Otis F. Hall, Virginia Tech Professor Emeritus and former Head of the Department of Forestry"
Otis Frederick Hall, 93, of Blacksburg, Va., passed away on Friday, January 23, 2015, at the Kroontje Health Care Center. He was born on October 5, 1921, in Cleveland, Ohio, to Karl Nathaniel Hall and Mabel Dodge Hall.
Otis grew up in Oberlin, Ohio. He graduated from Oberlin High School in 1939. After high school he attended Oberlin College where he studied Botany and Chemistry. Otis was a member of the Oberlin football and track teams. After a position change from guard to running back, he culminated his football career by scoring two touchdowns during the final game of the 1942 season, clinching a win over Earlham College and a winning season for the Oberlin Yeomen. Otis accelerated his academic schedule as was common during the war and received his Bachelor of Arts in January 1943.
Immediately after college Otis volunteered for the Army Air Corps. After cadet training he received a commission as a 2nd Lieutenant and additional radio communication training. He was deployed to the Pacific Theater where he participated in the Admiralty Island and Philippine Campaigns, establishing control tower and long-distance radio stations at several airfields. He ended his military career with Occupation Duty in Japan. He was discharged as a Captain in September 1946.
After the War he continued his education, receiving a Master of Forestry from Yale University (1948) and a PhD from the University of Minnesota (1954). As a professor at Minnesota and later Purdue University, he was among the first to apply computer technology to forest inventory and management decisions. Dr. Hall was Head of the Department of Forestry at the University of New Hampshire (1968-74) and at Virginia Tech (1974-1984).
After stepping down as department head, Dr. Hall continued to teach until his retirement in 1992. Dr. Hall was a member of the Society of American Foresters for 67 years, serving the Society at many levels including the Editorial Board of the Journal of Forestry and chairman of the Virginia Division. He was elected a Fellow in 1979. Among his greatest satisfactions was following the careers of 28 graduate students to whom he was the major advisor and watching the success they achieved in government, industry, and education.
Otis married Helen L. Pilcher in 1957 in Topeka, Kan. They were happily married for 57 years. Otis was a member of the Blacksburg United Methodist Church. Otis took great pleasure in outdoor activities including canoeing, camping, hiking, skiing, and bicycling. During retirement, he traveled extensively doing genealogy research and always finding time to observe local forests around the world.
Otis was preceded in death by his parents; his sister, Lucy S. Rocher, and his first wife, J. Carol Zimmerman.
Otis is survived by his wife, Helen of Blacksburg, Va.; his son, Geoffrey (Lisa) Benedict-Hall of Reston, Va.; his daughter, Elizabeth (Jerry) Lubin of San Pedro, Calif.; and his daughter, Barbara Hall (John Eicholtz) of Murray, Utah. Otis has five grandchildren, Robert Hall, Carol Lynn Geib, Tristan Benedict-Hall, Daniel Lubin, and Trent Benedict-Hall; and seven great-grandchildren.
Services will be held at the Blacksburg United Methodist Church, 111 Church Street, on Saturday, January 31, 2015. The family will receive friends on Saturday at 2 p.m. in the Whisner Hall at the church prior to a memorial service at 3 p.m. A private interment will be held in Oberlin, Ohio, at a later date. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations be made to the Virginia Tech Student Chapter of the Society of American Foresters, 313 Cheatham Hall, Blacksburg, 24061. Arrangements by McCoy Funeral Home, Blacksburg, Va., 540-552-3211.
Posted in Obituaries on Tuesday, January 27, 2015 12:00 am.
Otis Frederick Hall, 93, of Blacksburg, Va., passed away on Friday, January 23, 2015, at the Kroontje Health Care Center. He was born on October 5, 1921, in Cleveland, Ohio, to Karl Nathaniel Hall and Mabel Dodge Hall.
Otis grew up in Oberlin, Ohio. He graduated from Oberlin High School in 1939. After high school he attended Oberlin College where he studied Botany and Chemistry. Otis was a member of the Oberlin football and track teams. After a position change from guard to running back, he culminated his football career by scoring two touchdowns during the final game of the 1942 season, clinching a win over Earlham College and a winning season for the Oberlin Yeomen. Otis accelerated his academic schedule as was common during the war and received his Bachelor of Arts in January 1943.
Immediately after college Otis volunteered for the Army Air Corps. After cadet training he received a commission as a 2nd Lieutenant and additional radio communication training. He was deployed to the Pacific Theater where he participated in the Admiralty Island and Philippine Campaigns, establishing control tower and long-distance radio stations at several airfields. He ended his military career with Occupation Duty in Japan. He was discharged as a Captain in September 1946.
