Cornelius D. Gall

Neil was born in Utica, New York on April 16, 1933. At the age of five, Neil's parents introduced him to a small climb in the Adirondack Mountains of Blue Mountain. It was quite a climb for a five year old, but he made it. They took this trip every year while they lived in that part of the state. Neil attended Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute as a Physics major and because of the Korean War, he enrolled in the Army R.O.T.C. program. There he also played for the school orchestra, marching band, chess team and handball team. In addition, he was the host of a radio show on the local radio station. Neil graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Physics degree and received a Distinguished Military Student Award. Because of his R.O.T.C. training, he started as a Second Lieutenant and was eventually promoted to the rank of First Lieutenant on a two-year tour of duty in the United States Army at a U.S. Army base near the city of Bordeaux in southwestern France. It was there that Neil met Claudine who was a civilian employee at this army base. Neil and Claudine were married two years after his service. Next, Neil became a graduate student at the University of Kentucky and received a two-year research assistantship in their Physics Department. He graduated from that in 1961 with a Master of Science in Physics degree. Neil learned about an experimental program called "Engineering Physics" that had been initiated at a two-year college named Mohawk Valley Technical Institute in Utica, the city where he was born. This program was designed to match the first two years of the best four-year engineering colleges in the nation, so that it's students could then transfer and complete a four-year degree in their next two years at those four-year schools. So, Neil took this job at M.V.T.I. Neil became the head of the Physics and Engineering Science Department and administered that position during a major portion of his tenure. Neil was promoted to full Professor. When he left the school, approximately 800 students had graduated from this program, and more than 99.5% went on to successfully complete a Bachelor of Science in Physics or Engineering in their next two years. Neil's best students went on to obtain PhD's in Physics. One became a principal official in the American Space Program during the period of that our astronauts began walking on the moon. In addition to his job Neil enjoyed playing tennis, racket ball and squash. To carry on a tradition, when Neil's son Jerry reached the age of five they appropriately took him to climb Blue Mountain as his parents did with him. As expected, his son made it too. Neil was a lifetime Yankees fan and witnessed Mickey Mantle play numerous times. With his family, he enjoyed hiking and traveling by both camper and with a sailboat named Wind Song. His wife Claudine died from cancer in 2014. A graveside service, with Military Honors, was held in the NH Veterans Cemetery, in Boscawen.

Tributes

Cornelius D. Gall

April 16, 1933 - October 23, 2022