An entire article could be written about Bill Middendorf's public service and the honors he received underfive presidents (Eisenhower, Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan). Another article could be written about hiscollections of paintings, prints and documents. He was so much more than these. He was a successfulathlete, an accomplished artist, a prolific composer, a published author and a collector of coins andexonumia. I chose to feature his activities beyond his public service, which I find more interesting.

John William Middendorf II was born on September 22, 1924, in Baltimore, Maryland. He was the son ofHenry Stump (1893-1972) and Sarah "Sally" Kennedy Boone (1902-1971) Middendorf. His father was aninvestment banker.

Ambassador Middendorf had a grandfather, uncle and cousin named John William Middendorf. InGerman families it is not unusual for all sons to be named John and be known by their middle names. Theoriginal John William Middendorf Sr. (1849-1928) had three brothers named John. He had twin sons JohnWilliam Middendorf Jr. (1893-1973) and Henry Stump Middendorf (1893-1972). Henry's son becameJohn William Middendorf II (1924-2025) and John's son became John William Middendorf III (1935-1985). The ambassador's son was John William Middendorf IV (1959-2024).

The grandfather formed J. William Middendorf & Co. He was a well-known Baltimore banker andcontemporary of the Garretts. Middendorf was one of the organizers of the Seaboard Air Line Railway andGarrett was with the Baltimore and Ohio. The uncle was also known as J. William Middendorf.

Bill began drawing at the age of four and studied art at the Middlesex School under Frank Benson of theBoston Museum of Fine Arts. He was also on the school rowing team.

It was said that Bill could throw a baseball through a wall. In 1944, Middendorf was invited to a tryout asa pitcher for the New York Giants baseball team. He reported to Mel Ott on March 12, 1944. He left aftera week to join the Navy.

Middendorf was enrolled in a NROTC program and played basketball at Holy Cross College. Aftergraduation. he served as an engineering officer and navigator in the Navy during the Second World War1944 to 1946 and was stationed in China.

Middendorf received a B. A. from Harvard College in 1947. While at Harvard. He took a fine arts class atthe Fogg Museum. It kindled a growing interest in art and encouraged his sketching and watercolor. AtHarvard he was a member of the Hasty Pudding Club and the Owls Club. He received an MBA from NewYork University in 1954. He was an investment banker with his firm of Middendorf, Colgate andCompany.

He married Isabelle Jackson Paine (1930-2016) in 1953 and had five children. She was a granddaughterof William Alfred Paine and daughter of Francis Ward Paine with the firm of Paine Webber.

Throughout his life, he sketched people he met from presidents to world leaders and documented thegrowth of his children and grandchildren. He accumulated more than 10,000 drawings.

Bill was a judge at the 1960 Olympics in Rome. In 1963 he was on the U. S. Nationals Team for the WorldChampionships of Men's Field Hockey at Lyon, France.

He was appointed by Richard Nixon as Ambassador to The Netherlands in 1969 and served until 1973.He then became Under Secretary of the Navy. He was promoted to Secretary of the Navy serving from 1973 to1977.

While ambassador to The Netherlands in 1971. He studied with Somtow Sucharitkul to be a musiccomposer. He wrote nocturnes and operas. He composed eight symphonies and more than eighty marchesfor Navy ships. One of these was the "J. William Middendorf March" to commemorate the naming of adestroyer in his honor.

{Smarty Pants question of the week, what presidential cabinet member wrote the Franklin D, RooseveltMarch?]

While he was Secretary of the Navy, Middendorf announced the production of the Bicentennial medals tohonor the United States Navy and Marine Corps.

Middendorf helped to promote the first Marine Corps Marathon in 1976 and presented the Middendorf Trophyto the winner. He completed the Marathon eight times with a best finish at 4:22. (I am notimpressed. I completed three marathons faster than that.)

He collected American prints and European art on his travels. In 1967, The Met had an exhibit on"American Paintings and Historical Prints from the Middendorf Collection." Much of his collection wasdonated to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston. Hisname is carved in marble on a staircase at the Met.

Presidential Coin and Antique conducted a sale of The Ambassador J. William Middendorf, II Collectionof exonumia on December 8. 1990. Middendorf had bought heavily at the David W. Dreyfus collectionsale of April 12, 1986. The Dreyfus medals became the highlights of the Middendorf sale.

The first 41 lots were U. S. Mint medals. Lot 32 was a silver Washington Before Boston medal, one offive known (at the time) with four in private hands. At the Dreyfus sale the medal realized $18,150 and atthe Middendorf sale it realized $17,500.

These were followed by Indian Peace medals, Hard Times Tokens, 19 th Century Merchant tokens, CivilWar Tokens, Civil War Storecards, Sutler Tokens, Military. So-Called Dollars, and many otherclassifications. Many of the lots realized less than $100. The collection represented diversity but not highvaluations.

This did not represent the full extent of his numismatic collections. On November 30, 1990, Christie'sconducted a sale that included Greek coins from his collection.

Christie's offered 35 lots from the Middendorf collection of rare documents in their sale of January 21,2021. A highlight was a John Dunlap broadside of the 1776 Declaration of Independence. It sold for$990,000.

In 2025, he was nominated for The Presidential Medal of Freedom. Middendorf died at CharletonMemorial Hospital in Fall River, Massachusetts, on October 24, 2025, and is buried at Arlington NationalCemetery.

The Providence Journal ran a two-page obituary on October 28, 2025, listing all the accomplishments Iam leaving out. It did not mention his art collection, rare documents or numismatics.

If all goes well, we will have a new 100-year-old numismatist to announce next week.

To read the complete obituary, see:
J. William Middendorf II(https://www.providencejournal.com/obituaries/ppvp1314429)