Dr. Royce William Miller

HALLOWELL – Dr. Royce William Miller, 92, died peacefully of heart failure at Northern Light Lakewood Continuing Care in his beloved Maine on Saturday May 23, 2020.Royce grew up working on his family’s farm in Appleton with his parents, Susie and Barclay Miller, siblings, Mary, Alice Jean and Suzanne and cousin, Trudy. Royce played piano and organ from an early age. At the age of 16 Royce entered Bates College, where the world of education opened and he excelled in languages. Royce has degrees from Bates (A.B. 1948), Middlebury College (M.A. 1953), and The George Washington University (Ph.D. 1967). Royce taught in Maine public schools from 1948 to 1956. From 1956 until his retirement in 1993, he was a professor at Gordon College in Wenham, Mass. where he taught and mentored generations of college students in Spanish, French, German and Linguistics and was Chair of the Foreign Languages Department.Royce published extensively in his academic specialties of Spanish, linguistics, and Shepardic ballads and culture. He was a published poet. He also was an avid lifelong genealogist and Maine historian, and published extensively in Maine Life and other media. His documentation of history and genealogy in and near Appleton included titles such as “Rufus Miller, Early Settler of Burkettville and Appleton”, “Appleton Baptist Church History”, “Uriah Norton Dyer II: Notes on his Life and Works, with some Illustrations of his Artistry”, “Dr. Frank Gushee, Appleton Physician”, ” The Diaries and Letters of Harry Pease”, and detailed histories of the Collins, Davis, Gushee, Barclay and Miller families. The Appleton Historical Society recognized Royce as the Appointed Historian of Appleton, Maine.Royce and his wife Gertrude lived for over 55 years on Lobster Cove in Annisquam, Mass. In Massachusetts, they sang in Chorus North Shore and the choir of the Annisquam Village Church. Royce played violin in the Cape Ann Symphony for 25 years. He also played violin in the Gordon College Orchestra. In 2016, Royce and Gertrude returned to Maine to live in the wonderful senior community at Granite Hill Estates in Hallowell.Royce is loved and missed by his dear wife, Gertrude Charlotte Cleveland Miller of Hallowell; sister and brother-in-law, Alice Jean and Bud Hopkins of Brunswick; cousin, Trudy Ricker of Hallowell; daughter and son-in-law, Marijean Miller MD and J. Preston Read of Washington, D.C., son and son-in-law. Royce Miller II and Edmund Hess of Appleton; grandsons, John Preston Read Jr. and Stuart LeConte Read; nieces, nephews, and other family members and friends.The family appreciates the prayers and kindness of so many people. Memorial/celebration services will be held later this year in Appleton, and Annisquam, Mass., dates to be announced. Donations in Royce’s memory may be made toAppleton Historical SocietyF. Bucklin, President2916 Sennebec Rd.Appleton, ME 04862orAnnisquam Village Church820 Washington St.Gloucester, MA 01930