After the War he continued his education, receiving a Master of Forestry from Yale University (1948) and a PhD from the University of Minnesota (1954). As a professor at Minnesota and later Purdue University, he was among the first to apply computer technology to forest inventory and management decisions. Dr. Hall was Head of the Department of Forestry at the University of New Hampshire (1968-74) and at Virginia Tech (1974-1984).
After stepping down as department head, Dr. Hall continued to teach until his retirement in 1992. Dr. Hall was a member of the Society of American Foresters for 67 years, serving the Society at many levels including the Editorial Board of the Journal of Forestry and chairman of the Virginia Division. He was elected a Fellow in 1979. Among his greatest satisfactions was following the careers of 28 graduate students to whom he was the major advisor and watching the success they achieved in government, industry, and education.
Otis married Helen L. Pilcher in 1957 in Topeka, Kan. They were happily married for 57 years. Otis was a member of the Blacksburg United Methodist Church. Otis took great pleasure in outdoor activities including canoeing, camping, hiking, skiing, and bicycling. During retirement, he traveled extensively doing genealogy research and always finding time to observe local forests around the world.
Otis was preceded in death by his parents; his sister, Lucy S. Rocher, and his first wife, J. Carol Zimmerman.
Otis is survived by his wife, Helen of Blacksburg, Va.; his son, Geoffrey (Lisa) Benedict-Hall of Reston, Va.; his daughter, Elizabeth (Jerry) Lubin of San Pedro, Calif.; and his daughter, Barbara Hall (John Eicholtz) of Murray, Utah. Otis has five grandchildren, Robert Hall, Carol Lynn Geib, Tristan Benedict-Hall, Daniel Lubin, and Trent Benedict-Hall; and seven great-grandchildren.
Services will be held at the Blacksburg United Methodist Church, 111 Church Street, on Saturday, January 31, 2015. The family will receive friends on Saturday at 2 p.m. in the Whisner Hall at the church prior to a memorial service at 3 p.m. A private interment will be held in Oberlin, Ohio, at a later date. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations be made to the Virginia Tech Student Chapter of the Society of American Foresters, 313 Cheatham Hall, Blacksburg, 24061. Arrangements by McCoy Funeral Home, Blacksburg, Va., 540-552-3211.
Posted in Obituaries on Tuesday, January 27, 2015 12:00 am.
Otis F. Hall, Virginia Tech Professor Emeritus and former Head of the Department of Forestry"
Otis Frederick Hall, 93, of Blacksburg, Va., passed away on Friday, January 23, 2015, at the Kroontje Health Care Center. He was born on October 5, 1921, in Cleveland, Ohio, to Karl Nathaniel Hall and Mabel Dodge Hall.
Otis grew up in Oberlin, Ohio. He graduated from Oberlin High School in 1939. After high school he attended Oberlin College where he studied Botany and Chemistry. Otis was a member of the Oberlin football and track teams. After a position change from guard to running back, he culminated his football career by scoring two touchdowns during the final game of the 1942 season, clinching a win over Earlham College and a winning season for the Oberlin Yeomen. Otis accelerated his academic schedule as was common during the war and received his Bachelor of Arts in January 1943.
Immediately after college Otis volunteered for the Army Air Corps. After cadet training he received a commission as a 2nd Lieutenant and additional radio communication training. He was deployed to the Pacific Theater where he participated in the Admiralty Island and Philippine Campaigns, establishing control tower and long-distance radio stations at several airfields. He ended his military career with Occupation Duty in Japan. He was discharged as a Captain in September 1946.
After the War he continued his education, receiving a Master of Forestry from Yale University (1948) and a PhD from the University of Minnesota (1954). As a professor at Minnesota and later Purdue University, he was among the first to apply computer technology to forest inventory and management decisions. Dr. Hall was Head of the Department of Forestry at the University of New Hampshire (1968-74) and at Virginia Tech (1974-1984).
After stepping down as department head, Dr. Hall continued to teach until his retirement in 1992. Dr. Hall was a member of the Society of American Foresters for 67 years, serving the Society at many levels including the Editorial Board of the Journal of Forestry and chairman of the Virginia Division. He was elected a Fellow in 1979. Among his greatest satisfactions was following the careers of 28 graduate students to whom he was the major advisor and watching the success they achieved in government, industry, and education.
Otis married Helen L. Pilcher in 1957 in Topeka, Kan. They were happily married for 57 years. Otis was a member of the Blacksburg United Methodist Church. Otis took great pleasure in outdoor activities including canoeing, camping, hiking, skiing, and bicycling. During retirement, he traveled extensively doing genealogy research and always finding time to observe local forests around the world.
