Dr. W. Cullen Sherwood (1932-2016)

William Cullen Sherwood, 84, of Harrisonburg, died peacefully on April 12, 2016. He was born on Feb. 8, 1932, in Washington, D.C., and attended school in Fairfax County, Va. In 1954, he graduated from the University of Virginia and was a member of Phi Beta Kappa. He served in the U.S. Army, stationed in Austria and Germany with the 69th Engineering Company. He returned to the states to do graduate work at U.Va. and Lehigh University, where he completed a Ph.D. in geology in 1961. Dr. Sherwood began his career as a geologist at the Virginia Transportation Research Council in Charlottesville, Va., before joining the faculty at U.Va. In 1971, he took a new position at James Madison University, where he taught for 42 years. Sherwood published books and articles in both geology and Civil War history and received several honors during his long career. He was a dedicated teacher and mentor and leaves behind a legacy of generations of students committed to the study and protection of natural and cultural resources, many of whom are working and teaching in the Earth sciences.

 

A committed land conservationist, Cullen Sherwood served on the boards of the Valley Conservation Council, the Piedmont Environmental Council and the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation. He was a lifelong student of the Civil War and enjoyed the fellowship of the local Civil War Roundtable.

 

Cullen Sherwood was devoted to his family. He was the son of Maxwell Cullen Sherwood and Edith Denny Sherwood and is preceded in death by his wife, Phoebe A. Wilson Sherwood, who passed away in 2004. He is survived by a daughter, Sarah C. Sherwood, of Sewanee, Tenn.; and two sons, Stuart C. Sherwood of Savannah, Ga., and Aaron M. Sherwood (wife, Mia) of Harrisonburg, Va., and two grandsons, Jackson and Nathaniel Sherwood. He is also survived by sisters, Shirley VanVleet and Rebecca Keys and their families.

 

In lieu of flowers the family suggests memorial contributions be made to James Madison University’s W. Cullen Sherwood Scholarship, which has been honoring exceptional JMU students in geology and the Earth sciences for several years; the Valley Conservation Council; or the Arthritis National Research Foundation.

 

Private interment will be at the Woodbine Cemetery in Harrisonburg, Va. A picnic gathering will be held this summer (date to be announced) for family and friends to come together and celebrate his life.