John Benton Knox

READFIELD – John Benton Knox died on Saturday, Dec. 28, 2024, at the age of 93 at Maine Medical Center in Portland.

He was born March 12, 1931, to Edythe Rumpf Knox and John Benton Knox in New Rochelle, New York. The family later moved to Philadelphia.

John grew up there, first in Torresdale, attending the Convent School of the Sacred Heart for his early grades. The family then moved to Haverford, where he attended the Haverford School for Boys, a place he always loved, and where he made friends that lasted a lifetime. He went on to Dartmouth College, from which he graduated in 1952.

John served as an officer in the U.S. Navy in Vietnam, before the war, when the French were still a presence. He came home and attended the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, earning an MBA. His first job was at Young and Rubicon in New York, again, a place he loved. After a corporate life for a number of years, he and Regina Gilmartin married in 1984 and moved to Maine, first to Blue Hill. 

An opportunity to serve on the staff of the Maine Legislature opened, and they then moved briefly to Gardiner, and then to Readfield in 1986. Julia, their daughter, was born later in that same year. Julia was their greatest blessing.

John lived in a home he loved for almost forty years. He spent his retirement years tending to that home, puttering, working in his flower beds, and raking the leaves. He loved the natural world and the night sky. 

All this he loved. He also loved exploring the places and little towns of Maine, going to public breakfasts and suppers, antiquing, and researching almost everything, including his family’s roots and history. He was long interested in historic preservation and made himself a student of it.

He was a dedicated volunteer for a number of years at SCORE (Service Core of Retired Executives) and was also a regular volunteer at the Readfield Library and the Readfield Historical Society.

John loved the ocean, and as much as he loved Maine’s rocky coast, he always loved the Jersey Shore of his childhood a little more. He was able to happily return there many times over the years. John loved music of all sorts – classical, jazz, hymns – and from his vast collection of records, listened almost every day. He enjoyed movies and watched one every Saturday evening, first from Netflix, and then those that came to him weekly from the Readfield Library for which he was very grateful. He loved cats, the family’s especially, but all cats, all creatures.

He was a fiercely independent New Englander, with a great dry wit, and came from a long line of Connecticut Puritans on his father’s side. He was able to be so, just up until the end, when he fell getting ready for Christmas. John loved Christmas. 

John was a member of the Readfield Historical Society, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the Mayflower Society, and St Andrew’s Episcopal Church.

He was predeceased by his beloved daughter, Julia Mead Knox, in November of 2023.

He is survived by his wife, Regina Gilmartin Knox. He is also survived by nieces and numerous cousins. 

There will be visiting hours at the Roberts Funeral Home at 62 Bowdoin Street in Winthrop on January 10, from 3-5 p.m. A funeral service will be held at Christ Church Episcopal, at 2 Dresden Street, in Gardiner, on Saturday, January 11, at 11 a.m.

John will be buried with his ancestors in Connecticut. He will receive military honors at that time.

Arrangements and guidance are in the care of Roberts Funeral Home and Cremation Care, 62 Bowdoin Street, Winthrop.

Condolences, memories, and photos may be shared with the family on the obituary page of the Roberts Funeral Home website, http://www.khrfuneralhomes.com.