Otis was preceded in death by his parents; his sister, Lucy S. Rocher, and his first wife, J. Carol Zimmerman.
Otis is survived by his wife, Helen of Blacksburg, Va.; his son, Geoffrey (Lisa) Benedict-Hall of Reston, Va.; his daughter, Elizabeth (Jerry) Lubin of San Pedro, Calif.; and his daughter, Barbara Hall (John Eicholtz) of Murray, Utah. Otis has five grandchildren, Robert Hall, Carol Lynn Geib, Tristan Benedict-Hall, Daniel Lubin, and Trent Benedict-Hall; and seven great-grandchildren.
Services will be held at the Blacksburg United Methodist Church, 111 Church Street, on Saturday, January 31, 2015. The family will receive friends on Saturday at 2 p.m. in the Whisner Hall at the church prior to a memorial service at 3 p.m. A private interment will be held in Oberlin, Ohio, at a later date. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations be made to the Virginia Tech Student Chapter of the Society of American Foresters, 313 Cheatham Hall, Blacksburg, 24061. Arrangements by McCoy Funeral Home, Blacksburg, Va., 540-552-3211.
Posted in Obituaries on Tuesday, January 27, 2015 12:00 am.
Otis Frederick Hall, 93, of Blacksburg, Va., passed away on Friday, January 23, 2015, at the Kroontje Health Care Center. He was born on October 5, 1921, in Cleveland, Ohio, to Karl Nathaniel Hall and Mabel Dodge Hall.
Otis grew up in Oberlin, Ohio. He graduated from Oberlin High School in 1939. After high school he attended Oberlin College where he studied Botany and Chemistry. Otis was a member of the Oberlin football and track teams. After a position change from guard to running back, he culminated his football career by scoring two touchdowns during the final game of the 1942 season, clinching a win over Earlham College and a winning season for the Oberlin Yeomen. Otis accelerated his academic schedule as was common during the war and received his Bachelor of Arts in January 1943.
Immediately after college Otis volunteered for the Army Air Corps. After cadet training he received a commission as a 2nd Lieutenant and additional radio communication training. He was deployed to the Pacific Theater where he participated in the Admiralty Island and Philippine Campaigns, establishing control tower and long-distance radio stations at several airfields. He ended his military career with Occupation Duty in Japan. He was discharged as a Captain in September 1946.
After the War he continued his education, receiving a Master of Forestry from Yale University (1948) and a PhD from the University of Minnesota (1954). As a professor at Minnesota and later Purdue University, he was among the first to apply computer technology to forest inventory and management decisions. Dr. Hall was Head of the Department of Forestry at the University of New Hampshire (1968-74) and at Virginia Tech (1974-1984).
After stepping down as department head, Dr. Hall continued to teach until his retirement in 1992. Dr. Hall was a member of the Society of American Foresters for 67 years, serving the Society at many levels including the Editorial Board of the Journal of Forestry and chairman of the Virginia Division. He was elected a Fellow in 1979. Among his greatest satisfactions was following the careers of 28 graduate students to whom he was the major advisor and watching the success they achieved in government, industry, and education.
Otis married Helen L. Pilcher in 1957 in Topeka, Kan. They were happily married for 57 years. Otis was a member of the Blacksburg United Methodist Church. Otis took great pleasure in outdoor activities including canoeing, camping, hiking, skiing, and bicycling. During retirement, he traveled extensively doing genealogy research and always finding time to observe local forests around the world.
Otis was preceded in death by his parents; his sister, Lucy S. Rocher, and his first wife, J. Carol Zimmerman.
Otis is survived by his wife, Helen of Blacksburg, Va.; his son, Geoffrey (Lisa) Benedict-Hall of Reston, Va.; his daughter, Elizabeth (Jerry) Lubin of San Pedro, Calif.; and his daughter, Barbara Hall (John Eicholtz) of Murray, Utah. Otis has five grandchildren, Robert Hall, Carol Lynn Geib, Tristan Benedict-Hall, Daniel Lubin, and Trent Benedict-Hall; and seven great-grandchildren.
Services will be held at the Blacksburg United Methodist Church, 111 Church Street, on Saturday, January 31, 2015. The family will receive friends on Saturday at 2 p.m. in the Whisner Hall at the church prior to a memorial service at 3 p.m. A private interment will be held in Oberlin, Ohio, at a later date. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations be made to the Virginia Tech Student Chapter of the Society of American Foresters, 313 Cheatham Hall, Blacksburg, 24061. Arrangements by McCoy Funeral Home, Blacksburg, Va., 540-552-3211.
Posted in Obituaries on Tuesday, January 27, 2015 12:00 am.
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