Roger MacGowan

In Memoriam

We mourn the loss of our friends, neighbors and relatives who have passed. Our memories of life at the Lake are entertwined with our memories of those who shared their lives with us here.


Roger Alan MacGowan

6 April 1927 – 22 April 2022

Roger Alan MacGowan of Yankee Lake died on 22 April 2022. He was 95 years old. Mr. MacGowan was predeceased by his parents, Horace Alfred and Elizabeth (Tappan) MacGowan, of Middletown, and his sisters Catherine Julia Cutler, Elizabeth Woodruff Kotsch, and Doris Esther MacGowan.

Roger is survived by his four daughters: Elizabeth MacGowan, Virginia MacGowan (Brian), Cynthia Haataja, and Catherine Dawkins (Brad); his six grandchildren: Matthew (Becky), Paul (Mary), Jennifer (Fred), Catherine, Rebecca (Sai), and Grace; and his seven great grandchildren: Alaska, Everett, Emma, Abigail, Dane, B. Alan, and Marlie.

Roger was a World War II Army Veteran, and followed his war-time service with a career as a mathematician, computer programmer and systems analyst with the Federal Government. Starting at Redstone Arsenal, he was later recruited to the Marshall Space Flight Center when it opened, working under Werner Von Braun. He eventually transferred to Washington, D.C., wrapping up his Civil Service career there, by sharing his knowledge and expertise teaching the next generation of computer scientists at the Department of Defense Computer Institute.

Roger loved science and devoted his later years to scientific thought and learning. Not surprisingly, his final gift is the donation of his body to medical research and education, in the hope that new discoveries will be made and used to enhance knowledge, improve life, and reduce pain.

Roger had a passion for the natural world and shared this passion with his children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. This love of nature surely began at Yankee Lake. Roger spent part of every summer of his 95 years – except one – at Yankee Lake. That one missing summer was at the end of World War II when he was stationed in Europe. As a child, Roger learned to swim, to fish, to boat, to sail, and to hike at Yankee Lake. The photo shows Roger with his father at Yankee Lake in 1931. Up through the last months of his life, Roger loved to sit outside, to walk North Shore Drive, and to monitor the wildlife at Yankee Lake. He was happy to spend his final years living at Yankee Lake – the place he loved more than any other.

All services will be private. If you wish to honor Roger, please consider making a donation in his name to:

Roger Alan MacGowan
Roger & Horace at Yankee Lake 1931
Roger and Horace at Yankee Lake: 1931

The Ridgetop Lakes Conservancy, Inc.
Post Office Box 568
Wurtsboro, NY 12790-0568


© 2025 Yankee Lake Preservation Association, Inc.
PO Box 558 • Wurtsboro • New York • 12790-0558
Call: (845) 888-0474 or Email: ObscureMyEmail

© 2025 Yankee Lake
Preservation Association, Inc.
Post Office Box 558
Wurtsboro, NY 12790
Call: (845) 888-0474
Email: ObscureMyEmail

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