William Harley English

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(1911 - 2010)
https://s3.wp.wsu.edu/uploads/sites/2193/2017/11/History.pdf W. Harley English, who received his Ph.D. in Plant Pathology at WSU in 1940, was hired as Instructor to replace Fischer on the state faculty. In 1937, 1938, and 1939 Heald taught the control course and shared two with Harley English. Jones and English taught the rest of the courses
https://www.davisenterprise.com/Archived-Stories-0/William_Harley_English/
William Harley English passed away on March 12, 2010, surrounded by family members. He was 98 years old, just one month away from turning 99.
Harley was born on April 12, 1911, in LaCrosse, Wash., to William and Lulu English. He had an older sister, Wilma (Bing), and a younger brother named Burton. Harley attended high school in Sprague, Wash., where he played football, basketball and ran track. It was there that he discovered the game of tennis, which became a life-long passion.
He attended his first year of college at American University in Washington, D.C., where he stayed with his uncle Burton L. French, a congressman from Idaho. He returned to Washington the following year to attend Washington Sate University in Pullman, where he met his future wife Geraldine (Gerry) Bernheisel. They were married on June 11, 1936 in Seattle.
Harley completed his undergraduate and graduate degrees at WSU, earning a Ph.D. in plant pathology. Harley and Gerry had three children: Carol, Janet and William (Bill). After six years in Wenatchee, Wash., the family moved to Corvallis, Ore., where Harley taught at Oregon State University for two years. In 1947, he accepted an offer he couldn't refuse and moved the family to Davis, where Harley became a professor at UC Davis in the Department of Plant Pathology.
Harley had many accomplishments in his field of study. He travelled the world researching diseases of fruit and nut trees. One of the highlights of his career was spending two years in Chile teaching courses at the University of Santiago. His research was instrumental in helping Chile become a world-leading exporter of fruit crops. Harley continued to visit the Plant Pathology department at UCD after his retirement for over 20 years.
One of the things that Harley is most known for is his love for the game of tennis. Harley played tennis all his life until he retired from the game at the age of 94. He was most accomplished in his 'senior' years, having won many titles in single and double brackets around the state as well as national titles. In honor of his 90th birthday, friends and colleagues from the community worked together in order to establish the Harley English Tennis Court at the new Marya Welch tennis complex at UC Davis.
Harley had a good life. He loved his family, his work and tennis. He also loved the outdoors and had fond memories of backpacking with his wife in the Sierra Nevada and hiking in the Canadian Rockies. He was known for his genuine interest in the lives and welfare of his family, friends and acquaintances. After Gerry died in 1986, Harley focused on his tennis game and became a strong supporter of the UCD women's tennis team. He also welcomed several great-grandchildren into his life and enjoyed watching their soccer and basketball games.




Harley was preceded in death by his wife Gerry and his daughters Carol and Janet. He is survived by his son Bill of Santa Rosa, his grandchildren and their spouses Ñ Jana and Mike Roche of Santa Rosa, Theo Buckendorf and Kirsten Olesen of Woodland, Kirsten Buckendorf of Seattle, Belinda and Keith Kesser of Davis, Mark and Trudi Rosson of Roseville, and Michael and Cari Rosson of Roseville Ñ and eight great-grandchildren: Merek, Quinn, Maren, Max, Chase, Tanner, Haleigh and Sean.
A gathering for friends and family will be held later in May at Harley's home in Davis. Donations in honor of Harley's life can be made to the UC Davis men's or women's tennis teams.
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