Dr. William B. Howerton
1927-2020
Dr. William (Bill) Bruce Howerton passed away on April 22, 2020.
He had been a resident of Pinehurst for 28 years and a member of Pinehurst Country Club.
Bill was born in Clarksville, Virginia to James Eugene and Elmira McGhee Howerton on September 2, 1927. He was one of eight children.
He spent his young years in the Clarksville school system but graduated with honors from Georgia Military Academy.
Bill served in the U.S. Marine Corps thereafter.
On Valentine’s Day, 1948 he met the love of his life, Emma Virginia Haskins. The following year on December 21, 1949 they were married in Richmond, Virginia in Emma’s home on West Franklin Street. After their wedding, Emma, a registered nurse, encouraged Bill to pursue a career in dentistry.
The couple set out for Ohio and while Bill studied at Ohio Wesleyan University and subsequently the Medical College of Virginia for dentistry, Emma worked as a nurse to support them. They were the ultimate team from the beginning and remained so until Emma’s death in April 2019.
Bill and Emma settled in Berkeley Springs, West Virginia in 1962 where Bill set up a successful dental practice for the next 32 years.
They were avid golfers and members of Winchester Country Club in Winchester, Virginia, winning many championships.
Bill was also mayor of Berkeley Springs for a few terms and enjoyed dabbling in local politics.
They raised three children, their focus and their loves, Myra, Bruce, and Douglas, in Berkeley Springs until college and careers took them elsewhere.
Throughout the family’s time in Berkeley Springs, no one would deny Bill was a prominent fixture in the community; he had a colorful, fun-loving spirit and a unique talent for storytelling.
In 1994, Bill and Emma retired to Pinehurst and enjoyed the good life: playing golf at Pinehurst Country Club and looking out over their home’s view of one of Pinehurst’s beautiful fairways. They were content in their final forever home and looked forward to visits from their adult children and grandchildren. They were married for 70 wonderful years.
William Bruce Howerton is survived by his three children, Myra Douglas Howerton Dunn, William Bruce Howerton, Jr. and Douglas Haskins Howerton; five grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
paid obituary
