HANCOCK – James W. Crawford Sr., 82, died May 21, 2011, at a Bangor hospital, after a brief illness. He was born June 5, 1928, in Old Saybrook, Conn., son of Wilbur James Crawford and Ellen (Beckwith) Crawford.
James attended schools in many towns in Connecticut. He received his high school diploma in New Haven, Conn. Jim served with the U.S. Army in Guam, Saipan and Tinian in the Pacific as a general clerk during the Korean War. On July 11, 1959, he married his wife of 42 years, Gertrude Elizabeth (Raschke) Crawford of East Haven, Conn. He worked as an electrician at United Advertising and later for 25 years as a machinist at Avco Lycoming, Stratford, Conn., where he retired from in 1988. While in Connecticut, James was an active member of First Congregational Church of West Haven, having served on committees and was a member of social groups such as the Marry Mates. He was a member of Adelphi Lodge of Masons, Fair Haven, Conn., and UAW Local 1010 Retirees Chapter, Milford, Conn. In 2002, after the death of his wife, Gertrude, James moved to Hancock. There he met Barbara Whitney of Lincoln, and they were married in July 2002. She passed away in 2005. James loved camping, traveling, history, antique cars, big band music, working in his garden, tools, carpentry and especially helping others. He enjoyed walking along the beach boardwalk in West Haven, Conn. In later years, he also enjoyed socializing and exploring in the surrounding communities where he lived. He loved visiting Washburn, where his father grew up and family roots were.
In addition to his parents, James was predeceased by his sisters, Eleanor Bodwell and Lois Neales. Surviving are his daughter, Mary Ellen Crawford and her husband, Stephen Monroe Tomczak, of Wallingford, Conn.; two sons, George Crawford of Harrington and James W. Crawford Jr. of Connecticut; a niece, Susan Hurlburt and her husband, Clark Hurlburt, and their daughter, Liz, all of Bethany, Conn.; and nephew, David Abbott of Hamden, Conn.
Services will be held in June in Connecticut. Those who wish to remember James in a special way may make gifts in his memory to Maine Veterans Home Recreation Fund, 32 Veteran’s Way, Machias, ME 04654. Arrangements by Memorial Alternatives, 205 Center St., Bangor.