Longtime Southampton resident William Lea Glanville died April 25 at John J. Foley Skilled Nursing Facility in Yaphank, where he lived for the past six years. Known simply as “Bill,” he was 90.
Born September 10, 1919, in Brooklyn to Mary (née Kehl) and Dr. William E. Glanville, he moved with his family to Southampton when he was a young child. His father, Dr. Glanville, had a medical office in the family home on Herrick Road and practiced at Southampton Hospital. Mrs. Glanville and her siblings were natives of Bridgehampton.
Mr. Glanville graduated from Southampton High School and Syracuse University. He served in the U.S. Army in Europe from 1942 to 1945. After working for a few years, he returned to his parents’ home on Herrick Road, where he lived for more than 50 years. In his later years, he was a well-known figure in Southampton Village, dressed in a hat, jacket and tie walking to the local stores, or riding his bicycle along the roads of the South Fork.
He is survived by a sister, Marjorie Glanville, a first cousin, Patricia Softy Briele of St. Johnsville, New York, and second cousins Susan Thorpe and Katherine Thorpe, both of Brooklyn. His father predeceased him in 1959 and his mother in 1981.
A graveside service officiated by the Reverend Richard Boyer of the First Presbyterian Church of Southampton was held May 1 at Edgewood Cemetery in Bridgehampton. Mr. Glanville received full military honors with Taps playing as the American flag was presented in his honor to his cousin, Patricia S. Briele. Funeral arrangements were under the direction of O’Connell Funeral Home in Southampton.
on May 19, 2010