Donald J. Hamlin ’43

Donald J. Hamlin ’43 died on December 17, 2010, in North Kingstown, Rhode Island.

He was born on May 3, 1921, in Dexter, Maine, son of James A. Hamlin of the Bowdoin Class of 1900, and prepared for college at Sanford High School. He was a member of Alpha Tau Omega fraternity. He served to technician fifth class in the Army during World War II. While stationed in Australia, he served as a cryptographer with the division that was instrumental in breaking the Japanese code and ending the war in the Pacific. After his discharge, he earned a master’s degree in French from Middlebury College in 1947. He taught French and Spanish at Maplewood (N.J.) Junior High School for more than 30 years before retiring in 1982. He was a member of the Retired Teachers Association of New Jersey and St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, where he was a lay minister and member of the choir. He is survived by his wife of 62 years, Natalie Richmond Hamlin; two sons, William R. and Robert D. Hamlin; a daughter, Nancy H. Bennett; and four grandchildren. He was predeceased by a brother, Franklin G. Hamlin ’36.