Barbara S. Upton

Barbara Sargent Upton, age 90, wife of George Thomas Upton, died June 28, 2014 in Topeka, Kansas after enduring 12 years of Alzheimer’s disease.

She was born Barbara Lois Sargent on February 23, 1924 in Malden, Massachuesetts, daughter of Pearl Hallworth Sargent and Walter Sargent.

Her family moved to Contoocook, New Hampshire when she was seven and later to Concord, NH, where she graduated from Concord High School and met George. She graduated summa cum laude from University of New Hampshire in the spring of 1945 and married her husband on November 2, 1945, the day he graduated from the U.S. Naval Reserve Midshipmen School.

After leaving the Navy in 1946, the couple moved to Stratford, Connecticut where George began working for Chance Vought Aircraft. They moved with the company to Dallas, Texas and lived there for 31 years. While in Dallas, Barbara was an active volunteer in her children’s schools and a member of The League of Women Voters. She served as chairman of a remedial reading program for high school students after the schools were integrated.

In 1979, Barbara and George retired to Andover, NH and lived in a lovely Cape Cod style farmhouse built in 1791. She enjoyed gardening, skiing, and mountain climbing in the White Mountains of her childhood. Barbara and George started the Andover Historical Society and Barbara continued to serve others in the Andover Service Club. They celebrated 60 years of marriage with a family reunion at Bretton Woods, NH. in 2005, where they climbed down Mount Washington together. In 2009, she moved with her husband to Topeka, Kansas to be closer to their family.

Barbara is survived by her loving husband George, to whom she was married for 68 years, her three children: Susan ( Tom) Hudiburgh of Carrolton, TX, Tom (Nancy) Upton of Sausalito, CA, Nan (Hank) Nelson of Topeka, KS, 6 grandchildren, one great grandchild and her brother Richard ( Martha) Sargent of Springfield, Virginia. She was predeceased by brother Herbert Sargent and her sister, Ruth Foote.

A private graveside will be held on July 3 at Memorial Park Cemetery and a memorial service is planned for 2 pm on July 21, 2014 at Topeka Bible Church, 1135 College Avenue, Topeka, Kansas.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Andover Historical Society, PO Box 167, Andover, NH 03216.