David R. Ebbitt

PORTSMOUTH, RI - David R. Ebbitt, 85, of Aquidneck Place, Portsmouth, formerly of Red Cross Avenue, died Thursday, March 3, 2005 at Newport Hospital Newport, RI.He was the husband of the late Wilma Robb Ebbitt. Born in Newport, RI on March 18, 1919, he was the son of the late W. Frank and Bernice Ailman Ebbitt. Mr. Ebbitt was a direct descendant of Nicolas Easton, one of the original settlers of Newport. Mr. Ebbitt graduated from Rogers High School in 1937, he received a B.A. in EnglishLiterature with honors from Brown University in 1941, where he was elected to Phi Beta Kappaand graduated magna cum laude. He worked for many years as a senior editor in the textbook division of Scott-Foreman Co. in Chicago. With his wife, the late Wilma Robb Ebbitt, he co-authored The Writers Guide and Index to English published by Oxford University Press. Mr. Ebbitt was an enthusiastic and knowledgeable jazz fan. A talented artist, he had an exhibit of his humorous sketches, most featuring his basset hound, at Swinburne House in Newport. At Brown he was on the swim team, and until a few years ago, he did regular laps at Third Beach with great pleasure.He leaves two nieces, Karen Steers Ebbitt and Paula F. Ebbitt both of Cambridge, MA, his nephew Hugh A. Ebbitt and his wife Irene of Middletown, RI and two great-nieces, Michala A. Ebbitt and Kristina L. Ebbitt. He was the brother of the late Paul Francis Ebbitt.A memorial service will be held on Saturday, March 26, 2005, at 11:00AM in the Hambly Funeral Home, ?Brick House,? 30 Red Cross Ave., Newport. Friends are warmly invited to attend. Donations may be made in his memory to the charity of ones choice.