Eleanor Killam

WEST SPRINGFIELD:  On New Year’s Day, Eleanor Killam, 84, mathematician and beloved pedagogue, passed away at Baystate Medical Center in Springfield.  Born on May 18, 1933 in Whitefield, New Hampshire, she was the daughter of Allison Lynds Killam and Priscilla (Shute) Killam, both deceased.   In 1951 she graduated from Whitefield High School as class valedictorian and in the fall matriculated at the University of New Hampshire.  For a freshman English assignment she wrote a paper on the controversy over who should be credited with the development of Calculus—Newton or Leibniz.  She received a grade of A-minus, but it was clear from the absent critique that the instructor either didn’t read it or read it but didn’t understand a word of it. In 1955 she graduated with her bachelor’s degree and created a pre-feminist stir in the New Hampshire press  by performing above all other students in the College of Technology—an area that had been the exclusive province of men.  She stayed on at UNH for her Master’s degree and attended Yale for her PhD on a four-year scholarship. She moved to Amherst in 1960, and taught at the University of Massachusetts for 31 years. In 1975, the associate chair of the department, M.K. Bennett, exclaimed, “We almost never get something like this!!” when she received a letter from Teresa Farnum that began,  “This year I was fortunate enough to have an outstanding teacher and feel that it is important that you are aware of the contribution that Miss Eleanor Killam is making to the university, the department, and her students.  Miss Killam taught Math 325 in the fall, and since [its sequel Math] 326 was cancelled in the spring, she voluntarily took on an extra course so that we students who wished to complete the sequence would have the opportunity to do so.” Another alumna, Joan Barksdale '66 in 2015 remembered, “One [teacher] stands out in my memory--Professor Eleanor Killam. She was tough, demanding, and, most importantly, very good. She was certainly a model of achievement for a young woman to see.” She had a fascination with baseball and was a devoted Red Sox fan.  When he heard that Eleanor was to retire, one of her students invited her to a game at Fenway Park. It was an experience she appreciated and recalled many times for the rest of her life. Eleanor enjoyed crafts and used her free time to make her own clothes, to do needlepoint, and to knit.  In her 80’s she was asked to knit a prayer shawl for the church.  Instead of one, she knitted a dozen of them. Possessing exemplary self-discipline, she was a lifelong “morning person” and preferred teaching the 8:00am classes.  Until her health began declining, she arose every day at 5:45am, walked a couple of miles, had breakfast, and read the paper.  Even in her late retirement she walked to her office on campus every day. In 1995 she and two colleagues, Henry Jacob and Haskell Cohen, established an annual math competition for freshmen and sophomores.  It presents challenging problems and offers considerable cash prizes.  After the deaths of Jacob and Cohen, it became known as the “Jacob, Cohen, Killam” competition. Eleanor is survived by her sister Susan K. (John) Hrobar, nephews Mark (Christina) Killam and Jason (Beatrice) Killam, nieces Jessica (Brian) Thayer and Julie (Brad) Demien, and a cousin Virginia (Gerald) Stockton.  She is pre-deceased by her brother Everett Killam and sister-in-law Rosemary. If you are moved to make a donation, a contribution to the Jacob-Cohen-Killam competition in care of the UMass Math Department would help sustain the legacy of this great lady. A memorial service will be held on Saturday, March 24th at 10:00am in the United Congregational Church of Holyoke located on the corner of Appleton and Maple Streets.

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