John Huntington Gilchrist

Medical Editor

And Essayist

John Huntington Gilchrist, 87, died April 20, in Belfast, Maine, surrounded by close family members. The son of Elizabeth Brace and Huntington Gilchrist, who was an American diplomat and political scientist, Mr Gilchrist was born in Geneva, Switzerland.

Mr Gilchrist lived in Newtown for more than 50 years before moving to Maine. A daughter and two sons, including Cameron Gilchrist of Newtown, survive Mr Gilchrist. He is also survived by a sister and six grandchildren.

He graduated from MIT in 1948 with a degree in engineering and served in Navy medical corps in the Pacific during World War II. His engineering career included positions at the Barden Corporation, Perkin-Elmer, and the Robert E. Fulton aerial rescue balloon system. He was a medical editor at PreTest Services in Wallingford. In the early 1980s he collaborated with R. Buckminster Fuller on a prehistory of Penobscot Bay, Maine.

Mr Gilchrist was known for his questioning thought and progressive opinions. Among his wide ranging interests were medicine, history, classical music, and acting in local theater in Connecticut. He was beloved among family and friends for his gentle sense of humor and his quiet, courtly charm.

Memorial gifts may be made to The Albert Schweitzer Fellowship, 330 Brookline Avenue (BR), Boston MA 02215.

The Newtown Bee        May 8, 2009