William H. Browning II, entrepreneur

William Hull Browning II of Concord, Mass., an international businessman who lived in Ridgefield as a boy, died Saturday, Jan. 1, 2005, at Walden House Rehabilitation and Nursing Center in Concord, Mass. He had suffered a massive stroke in London, England, three years earlier on his way to Jordan, a country to which he traveled extensively as an international entrepreneur.

Mr. Browning was born in New York City on Dec. 10, 1918, the son of the late William C. and Elizabeth Miner Browning of Ridgefield and Nantucket, Mass. His parents had maintained a home on Spring Valley Road for 40 years before moving to Redding in the 1960s.

Mr. Browning was a graduate of Harvey School and of Middlesex School in Concord; he also attended Harvard University.

During World War II, he enlisted in the United States Air Force, but a serious motorcycle accident prohibited his joining. He therefore joined the American Field Service as an ambulance driver attached to the British Army. He was awarded the British Empire Medal for outstanding bravery in the African and Italian theaters of the war.

After the war, Mr. Browning was associated with Kerby Saunders in Manhattan, and with two associates he formed the corporation Geodyne. Both companies were very involved in Pakistan and the Middle East.

He lived in Manhattan and Pound Ridge, N.Y., London, France, and most recently in Palm Beach, Fla. He had been a member of the Apawanis Beach Club in Rye, N.Y., and the Metropolitan Club in New York and the Bedford Golf and Tennis Club.

An avid equestrian, he was a member of the Goldens Bridge Hounds Club in North Salem, N.Y.

He is survived by three children from his marriage to Jordice G. Browning (Jordice H. Gigstad) of Wilton: his daughter Karen J. Browning of Belmont, Mass., and SouthHero, Vt., William C. Browning of Haverhill, Mass., and Dr. Scott W. Browning of Bala Cynwyd, Pa.; and his daughter from his marriage to his first wife, the late Gloria Cain (French), Mrs. John Mykolyk (Deborah Browning) of Long Beach, Miss., and six grandchildren, David, Alexis, Kirby, Ian, Drew and Owen. He is the brother of Kirk Browning of New York City and the late Ann Noble and is also survived by his former wife, Diane Morrell Browning of Winter Harbor, Me.

The Rev. William Eddy, rector of St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in Buzzard’s Bay, Mass., will lead services Friday, Jan.7, at 11:15 a.m. in the Massachusetts National Veterans Cemetery in Bourne, Mass.

Donations in his memory may be made to PB Cats Inc., P. O. Box 2922, Palm Beach, FL 33480, or to Buddy Dog Humane Society, 151 Boston Post Road, Sudbury, MA 01776.

The Joseph Dee & Son Funeral Service in Concord, Mass., is handling arrangements. To sign or view Mr. Browning’s guest book, visit www.deefuneralhome.com.