William W. "Bill" Osborne

William W. Osborne, age 95 of Gwynedd Estates and formerly of Aidenn Lair in Dresher,PA a microbiologist who worked for 40 years in laboratories that ranged from public health to the pharmaceutical industry, died Tuesday October 13, 2015 at Abington Hospice at Warminster. Mr. Osborne was born in a farm house at Buhl, Idaho on April 29, 1920. At the age of 4 his family moved to Portland, Oregon and then to Bellingham, Washington. He received his primary school education at Bellingham and later in Anacortes, Washington. His mother, Hattie Luntey Osborne died in 1934. He graduated from high school in Anacortes in the Class of 1937. He had just turned 17 years. He then attended Junior College at Mount Vernon, Washington (now Skagit Valley Junior College in Burlington, Washington). In order to attend the Junior College, he worked part time on a chicken ranch near Mt. Vernon for his board and room. To earn money for more college training, he worked a year and a half as a glue mixer at the Anacortes Veneer Company. He enrolled in the Washington State College (now Washington State university) at Pullman, Washington in 1941. In the summer of 1942 he was employed as a journeyman elec...[more]

View Full Online Obituary and Tributes

cian by the Austin Company at the Whidby Naval Air Station, then under construction. This enabled him to continue his college education. In 1943, in his senior year of college, his studies were interrupted by World War II. He enlisted in the Army Medical Corp. After basic training at Abaline, Texas and specialist training at Springfield, Missouri he was assigned to the 39th Malaria Survey Unit. After staging in New Orleans, the Unit was shipped out of San Francisco to New Guinea. As the war advanced, the Unit moved to Manila in the Philippine Islands and then to Otaru and Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan. While on active duty he attained the rank of Technical Sergeant and later, in the Army Reserve, reached the grade of second Lieutenant. He returned to Washington State College and received his bachelor's degree in Bacteriology and Public Health in 1946. After an additional year of study at the University of Washington, in Seattle, he was employed in the laboratories of the Washington State Health Department at Seattle in 1947. In 1948 he became the Chief of Microbiology at the Fort Lawton Station Hospital, a part of the Army Port of Embarkation in Seattle. In 1949 he transferred to the Microbiology Research Division, Bureau of Laboratories, Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, Maryland. His research developed a microbiological fermentation process that improved the quality of dried egg white for use in angel food cakes. It was here that he met and married, in 1950, Barbara Ann Kirchner, a native of Washington, D.C. y Research Division was transferred to the Western Regional Research Laboratories of the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Albany, California. Mr. and Mrs. Osborne were the only people willing to make the transfer to California. At this laboratory Mr. Osborne conducted research on poultry products, and specifically on the incidence and control of Salmonella bacteria in poultry products. His research determined the thermal death time for different strains of Salmonella. This was instrumental in the development of a pasteurization process for liquid egg products. In 1955 Mr. Osborne and his family of wife and two children moved to Frederick, Maryland. He transferred to the Biological Warfare Laboratories of the U.S. Army at Fort Detrick. He conducted early experiments in the growth of biological agents in stirred fermenters. In 1956, Mr. Osborne transferred to the Industrial Test Laboratory at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He evaluated disinfectants and methods used by the Navy. He became involved in the sampling and the isolation of Pseudomonas bacteria from the jet fuel storage tanks aboard aircraft carriers stationed at Mayport, Florida. The ships were the Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Saratoga. He and his family lived in Greenfields Village, Woodbury, New Jersey. In 1958, when the Navy Yard had a reduction in work force, Mr. Osborne became Chief of Bacteriology in the laboratories of the Presbyterian Hospital in Philadelphia. He conducted training classes and gave lectures to student trainees in laboratory technology. In 1960, Mr. Osborne joined the pharmaceutical company of William H. Rorer, Inc., the manufacturers of 'MAALOX' as Manager of Microbiology. He remained in this position for 25 years until he retired in June of 1985. In 1961 the family moved to Trinity Place, Upper Dublin Township (near Ambler, PA). Their home was one of the original stone houses built by Dr. R. V. Mattison in June of 1903. In 1982 Mr. and Mrs. Osborne moved to Aidenn Lair Road in Dresher. Then in the beginning of 1997 they moved to Gwynedd Estates. Mr. Osborne is an Emeritus member of the American Society for Microbiology, having joined in 1950. He is an Emeritus member of the Philadelphia Branch of the American Society for Microbiology. He was a member of the National Registry of Microbiologists of the American Academy of Microbiologists. For many years he served as a committee member and treasurer of Troop 3, Ambler of the Boy Scouts of America. Bill was an avid stamp collector and was a member of the Ambler Stamp Club. After his retirement from William H. Rorer[ Inc. he served two years as the "Loaned Executive" to the United Way of Southeastern Pennsylvania. He and his wife were avid skiers and their favorite vacations have been trips to the Tirol in Austria where they developed strong ties with an Austrian family. His hobbies have been his home, his yard and garden and many woodworking and handyman projects. In recent years he has enjoyed his personal computer using it to correspond with friends all over the world. Mr. Osborne was preceded in death by his wife, Barbara Ann (nee Kirchner) Osborne in 2010, and His sister, Dorothy Marie Osborne Day of Victorville, California. He is survived by his son, William (Bill) Wesley Osborne, III of Sheboygan Wisconsin. and his daughter, Susan Jeanne Osborne Bailey and her husband Rich of Feasterville, Pennsylvania. Relatives and friends are invited to his Graveside Military Honors on Thursday October 22, 2015 at 1:00 PM at Washington Crossing National Cemetery 830 Highland Road Newtown, PA 18940 Remembrances in his name to the Abington Hospice at Warminster 1200 Old York Road Abington, PA 19001 would be appreciated by the Family.