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George Boardman Guthrie ’40

George Boardman Guthrie Jr. ’40, September 20, 2004, in Bartlesville, Oklahoma. George attended Reed for five years, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in chemistry. He attended Oregon State College (University) from 1940 to 1941, and the California Institute of Technology from 1941 to 1943. During World War II, he worked in the area of chemical warfare at Cal Tech (1942–43), and at MIT in the area of radar development (1943–45). George returned to Cal Tech in 1946, and earned a PhD in physics in 1949. He married Margaret R. Sullivan ’47 in 1946; they had three children, and later divorced. In 1963, he married Jeanne Ernst Merrill; they were married for 40 years. George worked in thermodynamics with the Bureau of Mines from 1949 to 1969, and from 1979 to 1982, he worked for the Department of Energy in Bartlesville. In retirement, he taught at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, and at Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado. He was an enthusiastic proponent of computer technology, and assisted middle school students and family members in achieving expertise. George performed various roles and did award-winning stage work for theatre and ballet productions in Bartlesville, and the Guthries received a joint award for outstanding service from the Bartlesville Arts and Humanities Council in 1980. Survivors include his sons, 3 stepdaughters and 2 stepsons, 9 grandchildren, and 10 great-grandchildren.

Appeared in Reed magazine: February 2005