William Cameron

William Lang Cameron, 89, of Easton Maryland, died on Saturday, December 6, 2025 of complications from pneumonia. 

Bill is survived by his daughter, Cynthia L. Cameron of Toronto ON, his son and daughter-in-law, Douglas M. Cameron and Tia L. Cameron of Kingston NY, and his grandson, Thomas Lang Cameron of Kingston NY.  He is predeceased by his wife of 46 years, Judith Ann Booth Cameron, his father, Francis K. Cameron, his mother, Dorothy Louise Lang Cameron, and his brother, Frank Cameron. 

Bill was born in Spokane, WA on September 21, 1936, lived for a time in Toronto, Ontario, and grew up in Summit, New Jersey.  He attended Oratory Preparatory School in Summit, New Jersey and Pingry School, then located in Hillside, New Jersey.  After graduating from Pingry, Bill completed a Bachelor of Science degree in Geology from Yale University and a Master of Science in Economic Geology from Stanford University.  Bill was a veteran of the United States Army, having served as a medic in Germany in the mid-1950s. 

While studying geology at Yale and Stanford, Bill had a number of summer jobs that shaped his career as a geologist and fed his love of travel.  A job with St. Joseph Lead Company (of which his father was the President) took him to rural Maine and, for three summers as a college student, Bill worked for the Anaconda Company, which took him to British Columbia, Arizona, Utah, and Nevada.  After graduation from Stanford, he spent a summer working for Nicol Industrial Minerals in Greece.  As a career geologist, Bill worked for a number of mining and financial institutions, including in exploration as a District Geologist for Hanna Mining (Missoula, MT) and as a District Manager for Jododex Australia (Perth, Western Australia).  He also served as Vice President for Exploration for Pacific Tin (New York, NY) and as Vice President and Chief Mining Engineer for Chemical Bank (New York, NY).  After retiring from Chemical Bank, Bill served as a Principle in Brookchester Recourses, a consulting and natural resource holding company.

As an exploration geologist, Bill loved being in the field and being a part of discovering new resources.  Early in his career, he was the first to look at several regions from an economic geology perspective, such as in Alaska and Labrador, Canada.  While at Chemical Bank, he worked on larger projects in places like Papua New Guinea.  He was among the last generation of explorers of the surface of the earth.

Bill’s career took him and his family across the United States and to Australia.  After their marriage, Bill and Judy lived in Roseburg, Oregon, where their daughter Cindy was born, and Missoula, Montana.  An opportunity to work for Jododex Australia prompted Bill and Judy to move to Australia – first to Kalgoorlie, where their son Douglas was born, and then to Perth in Western Australia.  A move back to the United States in the early 1970s brought the family to Monticello, Georgia and Morristown, New Jersey.  After his retirement from Chemical Bank and with Cindy and Douglas grown to adulthood, Bill and Judy moved to Chestertown, Maryland, owning and renovating a 1906 Victorian house on Water Street, along the Chester River.  After Judy’s death in 2013, Bill lived briefly in a home he built on the south side of the river.  The last few years, Bill lived at Bayleigh Chase, a retirement community in Easton, Maryland.

A committed member of his community, Bill served on the school board in Harding Township, New Jersey, on board of the Friends of the Chestertown Library in Chestertown, Maryland, and on the board of Kent Youth in Chestertown, Maryland.  He supported many charitable organizations, ranging from schools and universities to NPR radio stations and PSB television stations and charities supporting veterans, the homeless, and rescue animals. 

Bill was an avid sailor, learning to sail at camps in his youth and bringing this passion to his children.  Time spent with family and friends on his boats was special to Bill.  While living in Perth, Bill was a member of South of Perth Yacht Club, out of which he sailed “Geneva” on the Swan River.  When the family moved to New Jersey, Bill taught his own children to sail on “Cygnet,” a Victoria 18 daysailer, sailing out of Tom’s River and Spruce Run and even taking the boat to sail out of Basin Harbor on Lake Champlain in Vermont.  His last boat, “Achnacarry,” was a Cape Dory Motorsailor with which he and his family explored the Chesapeake Bay and the Chester River.  Many happy Fourth of July nights were spent watching the Rock Hall Fireworks from the deck of “Achnacarry.”  While they lived in Australia for just a few years, it became one of Bill’s favorite places, and he and Judy returned there many times in retirement.  While visiting, Bill joined the Royal Perth Yacht Club and crewed on racing sailboats.  The strong winds of the Swan River and the cold beer at the yacht club led to many happy memories.  Bill also enjoyed hiking and fishing and, in his retirement, he joined the Rock Hall Yacht Club and spent time building model boats, reading, and cooking.  He loved spending time with family and was especially delighted with his grandson, Lang, saying to everyone what an impressive kid he is.  Bill’s family will miss him always.

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