William Combs "Bill" Ridgway

04/14/2025 - 09/14/2025

Essex - At the season of remembrance, I would like to add a big thank you to Bill Ridgway for sharing his life with us. He was the patriarch of a large, blended family of over 30 people at its peak! He died September 14, 2025, in Essex, while fighting his over three-year battle with pancreatic cancer.

William Combs Ridgway III was born April 28, 1936, in New Jersey, the first child of Emily Parsons and William Ridgway Jr. He graduated with Phi Beta Kappa from Princeton in 1957, and earned a doctorate from Stanford University. His field was electrical engineering which today would be called computer science. His career was mostly at Bell Labs in New Jersey with a brief stint under Tom Kean as the Head of Info Tech for the state. He was on too many Boards and Committees to list, but his main loves were Mystic Seaport and Fishers Island.

He was an avid model railroader and belonged to many clubs and sporting groups. He was a generous volunteer of his time and talents.

He leaves behind his wife, Carol; two daughters, Eliz Hughes and Ashley Malinovsky (Karel); and a son, Stuart (Shaudy); also, three stepdaughters, Leslie McElwreath (Ed), Cindy Gillan and Eve. Hood (Clarke). He had six grandchildren; and one granddaughter-in-law; five step-grandchilden (three step-grandspouses); his five little stepgrandsons called him Bump. He is also survived by a brother, Charles (Julianne); and two sisters, Emily (Peter) and Sara (Locke) who provided him with a barrel of nieces and nephews.

He was opinionated and curmudgeonly and proud of it. He was a lifetime member of the good manners regime which is disappearing from our globe.

Any gift to MSM or Fishers Island charity would please him. There are no plans for a memorial at this time.