsletter. He was an expert on deciphering the Rehoboth Proprietor records, the original documents from the 1600s and early 1700s that divided up the land in Rehoboth. He served as Co-chairman of Rehoboths 350th Celebration in 1993. Besides his parents, Otis leaves two sisters, Betsey Dexter Dyer (Bob Obar) of Walpole MA and Lydia Dyer Carswell (Larry Carswell) of Rehoboth, as well as a brother, Nathaniel Paine Dyer (Lisa-Marie) of Rehoboth, and six nephews and nieces: Daniel Carswell of Providence RI, James Carswell of Rehoboth, Alice Obar of Brooklyn, NY, Samuel Obar of Walpole MA, and Caleb Dyer and Tatum Dyer, both of Rehoboth. Funeral arrangements will be made with Foley-Cook-Hathaway Funeral Home in Attleboro MA. Funeral and burial will be private and interment will be in the familys lot in the Stevens Corner Cemetery in Rehoboth. A memorial service will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts to the Carpenter Museum, P.O. Box 2, Rehoboth MA 02769 will be appreciated.