Page 56 - Alumni Horae: Vol. 94, No. 2 Winter 2014

56
1946
George McCully Laughlin
Gould
a lifelong and
generous sup-
porter of St. Paul’s
School, died on
November 3, 2013,
at his home in
Landrum, S.C.
He was 85.
Born April 5,
1928, he was the
son of Katharine Laughlin and Rear
Admiral, USNR, Ret., Erl Clinton Barker
Gould of the Form of 1914. He prepared
for St. Paul’s at the Fay School in South-
borough, Mass., before following a long
line of relatives to Millville, including his
grandfather, George M. Laughlin (1891),
his uncles, George M. Laughlin (1915),
John S. Laughlin (1923), and John H.
Gould (1921), and his brother, Erl C. B.
Gould Jr. ’45.
Mr. Gould arrived at SPS as a Third
Former in the fall of 1942 and quickly
assimilated to his new surroundings.
Over his four years at the School, he was
a member of the Library Association,
Glee Club, Astronomy Club, Missionary
Society, The Pelican, Scientific Associa-
tion, and the Choir. He played football
and hockey for Old Hundred. He also
enjoyed cross country, track, and squash.
Following his SPS graduation, Mr. Gould
served his country for two years in the
U.S. Navy, spending time aboard the
carrier USS Philippine Sea and in the
South Pole with Admiral Richard Byrd.
Upon his return in 1948, Mr. Gould en-
rolled at Yale University with the Class
of 1952. Most of his career was spent in
Pittsburgh, where he worked at Pitts-
burgh Forgings Company and J.D. Kirst
Company, before becoming president and
owner of Gould and Associates from 1961
to 1994. Just prior to his 50th SPS reunion,
when asked what word of advice he would
offer a St. Paul’s Sixth Former upon grad-
uation, he wrote, “Work hard – keep your
nose to the grindstone and take good
advantage of all opportunities. It really
pays off.”
Mr. Gould served on the board of dir-
ectors for the Yale Club of Pittsburgh and
board and finance committee of Hospice
of the Carolina Foothills. He was also
a member of the Yale Alumni School
Committee and the American Society
of Metals.
A devoted member of the SPS commu-
nity, Mr. Gould served for several years as
a form agent and was a member of the
John Hargate Society. He was dedicated
to helping students in need of tuition
assistance. His family established the
John H. P. Gould Scholarship.
Many family members succeeded Mr.
Gould at St. Paul’s, including his younger
brother, John D. B. Gould ’50; his cousin,
George H. Gould ’51; his sons, Andrew
M. L. Gould ’71 and George M. L. “Josh”
Gould Jr. ’77; his son-in-law, Peter T.
Hoversten ’73; his nephew, James S.
Gould ’78; his grandson, George Oliver ’04;
and his granddaughters, Katharine H.
Husted ’05 and Liliana Hoversten ’09.
Mr. Gould is survived by his wife of 61
years, Rachael Kilbourne Gould; his two
sons; his daughters, Karen Boyle, Isabel
Hoversten, Megan Benedict, and Leila
Oliver; his brother; and 12 grandchildren.
1948
William Watts
a St. Paul’s School
standout whose
drive and intelli-
gence carried him
all the way to the
White House and
whose scruples
caused him to
leave his coveted
post, died on Sep-
tember 23, 2013, at his home in Cuerna-
vaca, Mexico. He was 83.
Mr. Watts was born on May 30, 1930,
and grew up in Mt. Kisco, New York. He
came to St. Paul’s School in 1944, follow-
ing in the footsteps of numerous family
members, including his brother, uncle,
and cousin. He quickly adjusted to St. Paul’s
life, achieving high academic marks and
participating in athletics, including
hockey, basketball, football, squash, and
crew. He received the St. Paul’s School
Honor Scholarship in 1949.
In School correspondence, he is de-
scribed as a model student. “Among the
one hundred boys in his class he at no
time in his four years here ranked lower
than fourth in any marking period,” Rector
Matthew Warren wrote. “He was a com-
pletely straightforward and honest young
man with a high sense of integrity and
a genuine desire to be of help to his
fellow man.”
That integrity would come into play.
After serving in Air Force intelligence
in West Germany, graduating from Syra-
cuse University with a degree in Russian
studies, and receiving his master’s de-
gree in Russian regional studies from
Harvard, Mr. Watts went on to become
staff secretary for Richard M. Nixon’s
National Security Council.
After 18 months in the White House,
Mr. Watts clashed famously with Nixon
and National Security Advisor Henry
Kissinger over the planned invasion of
Cambodia during the Vietnam War,
according to his obituary in the Wash-
ington Post. Kissinger reportedly shouted
at Mr. Watts, “Your views represent the
cowardice of the Eastern establishment,”
the obituary reads, quoting a New York
Times column. A Kissinger ally, Alexander
M. Haig Jr., told him, “You have an order
from your commander in chief. You can’t
refuse it.”
“Oh, yes, I can,” Mr. Watts replied, “and
I have.”
Mr. Watts promptly resigned and
founded a political analysis organization
called Potomac Associates. He authored
two books, The United States and Japan:
Eyes across the Pacific (1982) and Japan,
Korea and China: American Perceptions
and Policies (1979), and was involved in
negotiations for a free-trade agreement
between the United States and Korea, a
project that was dear to his heart because
his brother Bigelow (SPS 1941) had been
killed in Korea as a Marine Corps pilot.
He retired to Mexico with his third wife,
Nancy Stackton Pierce, who died in 2012.
Mr. Watts always looked back fondly on
his years at St. Paul’s School, admitting
in correspondence to the School that he
hadn’t visited until his 50th reunion for
fear of finding the place drastically
changed from the one he remembered
DECEASED