John Thomas Kerr, Iii

John Thomas Kerr, III, age 95 died in his sleep in his residence at Durham Regent Apartments in Durham on Thursday, February 18, 2021. He was born in Durham on March 5, 1925.

John’s mother, Eleanor Browning Kerr, and his father, John Thomas Kerr II, were Durham natives and members of First Presbyterian Church, and John was on the church’s Cradle Roll. The family lived on West Club Boulevard at the time of John’s birth.

John’s father owned and operated Durham Foundry and Machine Works, located on Pettigrew Street in Durham, a company formed by John’s grandfather, John T. Kerr, in 1888 and of which John was later employed until its closing.

John grew up in Durham, attending the Durham Public Schools. He was on the varsity golf team at Durham High School.

The outbreak of World War II caused John to skip the last months of his senior year at Durham High School and enroll in the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Navy V-12 College Training Program followed by USNR Midshipman School at Cornell University from which he was commissioned as an Ensign in April 1945.

After commissioning, John served on board the USS Chenango, an escort aircraft carrier and a component of Admiral “Bull” Halsey’s Third Fleet in the Pacific Theater. Following Japan’s surrender, John served in Shanghai, China on the staff of the commander of the Seventh Fleet before heading home to Durham in 1946. John returned to UNC in July 1946 on the G. I. Bill and earned his A. B. Degree in economics in 1947. He remained a devoted Tar Heel all his life.

Following his graduation from UNC John joined the family business, Durham Foundry and Machine Works, and worked there until its closing in 1963. John continued his Naval service in the U.S. Naval Reserve and was promoted to Commander in 1967 before his retirement from the Reserve.

John was a longtime member of the Downtown Durham Rotary Club. Following his return to Durham from active duty military service, John again became a devoted member of First Presbyterian Church where he was elected and served as an Elder.

John was proud of his Scottish heritage. His Clan Kerr ancestors were Border Scots, seventeenth century Presbyterian Covenanters, allied with the powerful Clan Douglas. His American ancestors emigrated during the late 18th century from Pennsylvania via the famous Philadelphia Wagon Road, initially to Alamance County.

John was a Charter Member of the Saint Andrews Society of North Carolina, a Scottish heritage organization established in 1973. He was also founder of the Kerr Family Association of North America and served for a time as Newsletter Editor and President.

John was an only child. He has a number of cousins who survived him including David Thomas Patterson of Orange County, who visited John on a regular basis. John was also survived by his devoted male cat, “Buddy” to which he was devoted and provided for Buddy’s care following his death.

John asked to be interred in his family’s plot in Maplewood Cemetery in Durham and for a memorial service to be held at First Presbyterian Church in Durham at a later date.