William Richard Keye

William (Bill) R. Keye, Sr., St Paul Business and Civic Leader, age 88 passed away on Tuesday, May 11, 2010 at home from complications of a stroke. He was born on June 21, 1921 to Andrew Davis Keye and Myrtle McCall Keye. He was an intelligent, caring, hardworking, and generous man who greatly enriched the lives of his family and friends. He married Jane Elizabeth (Betty) Snell on June 12, 1942 in Hamline Methodist Church and they had three children, Dr. William Keye (Suzanne), Stephen Keye (Zehra) and Linda Keye (Michael McGrath). William was preceded in death by his father, Andrew; mother, Myrtle; stepmother, Alma; wife, Betty; and son, Stephen. He is survived by his son, Dr. William (Suzanne) R. Keye, Jr., daughter, Linda Keye (Michael McGrath); three grandchildren, Deborah Keye Shea, Jeffrey Scott Keye and Emir Avsar Keye; and three great grandchildren, Aidan, Olivia and Hazel. After graduating from Mechanic Arts High School, he attended Hamline University and the University of Minnesota and graduated from the University in 1943 with a Bachelor of Electrical Engineering with Distinction. He was also elected to Tau Beta Pi in recognition of his outstanding scholastic achievement. He later served on the faculty and on the Board of Trustees of Hamline University. Following graduation, he accepted a job with Airborne Instruments Laboratory on Long Island, New York, where he worked with a magnetic anomaly detector used to detect enemy submarines, while flying in the PBY, also known as a Catalina Flying Boat, and a B18 known as the Flying Fortress. After WWII he worked for RCA in Lancaster, PA designing vacuum tubes for radio transmitters. In 1947 he returned to St. Paul and worked for Engineering Research Associates where he was a member of a team that developed an early prototype of a computer, named ATLAS, which was later delivered to the US Navy. Following three years with Remington Rand Univac from 1954-1957, he co-founded Control Data Corporation (CDC), which was once described as the "Apple Computer of its time" and by 1960 had built the most powerful computer in the world. During his career at CDC he served as Vice President of Operations, Senior Vice President, Executive Vice President, Chairman of the Executive Committee and Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors. He also served as President of the Mid-America International Trading Company and on the Boards of Directors of First National Bank of St. Paul, Commercial Credit Company and Minnesota Pharmaceutical Laboratories, Inc. In 1975 he had the privilege of accompanying Governor Wendell Anderson and a group of business leaders to Japan and the People's Republic of China to stimulate international trade with companies based in Minnesota. He retired from Control Data Corporation in 1984, but remained interested in personal computers, politics, finances and genealogy. He compiled and self-published numerous volumes detailing his family history. Always looking for a project, he recently purchased an Apple computer and was eager to learn how to use it to create even more extensive genealogic documents for his family and friends. The family wishes to express their gratitude to Judy Gagne, Lisa Johnson, Jacqueline Kloos and Diane Smythe who served as devoted and loving caregivers to Bill and Betty for the past several years. Private services and a celebration of his life will be held at a later date. The family requests that in lieu of flowers donations can be made to United Hospital Foundation for use in the Cardiac Care Center, the Children's Hospitals and Clinics Foundation or the Twin Cities Opera Guild.

Tributes

William Richard Keye

June 21, 1921 - May 11, 2010

Tributes

William Richard Keye

June 21, 1921 - May 11, 2010

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