Arthur Joseph McEvily

Arthur Joseph McEvily, Jr., 94, of Mansfield Center, CT, passed away on November 17, 2019.  He is survived by his wife of 65 years, Jane McEvily; his sons, William McEvily, of Mansfield Center, CT, and his two children, Geoffrey and Allysha; Terence McEvily, and his wife, April, of Waterford, CT, and their two sons, Keith and Joey; Timothy McEvily of Manchester, CT; his daughter Melissa McEvily-Schoeplein of Storrs, CT, and her three children, Ryan, Kyle and Courtney. Arthur had four great-grandchildren, Geneva, Mia, Korra and Sterling.

Arthur was born in Brooklyn, NY on December 20, 1924 to the late Arthur Joseph McEvily, Sr. and Ann Lehman.  He had two younger siblings, Patricia and John, who pre-deceased him.  Arthur was a brilliant man who lived a long, full, and meaningful life.  Arthur served in the Navy during World War II.  After receiving his D.Sc. from Columbia University in 1959, Arthur worked as an Aeronautical Research Scientist at NASA in Langley, VA and later served as the Head of the Solid States Physics Section.  He then worked as a Research Scientist at Ford Motor Company for six years before joining the University of Connecticut as Head of the Metallurgy Department from 1967-1978.  He has authored or co-authored more than 240 papers and several books and textbooks on Metal Failures.  In addition to UConn, Arthur also taught at Stanford and at partner universities around the world.  As Professor Emeritus of Metallurgy at UConn, Arthur remained engaged in his work through his final years.

Arthur’s work was recognized globally as an authority on fatigue and fracture of metals and alloys.  He was the recipient of several awards including the Henry Marion Howe Medal of American Society for Metals (ASM) in 1964 and became a fellow in 1975.  In 1983, he was awarded the Nadai Medal from the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) and was elected a fellow in 1995.  His honors also include the Award of the Mechanics and Materials Division of the Japan Society of Mechanical Engineers (JSME) in 1992, Honorary Fellow and Life Member of International Fatigue Congress in 1995, and Egleston Medal from Columbia University in 1996.  In 2006, the ASM/TMS Mechanical Behavior of Materials Committee sponsored a symposium in honor of Dr. McEvily.  In 2009, he was elected a Fellow of the International Congress on Fracture (ICF) and was honored during the conference of ICF as one of only 52 living Fellows.

Arthur loved to travel and see the world.  He was a passionate runner, shared a wonderful sense of humor, and was always laughing.  May Art’s beautiful Irish eyes always shine on all who had the pleasure of knowing him.

There will be a private burial with military honors. A Celebration of Life is planned for December 8, 2019 at the American Legion Post 19 in Willimantic; all are welcome to attend.  The family extends heartfelt thanks to the staff at Douglas Manor who cared for Arthur during the end of his life. In lieu of flowers memorial donations in Arthur’s name are suggested to American Legion Post 19, 339 Brick Top Rd, Windham, CT 06280. To sign the online memorial guestbook please visit www.potterfuneralhomes.com

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