Physician-Poet William Carlos Williams Dead at 79

Mar. 4, 1963 - Dr. William Carlos Williams (pictured in 1955), a leading American poet for half a century, died in his sleep this morning at his home in Rutherford, N.J. Death was attributed to a cerebral hemorrhage. He was 79 years old. Dr. Williams delivered 2,000 babies, most of them in Rutherford and surrounding towns, between 1910 and 1952, when he retired from practice. Dr. Williams began to write poetry in his student days at the University of Pennsylvania Medical School. This year, he was one of the finalists for the National Book Award, which he had won previously. Dr. Williams is survived by his wife, the former Florence Herman of Rutherford; a son, Dr. William Eric Williams of Rutherford, and seven grandchildren.

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