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William L. 'Bill' Konrad Niantic, CT QCWA # 23147 Chapter 149 |
East Lyme - William L. Konrad, 95, passed away peacefully in his sleep on Wednesday, June 21, 2017.
He was born Dec 15, 1921, in Pittsburgh, PA, the son of the late William A. Konrad and Catherine M. (Lawrence) Konrad. He was predeceased by his wife Dorothy (Weyman) Konrad, his wife of 57 years, whom he married Nov 27, 1948 in Pittsburgh. He leaves his children, William W. Konrad of Dunedin, FL and Barbara J. Wheeler of Newark VT; and his grandchildren, William M. Konrad , Krista Bright and Curtis Wheeler.
Bill served in the Navy from July 21, 1944 to June 8, 1946 as a radar technician. He went on to graduate from Carnegie Institute of Technology (now Carnegie Mellon) in 1948 as an electrical engineer. He enjoyed a wide and varied engineering career, first with Union Switch and Signal, where he designed and tested railroad and mine communication equipment. This work found him riding locomotives and working in coal and salt mines.
With Avco Corp in 1959, and Raytheon Co in 1967 in New London, he commenced a career in underwater acoustics. In 1970, he joined the Naval Underwater Sound Laboratory (USNUSL) furthering his career in nonlinear and underwater acoustics where he became widely recognized in the discipline, lecturing extensively here and abroad. Elected as a fellow of the Acoustical Society of America, and senior engineer in the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers, he authored over 100 papers mostly on nonlinear acoustics. Bill holds 20 patents on acoustical and electronic devices.
He received many awards including the prestigious Decibel Award upon retirement from the Navy lab in 1986. As a consultant with the Kildare Corp and others, he continued his work in underwater acoustics for several more years.
Bill served on the board of the East Lyme Land Conservation Trust helping making trails in Oswegatchie Hills. In his earlier years, he was active in boat building and sailing, and was a member of the Niantic Bay Yacht Club. His hobbies included amateur radio (licensed since 1938), hiking, traveling, and repairing electrical devices for friends and family. He also coordinated the Tuesday luncheons of the Navy lab retirees and the amateur radio operators where he occasionally gave short "show and tells" on technical subjects.
Calling hours will be from 5 to 7 pm Monday, June 26, at the Thomas L. Neilan and Sons Funeral Home, 48 Grand St, Niantic. A Mass will be celebrated at St Agnes Church at 11 am Tuesday, June 27, at interment will follow in East Lyme Cemetery, Boston Post Road, East Lyme. A luncheon will follow at the Great Neck Country Club in Waterford.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to a charity of the donors choice.
Online condolences may be expressed at www.neilanfuneralhome.com.
Published in The Day on June 24, 2017